August 2019

Human Trafficking Webinar for Courts

Despite our best intentions and efforts to be procedurally fair and humane, court proceedings are often traumatic events for human trafficking survivors, especially those survivors who are arrested and charged with criminal offenses. By learning more about the genesis and manifestations of trauma and adopting changes to court practice, justice professionals can reduce the harm inflicted on survivors and increase trust. Join this MOSAICS webinar to explore how you can incorporate trauma-responsive practices into your courtroom. Tuesday, August 13 at 2:00 p.m.

JPO Rejuvenates Drug Court Website

Our Justice Programs Office team recently refreshed the National Drug Court Resource, Policy, and Evidence-Based Practice Center’s (NDCRC) website . Our team hosts and manages the NDCRC website to equip the drug court field with a wide variety of resources, research, and tools. These resources support treatment court professionals in effectively running their courts. The refresh brings the NDCRC website up-to-date with best practices and modern website design elements. The cleaner look and feel and improved navigation means treatment court practitioners around the country can more easily find the relevant resources and tools they need.  Visit ndcrc.org and click on the homepage banner to watch our drug court explainer video to learn more about treatment courts. Also check out our podcasts , Drug Court Review Journal , Drug Court Database and Map , and more!

JPO at VOCA

On August 14th Karen Lash, JPO’s Justice in Government Project (JGP) Director, will participate on a panel at the Victims of Crime Act (VOCA) National Training Conference held by the National Association of VOCA Assistance Administrators . Her co-panelists include administrators from New York, Washington DC, Massachusetts, and Michigan.  Lash will talk about how civil legal aid helps people who have been victims of domestic violence, elder abuse, financial fraud, identity theft, wage theft, and other crimes. The panel will cover innovative ways administrators can use Victim Assistance Formula funds to provide legal services to victims. To learn more about critically important civil legal needs many victims of crime have, see JGP’s collection of research briefs . To learn more about state-administered federal funds that can support legal services, see JGP’s Grants Matrix , VOCA FAQs , and narratives on how VOCA funding has been leveraged to create statewide programs.  Learn more about JGP's toolkit here .

JPO at NACM

Last week, three members from our Justice Programs Office team presented at the National Association for Court Management ’s annual conference:

Enhancing Caseflow Management to Ensure the Right to Counsel Genevieve Citrin Ray, JPO’s Senior Policy Advisor and R2C Project Director joined District Court Administrator of Fulton County Superior Court Yolanda L. Lewis to discuss enhancing caseflow management to ensure effective assistance of counsel. Ray and Lewis spoke to an engaged group of about 60 court personnel, including court administrators, judges, and clerks about their specific roles in balancing caseflow while ensuring the right to counsel. Key takeaways include:   Caseflow management and ensuring the right to counsel can both be accomplished without compromising either Court administrators along with judges play an active role in both; and Both can be accomplished by reframing caseflow management and adjusting our mindset. To learn more, visit the Right to Counsel National Campaign website and social media . And stay tuned for our upcoming white paper!

Community Engagement to Address the Opioid Crisis Steve Collins, JPO’s Senior Program Associate for NDCRC joined Angela Hagaman, Dr. Robert Pack, and Judge Duane Slone in their presentation on how community engagement can address the opioid crisis. The team presented information on the opioid crisis through the lens of public health and the criminal justice system and explored the community engagement currently being undertaken by the East Tennessee State University Center for Prescription Drug Abuse Prevention and the Tennessee Recovery Oriented Compliance Strategy (TN ROCS).  The team also presented about the numerous opioid crisis specific resources available to court actors through JPO’s National Drug Court Resource Center .

Building Trust and Reducing Harm for Victims of Trafficking Zoë Root, JPO’s Senior Policy Counsel for MOSAICS and Juvenile Drug Treatment Courts Training and Technical Assistance Initiative presented with Kate Mogulescu on taking a critical look at how criminal courts build trust and reduce harm for survivors of trafficking. The presenters discussed ways court managers can improve identification of and court responses to victims of human trafficking facing criminal charges. To learn more, register for our upcoming webinar and visit JPO’s MOSAICS project page !

JPO at NADCP

Last month, our Justice Programs Office team presented at the National Association of Drug Court Professio nals Rise 19 Conference . JPO held sessions on the recently launched Drug Court Review , a peer-reviewed journal established to promote research on issues relevant to the field, and the soon-to-be released Racial and Ethnic Disparities (RED) Program Assessment Tool. The conference, arguably the largest gathering on addiction, mental health, and the justice system, is attended by upwards of 5,000 individuals including treatment court professionals and leaders from the recovery community, law enforcement, veteran service organizations, legislators, and other key stakeholders. Read more on American University's School of Public Affairs website .

In photo from left to right: Preeti Menon, JPO, Zephi Francis, JPO, Leola Abraham, JPO, Janeanne Gonzales, Mecklenburg  County Criminal Justice Services, Joseph T. Johnson II., Mecklenburg  County Criminal Justice Services.

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