A Dysfunctional Hell

New Orleans, post Katrina, paints a picture of how a city can be transformed into a living hell when no one cares. New Orleans has always had its share of crime but never like today where it has become, on a per capita basis, the murder capital of the US.

The devastation of Katrina, the lack of recovery, overwhelmed government services and chronic unemployment have created a permanent, criminal class among the city's underprivileged. It's a city that's been abandoned, left to die one murder at a time.

The New York Times reports that hurricane Katrina left the city's criminal justice system in chaos:

"The evidence in hundreds of criminal cases was lost, and the flood destroyed the police crime lab, which has not been rebuilt. Often, drugs cannot be tested at other locations before the deadline for bringing charges. Yet the police are trying to stop the violence by arresting more drug users and street dealers, many of whom are quickly released, spinning the jail door faster than ever and fueling the carnage."

Within the criminal justice system, it's a mass of finger pointing. The police blame the prosecutors and the courts. District attorney Eddie Jordan blames the cops, “It’s an insurmountable problem. By the time the investigative report is presented to our office, a good number of witnesses are no longer available or have gotten afraid to testify. That’s the biggest problem in murder cases.”

In Louisiana suspects must be charged within 60-days of arrest or else released. The backlogs and chaos have given rise to terms like "misdemeanor murder" and "60-day murder." It's a vicious circle. Evidence can't get processed efficiently which hampers the ability of police to identify suspects and get arrested suspects charged. Potential witnesses realize the chances of a suspect getting back out on the street and become hesitant to give evidence. Prosecutors wind up with cases so mortally wounded by the time they get to trial that murder conviction rates are astonishingly low. A non-profit organization, the Metropolitan Crime Commission claims that only 12% of murder arrests result in jail time.

New Orleans presents an object lesson of what can happen to a city in the aftermath of a natural disaster. It also demonstrates what is likely to happen when a central government no longer cares.