With a new district attorney and a new approach to case management, the Manhattan Criminal Court has cut its pending caseload 19 percent for the first eight months of 2011, while simultaneously decreasing the time from arraignment to disposition and increasing the number of trials, according to data provided by the Office of Court Administration.
Officials said new initiatives by Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus R. Vance Jr., coupled with a commitment by the judiciary and cooperation of the defense bar, have cut into the Criminal Court backlog and in some ways altered the practice of criminal law in the city’s largest borough.
