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Active U.S. Community Courts – An Up-to-Date List A current list of active community courts in the U.S. read more   British Government Plans Wider Application of Community Justice The British government plans to expand upon the 13 community courts already established throughout England and Wales, according to a new report from the Ministry of Justice. read more   Community Court Principles A community court can take many forms but at its core is about partnership and problem-solving. Here are six principles, derived from the experience of the Midtown Community Court, to keep in mind as you plan a community court. read more   Community Court Research: A Literature Review As yet, no consensus has emerged regarding how to best measure the goals of community court programs, primarily due to the large variety of models adopted by different courts. To date, there are seven notable community court evaluations focusing on four community courts. This article summarizes the basic findings from these evaluations. read more   Community Group Honors Midtown Court A prominent New York community group honored the Midtown Community Court for its enduring contributions to the neighborhood in the form of safer streets and improved quality of life. read more   Defendant Perceptions of Fairness at the Red Hook Community Justice Center In an effort to assess the impact of the Red Hook Community Justice Center on defendant perceptions of fairness, the Center for Court Innovation conducted a survey of nearly 400 misdemeanor defendants, who had their cases handled at either the Justice Center or a traditional, centralized criminal court. The goal was to evaluate the effects of court location (Red Hook or the traditional court), defendant background (race, ethnicity, sex and socioeconomic status), the outcome of their current court case (dismissed or required to return to court; required to attend drug treatment or not), and the stage of their case at the time of the survey (arraignment or subsequent court appearance). read more   Ireland's National Crime Council Recommends Community Courts In May 2007, Ireland’s National Crime Council published a report recommending the establishment of community courts in Ireland. read more   Scottish Minister for Justice Announces Community Court for Glasgow In March 2007, the Scottish government announced its plans to open the country's first community justice centre and community court in Glasgow. read more   Three New Books Feature the Center for Court Innovation Three recently released books feature the Center for Court Innovation. read more   UK’s Justice Secretary Visits Red Hook Jack Straw endorses court-community collaboration following a February 2008 visit to the Red Hook Community Justice Center. read more   TOOLS FOR PLANNERS Building a Budget Drawing up a budget isn't easy, and planners of community justice projects face an extra challenge: Identifying all the non-traditional items—from research to social services, from community outreach to technology—their project will require. To help with that task, here's a list of some of the things that planners might want to consider when making their budgets. read more   Developing a Community Court, Part I: Obstacles Developing a community court is a complex undertaking. By definition, community courts embrace a variety of stakeholders. These include not only the usual suspects like judges, police and prosecutors, but also tenant groups, victims organizations, businesses, schools and block associations. Reaching outside the walls of the justice system to involve new players and create new partnerships complicates both planning and implementation. read more   Developing a Community Court, Part II: Practical Advice While obstacles shouldn't be minimized, they can be overcome if all parties have a commitment to the process and share an understanding of goals and principles. The experience of the Midtown Community Court suggests a number of practical strategies that can assist in the development of any community court project. read more   Developing a Concept Planners need to spell out the scope and goals of a project and the steps that will be taken to carry them out. The best way to do that is to write a concept paper. read more   Engaging the Community Engaging the community should be a top priority in a project’s early stages—above staffing, fundraising, even program planning. Why? Community justice is about partnerships, and creating a true sense of partnership between criminal justice agencies and communities takes time. And hard work. read more   Funding Strategies A successful search for funds is supported by three things: solid research of potential funding sources, a compelling project and old-fashioned networking. read more   Getting Started with Technology The following guide is a starting point in addressing the planning, development and implementation of community court technology. read more   Steps to Defining a Problem Before developing a community court project, planners need to define the major problems a neighborhood faces. This article breaks down that process into six steps. read more   Technology FAQ All the important facets of a community justice collaboration can be enhanced through the use of technology. Here is a list of commonly asked questions about the subject. read more   Using Data to Plan a Community Justice Project Whether it originates out of the local police department, prosecutor’s office, probation department or court system, a community justice project must be tailored to the neighborhood it serves. And since the focus of all community justice projects is solving local crime and public safety problems, one of the foremost tasks for planners is to identify the key problems that the neighborhood in question faces. read more   RED HOOK COMMUNITY JUSTICE CENTER Red Hook Planning Diary Excerpt: Building Partnerships Red Hook planners were not alone in trying to build community support for the Justice Center. They enjoyed the active partnership of the Brooklyn D.A.’s Office, whose early endorsement lent the project immediate credibility. read more   Red Hook Planning Diary Excerpt: Defining the Problem In 1992, Patrick Daly, a principal at an elementary school in Red Hook, was accidentally murdered in a drug-related shoot-out. In the months following his death, Brooklyn D.A. Charles J. Hynes began to speak out publicly about public safety in Red Hook, saying that the neighborhood would be an ideal location for a community court. read more   Red Hook Planning Diary Excerpt: Developing the Site Siting a new project is almost always a tricky business, particularly in a city like New York, where real estate is an extremely precious—and political—commodity. Thankfully, Red Hook offered one major advantage in this regard. read more   Red Hook Planning Diary Excerpt: Engaging the Community Given its history, it is fair to say that many Red Hookers were understandably hesitant about ambitious new government initiatives. In attempting to win community support for the Justice Center, this attitude would prove to be planners' largest obstacle. read more   Red Hook Planning Diary Excerpt: Fundraising Many good ideas founder on the shoals of poor fundraising. No program, no matter how well-intentioned or creative, can survive without adequate resources. And raising money for the Red Hook Community Justice Center was not easy. read more   MIDTOWN COMMUNITY COURT Job Training at Times Square Ink Roughly 70 percent of those who appear at the Midtown Court are unemployed and many lack the skills to find work. Court planners realized that to reduce recidivism, the Court needed to help offenders obtain skills and find jobs. The question was: How could job training and job placement be incorporated into the functioning of the Court? read more   Street Outreach Services Street Outreach Services, or SOS, was officially launched in 1996, when one counselor from the Midtown Community Court paired up with a community patrol officer from a precinct station located next door. When it soon became clear there was too much referral work for a single ad hoc team, the Court started the SOS program and worked with the New York Police Department to launch it in three local police precincts. read more