Courts are already operating far below acceptable levels: staffing shortages, overworked judges
Balsamini 16 [Dean Balsamini and Kathianne Boniello, "Severe staffing shortages grind courts to a halt", 04/24/2016, New York Post, https://nypost.com/2016/04/24/severe-staffing-shortages-grind-courts-to-a-halt/]
Despite historic case backlogs, dozens of city judges are pushing pencils instead of banging gavels because there is not enough staff to conduct courtroom trials, judges and court officers told The Post. The state court system in New York City is operating at only “70 percent” of capacity and is down 250 officers and 250 clerks, charges Dennis Quirk, president of the New York State Court Officers Association. “There are judges who could be working who aren’t working, and it’s the public that’s getting [cheated],” Quirk said. “The judges can’t talk about it on the record, but I can tell you that they complain about it every day to the powers that be,” he said. “It’s been going on for the last two years and it’s getting worse. Every day there are judges sitting in chambers not able to conduct trials because there is not enough manpower.”