Not the cops but a major part of the problem.
http://www.rawstory.com/2015/06/poor-peo...fend-them/
http://www.rawstory.com/2015/06/poor-peo...fend-them/
Quote:The on-going decimation of public defense prevents defense attorneys from conducting “ core functions ,” including factual investigation into the underlying charges. In a lawsuit brought in Washington State, it emerged that publicly appointed defense attorneys were working less than an hour per case, with caseloads of 1,000 misdemeanors per year.
This state of affairs also leads to exorbitant trial delays . Consequently, roughly 500,000 pre-trial detainees sit in jail year after year before being adjudged guilty of any crime. This makes a mockery of the innocent-until-proven-guilty principle so sacred to our system of justice.