It can take many forms, but at its core, a community court is about partnership and problem-solving.
What is a community court? It can take many forms, but at its core, a community court is about partnership and problem-solving. It's about creating new relationships, both within the justice system and with outside stakeholders such as residents, merchants, churches and schools. And it's about testing new and aggressive approaches to public safety rather than merely responding to crime after it has occurred.
Here are six principles, derived from the experience of the Midtown Community Court, to keep in mind as you plan a community court:
- Restoring the Community
- Bridging the Gap Between Communities and Courts
- Knitting Together a Fractured Criminal Justice System
- Helping Offenders Deal with Problems That Lead To Crime
- Providing Better Information
- Designing a Physical Space to Match the Court's Goals
Restoring the Community
Recognize that communities are victims, too.
Quality-of-life crime damages communities, often more so than individuals. If left unaddressed, low-level offenses erode communal order, leading to disinvestment and neighborhood decay and creating an atmosphere where more serious crime can flourish. A community court acknowledges this reality.
Use punishment to pay back the community.
Standard sentences – jail, fines, probation – may punish offenders, but they do little to restore the damage caused by crime. A community court requires offenders to compensate neighborhoods through community service.
Combine punishment with help.
Encouraging offenders to deal with their individual problems honors a community's ethical obligation to people who break its laws because they have lost control of their lives. Social service programs also have practical crime control value as they can permanently alter the behavior of chronic offenders.
Give the community a voice in shaping restorative sanctions.
A community court can open a dialogue with its neighbors, enlisting them in the effort to develop appropriate community service projects. A community advisory board can offer residents an institutionalized mechanism for interacting with the judge and court administrators.
Give the community a voice in shaping restorative sanctions.
A community court can open a dialogue with its neighbors, enlisting them in the effort to develop appropriate community service projects. A community advisory board can offer residents an institutionalized mechanism for interacting with the judge and court administrators.
Give the community a voice in shaping restorative sanctions.
A community court can open a dialogue with its neighbors, enlisting them in the effort to develop appropriate community service projects. A community advisory board can offer residents an institutionalized mechanism for interacting with the judge and court administrators.
Give the community a voice in shaping restorative sanctions.
A community court can open a dialogue with its neighbors.