The Rev. Kevin Jones is the faith-based organizer in Brooklyn for our Save Our Streets program, working to end gun violence at the neighborhood level by changing local norms. "The Rev," as he's known, has created a network of religious leaders of all faiths who share the “Stop Shooting, Start Living” message through community events and rapid responses to individual shootings.
This fact sheet describes Neighborhood Safety Initiatives, a program of the Center for Justice Innovation, seeks to improve public safety in New York City by investing in residents, transforming public spaces, and influencing policy. The program provides training to local residents, agency partners and key community stakeholders in community organizing, human-centered design, and re-envisioning public spaces to promote wellbeing. Residents propose tangible solutions to challenges and learn how to access the resources needed to carry them out and support community safety.
The Center for Court Innovation and the National Legal Aid and Defender Association have provided strategic planning support to 10 jurisdictions across the U.S. to increase their capacities to uphold Sixth Amendment protections. Grounded in the Center’s unique research-practice approach, this report describes how former public defenders are paired with experienced researchers to work as a team to support the jurisdictions' strategic planning goals.
Black History Month celebrates the voices, stories, and achievements of Black people and their central role in American history. As part of our Black History Month celebration at the Center for Court Innovation, we're highlighting a poem by Erica Wright, the lead facilitator of our Restorative Justice in Schools program. Ms. Wright wrote and reads "The Children Who Didn't Belong," a poem reflecting the reality of underserved, predominantly Black schools, where accountability needs to start with the system, not the students, as the poem underscores so poignantly.
Amid a dramatic surge in gun violence across the country, some public officials are blaming the spike in New York City on the state's recent bail reforms. This research brief, bringing together publicly available data and research, finds no evidence to support the claim.
Homer Venters has been inspecting prisons, jails, and ICE detention centers for COVID-compliance almost since the start of the pandemic. The former chief medical officer for New York City jails says what were already substandard health systems and abusive environments have deteriorated sharply. Any fix to health care behind bars, he says, has to start with listening to the people these facilities have worked to silence: those with lived experience of the conditions.
Save Our Streets (S.O.S.) Bronx is part of a network of community-based efforts throughout New York City to end gun violence. S.O.S. was the first among the network to adapt the Cure Violence model to New York. S.O.S. uses public health strategies to respond to incidents and prevent violence before it starts. S.O.S. works closely with local organizations, neighborhood churches and pastors, community residents, and the individuals considered most likely to commit a shooting. Independent evaluators credit S.O.S.
The Center for Court Innovation’s Upstate New York office seeks to create a fairer legal system by designing and implementing new programs, performing original research, and providing reformers with the tools they need to launch new strategies. The office operates in Onondaga and neighboring counties where the team works closely with local practitioners to identify and address challenges in criminal, civil, and community settings.
This paper provides a summary of two recent reports on the use of restorative justice and other community-based practices to respond to intimate partner violence. It includes highlights and guiding principles that emerged from a national study of practitioners. It also includes recommendations on how to grow this work that were made in a blueprint for New York City. This is part of our ongoing effort to continue this conversation and push for more options outside of the criminal legal system for people impacted by intimate partner violence.
Healing from Conflict: Restorative Approaches and a Path Forward for Justice brought togetherour teachers and elders in Native communities and the restorative justice space to share stories and lessons about how to balance the values of restorative approaches to justice with a long-term vision for change. The recording of the event and supplemental resources are now available. With so many great questions from our audience that we didn’t have time to answer during the event, there is a digest of questions and answers for reference.