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“Applying the Problem-Solving Model Outside of Problem-Solving Courts”
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By Francine Byrne, Donald Farole, Jr., Nora Puffett, and Michael Rempel |
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A brief article highlighting major findings and lessons concerning the potential to apply problem-solving practices in a more in-depth way throughout the courts. Longer versions of this research are available in other publications. Published in Judicature, Volume 89, No. 1 (2005). |
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download PDF version |
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A Comparison of Two Prosecution Policies in Cases of Intimate Partner Violence: Mandatory Case Filing vs. Following the Victim’s Lead (COMPLETE DOCUMENT)
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By Robert Davis, Donald Farole, Jr., Chris O'Sullivan, and Michael Rempel |
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Whether prosecution should proceed in domestic violence cases without the support of the victim is an important question with valid theoretical arguments on each side but a dearth of empirical data. This study compared case outcomes, victim satisfaction, and costs in a jurisdiction where the DA’s Office typically declines to file cases when the victim opposes prosecution (the Bronx) with a jurisdiction where the DA’s Office has a universal filing policy (Brooklyn). |
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download complete document |
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A Comparison of Two Prosecution Policies in Cases of Intimate Partner Violence: Mandatory Case Filing vs. Following the Victim’s Lead (EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ONLY)
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By Robert Davis, Donald Farole, Jr., Chris O'Sullivan, and Michael Rempel |
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Whether prosecution should proceed in domestic violence cases without the support of the victim is an important question with valid theoretical arguments on each side but a dearth of empirical data. This study compared case outcomes, victim satisfaction, and costs in a jurisdiction where the DA’s Office typically declines to file cases when the victim opposes prosecution (the Bronx) with a jurisdiction where the DA’s Office has a universal filing policy (Brooklyn). |
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download PDF |
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A Problem-Solving Revolution: Making Change Happen in State Courts
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By Staff of the Center for Court Innovation |
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In recent years, a number of states have worked to transform how courts respond to difficult cases where social, human and legal problems intersect. Building on the success of pioneering drug courts, community courts, mental health courts and domestic violence courts, state court systems are increasingly seeking to make problem-solving innovation a permanent feature of the judicial branch. Recognizing this, the Center for Court Innovation has made a significant intellectual investment in understanding the practical, political and conceptual challenges of “going to scale” with problem-solving innovation. In this collection of essays Center staff have sought to identify and address some of the most challenging questions faced by states as they seek to reform their court systems. |
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Click here to order the book for $9.95 (including shipping and handling), from amazon.com.
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Blueprint for Change Executive Summary
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By Liberty Aldrich, Greg Berman, and Shirley A. Dobbin |
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The Blueprint for Change outlines a step by step process to build on the reforms underway in New York City Family Court by institutionalizing the problem-solving approach. |
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download PDF version |
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"Breaking the Boundaries"
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By Greg Berman |
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A description of the development of the Red Hook Community Justice Center, a multi-jurisdictional community court in Brooklyn, N.Y. Published in New Statesman, Vol. 17, Issue 794 (Feb. 16, 2004) |
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Breaking with Tradition: Introducing Problem Solving in Conventional Courts
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By Robert V. Wolf |
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An overview of why problem solving strategies are desirable and techniques practitioners can deploy to introduce these strategies in conventional courtrooms. |
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download PDF version |
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Bridging Theory and Practice: A Roundtable about Court Responses to Domestic Violence
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By Carolyn Turgeon |
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An edited transcript of a daylong conversation among 20 national experts as they explored options for improving criminal court responses to domestic violence, with particular focus on batterer program mandates, judicial monitoring, probation supervision, and victim advocacy.
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download PDF version |
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Bringing Domestic Violence Best Practices to New York's Town and Village Courts
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By Amanda Cissner |
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Based on findings from a recent training series, this descriptive study documents the current domestic violence policies and practices of town and village justice courts located in one rural county of upstate, New York. The report highlights the challenges faced by many rural jurisdictions in implementing domestic violence best practices and measures the effectiveness of a traditional training for small jurisdictions. |
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download PDF version |
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Building Trust and Managing Risk: A Look at a Felony Mental Health Court
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A detailed look at a one of the first felony mental health courts in the country, this article describes why the court's planning team chose to focus on felonies rather than misdemeanors and how the court and its partners manage potential public safety risks. |
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download PDF version |
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Child Support Protocol: A Guide for Integrated Domestic Violence Courts
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By Liberty Aldrich and Judy Reichler |
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A paper outlining best practice recommendations for courts hearing domestic violence cases, emphasizing that judges should consider financial support and other issues with victim safety in mind. |
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download PDF version |
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"COMMENT: Redefining Criminal Courts: Problem-Solving and the Meaning of Justice"
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By Greg Berman |
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A comment on James Nolan, "Redefining Criminal Courts: Problem-Solving and the Meaning of Justice." This essay rebuts Nolan’s contention that problem-solving courts have become so blinded by the seductive rhetoric of "therapeutic jurisprudence" that they have lost sight of fundamental legal principles like due process and proportionality.
Published in American Criminal Law Review, Vol. 41, No. 3 (Summer 2004) |
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Community Courts Across the Globe: A Survey of Goals, Performance Measures and Operations
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By Diana Karafin |
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There are currently more than 50 community courts open in the U.S. and internationally. By the end of 2008, that number is expected to grow to as many as 79. Given this context of a burgeoning international community court movement, coupled with pressing questions about how to adapt the model to diverse settings, the Open Society Foundation for South Africa commissioned the Center for Court Innovation to conduct a systematic survey of community courts around the world (other than South Africa). |
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link provided by the Open Society Foundation's web site
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Community Justice Around the Globe: An International Overview
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By Robert V. Wolf |
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A survey of community court and community prosecution programs around the world. Published in Crime & Justice International, July/August 2006, Vol. 22, No. 93. |
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download PDF version |
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Community Justice Centres: A US-UK Exchange
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By Greg Berman, Jon Harvey, Adam Mansky, and Greg Parston |
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A discussion of the similarities and differences between the Red Hook Community Justice Center in Brooklyn, N.Y., and the North Liverpool Community Justice Center in England. The article also includes a summary of a discussion among academics, policymakers and criminal justice practitioners from the US and UK about community justice. |
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Reprinted with permission of the British Journal of Community Justice
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Court Responses to Batterer Program Noncompliance: A National Perspective
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By Rachel Finkelstein, Phyllis Frank, Melissa Labriola, Jim McDowell, Chris O'Sullivan, and Michael Rempel |
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A study conducted in collaboration with VCS Inc. that examines how criminal courts respond when domestic violence offenders are noncompliant with a court mandate to a batterer program. The study, based on a national survey of courts, batterer programs, and victim assistance agencies in all 50 states, detected overwhelming support for the goal of "accountability" in theory but a gap between theory and practice, as most courts indicated that they do not always or often impose sanctions when offenders are noncompliant with the batterer program mandate. |
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Criminal Domestic Violence Case Processing: A case study of the five boroughs of New York City
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By Chandra Gavin and Nora Puffett |
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A cross-borough comparison of prosecution and court processing practices for misdemeanor domestic violence cases. The study explores the views of different stakeholders--judges, defense attorneys, prosecutors and victim advocates--regarding the rationale and impact of criminal justice policies, with most expressing support for a specialized domestic violence court model but concern for issues of victim safety and recidivism. |
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download PDF version |
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Data, Delinquency and Drug Treatment: How Technology Can Aid a Juvenile Drug Court
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By Dory Hack |
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A discussion of the web-based case management system designed for the Harlem Community Justice Center's Juvenile Intervention Court. A tool for court planners, this white paper addresses the information challenges unique to a juvenile drug court. |
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download PDF version |
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Dispensing Justice Locally (PART II): The Impacts, Costs and Benefits of the Midtown Community Court
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By David Rottman, Michele Sviridoff, and Robert Weidner |
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The executive summary of Part II of the original evaluation of the country's first community court--the Midtown Community Court. This evaluation was published in two phases. The first phase includes a comprehensive description of the Court and an analysis on the degree to which the Court met each of its goals. The second phase focused on impacts on recidivism rates for select sub-groups of defendants; examined impacts on jail costs after accounting for "secondary jail sentences"; explored other cost and benefit implications of the Court; and surveyed the opinions of community residents. |
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Dispensing Justice Locally: The Implementation and Effects of the Midtown Community Court
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By Richard Curtis, Brian Ostrom, David Rottman, and Michele Sviridoff |
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This is the book form of Dispensing Justice Locally (PART 1): The Implementation and Effects of the Midtown Community Court. Published by Harwood Academic Publishers, Amsterdam, 2000. |
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Order from amazon.com
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Do Batterer Program Length or Approach Affect Completion or Re-Arrest Rates?
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By Amanda Cissner and Nora Puffett |
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The research examines the use of two batterer programs with disparate program philosophies by the Brooklyn Misdemeanor Domestic Violence Court, comparing outcomes among mandated defendants. The results suggest that neither underlying program philosophy nor program length alone predict either program completion or future violence.
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download PDF version |
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Documenting Results: Research on Problem-Solving Justice
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By Staff of the Center for Court Innovation |
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This collection of research reports, written by Center for Court Innovation staff, analyzes the impact of a broad range of problem-solving initiatives launched in New York State and nationwide over the past decade. Among the findings: judicially monitored drug treatment succeeds in reducing recidivism among addicted offenders; more than 85 percent of offenders at an experimental community court thought their cases were handled fairly-a significant improvement compared to conventional courts; by linking mentally ill offenders to community-based treatment instead of incarceration, courts can help improve offenders functioning and reduce the likelihood of re-arrest. The book also includes overviews of the national research literature on drug courts and community courts; an evaluation of a new approach to teen dating violence; and an investigation of how problem-solving principles might be integrated more broadly throughout state court systems. |
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Click here to order the book for $9.95 (including shipping and handling), from amazon.com.
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Does Judicial Monitoring Deter Domestic Violence Recidivism? Results of a Quasi-Experimental Comparison in the Bronx
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By Robert Davis, Melissa Labriola, and Michael Rempel |
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A study of the impact of intensive judicial monitoring with convicted domestic violence offenders. Key findings are also presented in Chapter Six of Testing the Effectiveness of Batterer Programs and Judicial Monitoring Published in Violence Against Women, Volume 14, Number 2 (February 2008). |
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available from Sage Journals online
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Don’t Reinvent the Wheel: Lessons from Problem-Solving Courts
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By Robert V. Wolf |
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A review of nine practical strategies to break down the conceptual and in some cases practical barriers that separate specialized courts from each other and the world of problem-solving from traditional courts. |
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download PDF version |
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Drugs, Courts and Neighborhoods: Community Reintegration and the Brooklyn Treatment Court
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By David Anderson and Greg Berman |
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A description of the lessons learned by the Brooklyn Treatment Court about re-integrating recovered addicts into the community. |
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download PDF version
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Emergency Planning and the Judiciary: Lessons from September 11
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By Thomas Birkland |
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An overview of the New York State court system's actions immediately after the terrorist attacks, including policy changes and lessons learned, and how its emergency planning activities relate to the elements of "best practices" in emergency planning and management. |
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download PDF version |
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Examining Defendant Perceptions of Fairness in the Courtroom
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By Somjen Frazer |
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A brief article highlighting the major findings and implications of the Center's comparison of defendant perceptions of fairness at the Red Hook Community Justice Center and a nearby "downtown" criminal court. Published in Judicature, Volume 91, Number 1 (July-August 2007). |
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download PDF version |
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Expanding the Use of Problem Solving: The U.S. Department of Justice’s Community-Based Problem-Solving Criminal Justice Initiative
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By Robert V. Wolf |
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An in-depth look at the 10 projects awarded grants under the Bureau of Justice Assistance's Community-Based Problem-Solving Criminal Justice Initiative. All the grantees are trying something new: expanding problem solving to include new populations, new geographic territory, or new agencies within the criminal justice system. |
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download PDF version |
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Fact Sheet—Developing a Community Service Protocol
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download PDF version |
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Fact Sheet—Engaging Stakeholders in Your Project
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download PDF version |
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Fact Sheet—Evaluating Your Program
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download PDF version |
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Fact Sheet—Finding the Resources to Help Your Program Thrive
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download PDF version |
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Fact Sheet—Mapping Community Resources
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download PDF version |
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Fact Sheet—Planning Checklist
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download PDF version |
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Fact Sheet—Problem-Solving Justice in the United States: Common Principles
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download PDF version
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Fact Sheet—Publicizing Your Program and Its Successes
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download PDF version |
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Fact Sheet—Using Data to Build Your Program
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download PDF version |
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Fact Sheet—Using Diversion as Part of a Problem-Solving Strategy
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download PDF version |
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Good Courts: The Case for Problem-Solving Justice
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By Greg Berman and John Feinblatt |
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Good Courts is the first book to describe the problem-solving court movement and features in-depth looks at Center for Court Innovation projects like the Midtown Community Court and Red Hook Community Justice Center, as well as other projects around the country, like Oregon’s Portland Community Court. By the Center for Court Innovation's founding director John Feinblatt and current director Greg Berman, Good Courts reviews the growing body of evidence that the problem-solving approach to justice is indeed producing positive results. |
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Click here to order Good Courts from Amazon.com
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How Do We Pay for That? Sustaining Community Prosecution on a Tight Budget
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By Robert V. Wolf |
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A detailed look at strategies prosecutors have used to fund community prosecution programs. The paper includes a comprehensive list of internet resources. |
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download PDF version |
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Introduction to Problem Solving: Key Issues and Challenges
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This curriculum is based on the agendas and participant handbooks created for two workshops held for grante sites under the Community-Based Problem-Solving Criminal Justice Initiative of the Bureau of Justice Assistance, U.S. Department of Justice. Intended to provide practitioners with the tools to initiate their own problem-solving initiative, it includes a number of resources that can be adapted for a variety of purposes. It is intended to assist court managers, judicial trainers, and other in putting on trainings at the local level, creating agendas and participant handbooks based on these materials. The hope is that it will help jurisdictions train their local system players in planning and implementing a community-based problem-solving criminal justice initiative.
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dowbload PDF version |
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Justice in Red Hook
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By Greg Berman and Aubrey Fox |
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An overview of the Red Hook Community Justice Center and the lessons learned from the Justice Center's efforts at neighborhood engagement.
Published in The Justice System Journal, Volume 26, No. 1 (2005) |
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download PDF version |
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Learning from Failure: A Roundtable on Criminal Justice Innovation
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By Greg Berman |
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In January 2007, the Center for Court Innovation and the U.S. Department of Justice’s Bureau of Justice Assistance convened a day-long roundtable in New York that brought together judges, court administrators, probation officials, prosecutors, police chiefs and defense attorneys from across the country to discuss lessons they have learned from projects that did not succeed. The goal was to take a deeper look at failed reform efforts and extract concrete lessons that might aid the next generation of innovators, as well as those who authorize and fund innovation. |
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download PDF version |
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Op Data, 2001: Red Hook, Brooklyn
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By Kelli Moore |
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Results of an annual survey carried out by AmeriCorps volunteers and analyzed by researchers at the Center for Court Innovation. The 2001 survey, which is used as a planning tool by staff at the Red Hook Community Justice Center, focuses on residents’ perceptions of: neighborhood public safety and quality of life, existing community resources, and the criminal justice system. |
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download PDF version
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Op Data, 2003: Crown Heights, Brooklyn
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By Amanda Cissner and Amy Ellenbogen |
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Results of a baseline survey of the community served by the Crown Heights Community Mediation Center. The survey, which was administered by AmeriCorps members and analyzed by researchers at the Center for Court Innovation, provides a forum for community members to voice their concerns about issues of quality of life, safety, services, conflict, and diversity in their neighborhood.
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download PDF version |
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Op Data, 2003: Long Island City, Queens
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By Liz Bracco, Amanda Cissner, and Michael Freedman-Schnapp |
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A community survey, coordinated by staff of the Queens Plaza Community Cleanup and researchers at the Center for Court Innovation, that measures the opinions of community members on issues of quality of life, safety, and community services. |
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download PDF version
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Principles of Problem-Solving Justice
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By Robert V. Wolf |
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An examination of the six principles that animate problem-solving justice. The principles are based on the Center for Court Innovation’s experience developing problem-solving initiatives, an analysis of problem-solving projects from across the country, and feedback from leading practitioners. |
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download PDF version |
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Problem-Solving and the American Bench: A National Survey of Trial Court Judges
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By Francine Byrne, Yueh-Wen Chang, Donald Farole, Jr., and Michael Rempel |
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A nationwide survey of more than 1,000 trial court judges concerning their attitudes and practices with respect to problem-solving. The results indicate broad support for problem-solving methods and offer encouraging news for those interested in integrating problem-solving court principles in conventional court settings. The results also identify important obstacles, including limited resources and a need for greater education and training of judges. |
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download PDF version |
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