Public Defenders decry OCA decision to forge ahead in person

Association of Legal Aid Attorneys members rallied on Zoom Wednesday to call on OCA to resume virtual arraignments wherever possible to limit the spread of COVID-19. Screenshot via Zoom

By Rachel Vick

Queens Defenders Staff Attorney Shane Ferro hasn’t been assigned to an arraignment shift recently, but said what she saw in the courts during in-person activity earlier this week left her with a deep-seated fear ahead of her full return later this week.

“We did virtual arrangements for a year and it worked fine; it wasn't ideal but we’re in a pandemic,” she said. “I'm less effective when I'm scared [or] sick, or if all my colleagues are sick and we’re understaffed, which we're getting to a point where that's about to happen.”

Farro was joined by public defenders from across New York City at a virtual rally Tuesday to implore the state court system to resume virtual arraignments for the safety of lawyers, litigants and court staff at all levels.

Though each Association of Legal Aid Attorneys speaker emphasized the importance of in-person communication and appearances, they said current conditions are not in anyone’s best interest. Staff shortages have lawyers overworked and afraid, and the defendants they serve are often most at risk for infection.

“It's never been more clear that courts in New York City are a dangerous vector for COVID-19,” said Lisa Ohta, calling for the Office of Court Administration to suspend in-person activity that can be completed online.

“There's no replacement for in person advocacy but… we are inundated with daily notification from judges, court staff [and have] members testing positive after working a single shift,” Ohta added. “Communities most impacted will continue to suffer by OCA’s lack of action or worse, indifference.”

OCA’s decision combined with Omicron’s transmissibility, she said, has only exacerbated infection risks as citywide positivity and hospitalization rates remain higher than they have been in months.

In Queens Criminal Court, where arraignments take place in a windowless basement courtroom and those working night court have few places nearby open for reprieve, Farro said the risk is concentrated.

Her staffing concerns were echoed by Legal Aid Society Attorney Elysia Fedorczyk, who said that attrition without the resources to bolster staff is of particular concern. Some staff members are taking on a dozen cases at a time and have been forced to pivot as colleagues quarantine.

“Queens is in a particularly rough spot,” said Fedorczyk. “Being short staffed means that we are left staffing more arraignment shifts and are more exposed; exposing clients, other staff members and family members who didn't ask to be in this situation.”

Over the last month she has been scheduled for arraignments three times and quarantined three times after receiving multiple notifications about exposure — at least one shift has to be picked up by a colleague. She said the situation could be easily remedied with a temporary return to virtual proceedings, which she and others said would allow for more flexibility and safe participation from lawyers in limbo.

Fedorczyk, who became a public defender right after law school, also condemned a narrative she’s heard from the OCA claiming that public defender's just don’t want to work, calling it “the most offensive thing [she’s] ever heard.”

“We all know we don't make a salary worth much — I do this because I love what I do,” she said. ”I cannot do that right now with the way things have progressed.”

OCA spokesperson Lucien Chalfen told the Eagle that the courts are following guidelines laid out by the state and federal government.

“More than a million schoolchildren are in school in New York City,” Chalfen said. “No State or City leader or government agency is backtracking, this is not March 2020. As the virus becomes increasingly endemic, we continue to responsibly monitor its impact on all aspects of how we conduct the courts business and it’s long term affect [sic] on all involved, not select parties. “