KHOU teased viewers over the weekend about a story that was to air Monday evening featuring an angry Pat Lykos terminating an interview with Mr. Greenblatt. Harsh lighting, a dark background, the reporter silhouetted – all made for great theater. Mr. Greenblatt proclaimed that a dangerous “spike” in grand jury “no-bills” was putting “serious criminals” on the street to possibly commit another crime. His story (click here to view it) was full of graphics proclaiming a 40{997ab4c1e65fa660c64e6dfea23d436a73c89d6254ad3ae72f887cf583448986} overall increase in these “no-bills”, and individual increases in specific crimes from 26{997ab4c1e65fa660c64e6dfea23d436a73c89d6254ad3ae72f887cf583448986} to 115{997ab4c1e65fa660c64e6dfea23d436a73c89d6254ad3ae72f887cf583448986}.
Anyone that has read what I’ve written about DA Lykos knows that I’m not a fan. I was disgusted and remain so by her use of the Republican paid endorsement/slander racket that resulted in her being victorious in the 2008 Harris County Republican Party primary. And I get much pleasure when reading Murray Newman’s attacks on her. So it would be real easy for me to overlook Mr. Greenblatt’s sensationalist reporting, especially since DA Lykos did so poorly in the interview. Can’t do it.
First off, the way that Mr. Greenblatt displays the various no-bill statistics is not reasonable. For instance, he claims a 40{997ab4c1e65fa660c64e6dfea23d436a73c89d6254ad3ae72f887cf583448986} increase in no-bills is problematic but never tells us why. He tries, I guess, but never gets there or offers his own theory. And he never bothers to tell us that the 40{997ab4c1e65fa660c64e6dfea23d436a73c89d6254ad3ae72f887cf583448986} increase is, in terms of overall significance, 330 cases, which represents 1.16{997ab4c1e65fa660c64e6dfea23d436a73c89d6254ad3ae72f887cf583448986} of the cases filed. That is a long, long way from 40{997ab4c1e65fa660c64e6dfea23d436a73c89d6254ad3ae72f887cf583448986} but surely doesn’t look as good on his chart. Same thing happens to his other great leaps. That 115{997ab4c1e65fa660c64e6dfea23d436a73c89d6254ad3ae72f887cf583448986} increase in Aggravated Assaults on Family Members is actually 31 cases, representing 0.1{997ab4c1e65fa660c64e6dfea23d436a73c89d6254ad3ae72f887cf583448986} of all cases. He also doesn’t bother to tell the viewers that the increase in no-bills for Aggravated Assault with a Deadly Weapon was actually higher from 2007-2008 than it was from 2008-2009. Why not? Because it doesn’t fit his story line.
The truth is that you cannot compare criminal cases like he is trying to do. There could be a thousand reasons why no-bills are up in any given year and down in another. I don’t know why DA Lykos would attempt to engage a reporter on this matter, unless she was trying to educate him. Obviously, he had an agenda and was going to push it, regardless of the truth. He never made a case that Harris County is more dangerous today than when DA Lykos took office. She has done some very positive things – her DWI diversion program and attempts to reduced jail overcrowding are examples – during her short term in office. And the fact remains that, while there has been some turnover, prosecutors like Marc Brown, who is over the grand jury division, are highly competent, seasoned, and professional.
Second, this case he puts forth to support his thesis that Harris County is more dangerous under DA Lykos’ reign is suspect from the very start. It looks far more like a Harris County Sheriff’s Office muck up than anything the DA’s office did or didn’t do. In the first place, the HCSO did nothing with the missing person’s report that the family filed. After a private investigator did the work for them, even to the point of finding the body, the car, and a suspected weapon, they gave the guy a two question lie detector test? And then destroyed the suspected weapon later? Sounds like Sgt. Hunter might be doing a little CYA to me.
Third, about that interview. I talked to someone who was at that interview – it lasted over an hour and there were three persons interviewed. Of that hour, all we get is an attempt by DA Lykos to bring a little levity to the conversation (there had already been contentious emails back and forth prior to the interview), a point in the conversation where she is frustrated with Mr. Greenblatt’s failure to comprehend basic statistics, and finally, her termination of the interview. What about the other parts, the substantial parts, the parts where the DA clearly explains the numbers? Why not show those parts? Because they do not fit Mr. Greenblatt’s story line, that’s why not.
True enough, DA Lykos looks bad in that harsh lighting. And she obviously needs to work on her comedy routine – often what works well in informal settings doesn’t in formal ones. She should also review some of Gov. Perry’s press conferences to learn how to deal better with a hostile media person. And perhaps fire the person that allowed the cameraman to set up that lighting.
But beyond that, people need to give her a break on this one and understand what Mr. Greenblatt did and why he did it. I mean, seriously, his report will be viewed by most people as saying that Clarence Laday is a murderer. For ratings. That is wrong, I don’t care how big your ratings are. In our society, we are innocent until proven guilty, no matter how many crimes we have committed in the past.
Sweeps period or not.