Rooted in history and the urgency of now, New Thinking talks to the people working to reform—or remake—the criminal legal system. It’s hosted by Matt Watkins.
Judge Stephanie L. Rhoades, who helped found and has presided over the Anchorage Mental Health Court since 1998, and Kathi R. Trawver, associate professor of the School of Social Work at the University of Alaska, Anchorage, discuss the court's origins, accomplishments and lessons.
Judge Braden C. Woods of the San Francisco Community Justice Center discusses the practical implications of expanding the court's caseload to include low-level felonies, and he reflects on his first year on the job. (April 2014)
Denise O'Donnell, director of the Bureau of Justice Assistance, discusses the Bureau's strategic mission and holistic approach to justice reform. She also outlines the Bureau's new suite of Smart on Crime programs.
QUEST Futures is a juvenile mental health initiative that seeks to establish a comprehensive, coordinated response to youth with mental illness involved in the juvenile justice system in Queens, New York. Here, researcher Josephine Hahn discusses the findings of an impact evaluation of the program. (February 2014)
Andree Mattix, director of social services at Orleans Parish District Attorney's Office, discusses how a customized technology application helps her staff track data and clients in the D.A.'s diversion, victim-witness, and domestic violence programs.
Chief Magistrate Judge Berryl Anderson of DeKalb County, Georgia discusses the lessons she has learned over the course of 21 years as an attorney and 13 years as a judge about working with victims of domestic violence and improving the justice system's response to intimate partner violence. July 2013
Acting Supreme Court Judge Kelly O'Neill Levy discusses her transition from Bronx Family Court to the Harlem Community Justice Center, where she applies problem-solving strategies to both family and housing cases. May 2013
Tania Sourdin, a professor of law and dispute resolution at Monash University in Melbourne, explains how the Australian Centre for Justice Innovation, which she directs, supports reform through research and experimental projects. March 2013
