May 15, 2020
To: Prosecutor Michael O’Malley, Administrative Judge Brendan Sheehan,
Chief Public Defender Mark Stanton, Dr. Julia Bruner, Dr. Akram Boutros
Sheriff David Shilling, Chief of Staff Bill Mason
We at Greater Cleveland Congregations commend you for the bold and swift actions you took in March to safely reduce the population at the Cuyahoga County Jail when it became clear that the coronavirus was going to be a threat. It has been said that time in prison should not be a death sentence. We believe that the cooperative leadership you displayed in reducing the population by half has saved lives and prevented the kind of unmitigated humanitarian disaster that is now occurring in our state prisons just south of here.
Led by the jail’s medical staff, you were able to identify those non-violent offenders at medical risk and release them. The Court and Prosecutor’s Office were instrumental in reducing the flow of new people into the jail by creating Plea Days, in which low-level non-violent offenses are heard in a timely manner; this allows those accused to avoid spending unnecessary time in the jail merely waiting for their cases to be heard. Finally, the Sheriff’s decision to not accept low-level, non-violent offenders from the municipal courts was extremely helpful in reducing the overcrowding that would have resulted from the maintenance of current practices.
While we commend you for your actions, we also strongly urge you to continue with the above practices once the virus has abated. We know there is a tendency to return to the status quo once crises have passed; we can’t allow that to happen. Our prophetic traditions demand our continued work to protect the vulnerable, the marginalized and those unable to speak for themselves. GCC stands ready to work with all of you to ensure that together we strive towards a more just and equitable criminal justice system.
Sincerely,
Rabbi Josh Caruso Rev. John Lentz
Fairmount Temple Forest Hill Church
Rev. Ronald Maxwell Dr. Louise McKinney
Affinity Baptist Church St. John AME
Rabbi Stephen Weiss
B’nai Jeshurun Congregation
Marcia Levine Susan Reis
Fairmount Temple National Council of Jewish Women
Gary Benjamin Diana Woodbridge
Trinity Cathedral Forest Hill Church
Donna Weinberger Keisha Krumm
GCC Criminal Justice Coordinator GCC Executive Director & Lead Organizer
Khalilah Worley Tom Nobbe
Senior Organizer Administrative Organizer
Rev Jawanza Colvin Larry Heller
Olivet Institutional Baptist Church Fairmount Temple
Abigail Weaver Eileen McCully
Trinity Cathedral Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Cleveland
Dara Elliott Ethan Cohen
Forest Hill Church B’nai Jeshurun Congregation
Stephen Wertheim Theresa Markowitz
B’nai Jeshurun Congregation B’nai Jeshurun Congregation
Lee Markowitz Ted Wilson
B’nai Jeshurun Congregation St. Paul’s Episcopal Church
Roger Williams Laurie Albright
Fairmount Presbyterian Church Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Cleveland
Michael Howard Barbara Colston
Living Water Association, UCC Olivet Institutional Baptist Church
Peggy Isquick Scott Lafferty
Fairmount Temple Forest Hill Church
Jeff Smith Ann Smith
Forest Hill Church Forest Hill Church
John Addison David Biegel
Antioch Baptist Church Fairmount Temple
Rob Loftis Sherry Brewer
Cleveland Friends Meeting Affinity Baptist Church
Deby Auerbach-Brown Michelle Mait
B’nai Jeshurun Congregation First Baptist Church
Eileen Vizcaino Mary Ann Breisch
Forest Hill Church Forest Hill Church
Jack Breisch Sharon Nichols
Forest Hill Church Dover UCC
