SG’s heroin addiction cost him his family, his health, and his job. He knew he had to stop before it also cost him his life. Bronx Community Solutions made the difference that helped SG change his life around. The opioid crisis is an epidemic, affecting thousands, but you can be a part of the solution.
The Brooklyn Mental Health Court represents the Center for Court Innovation's commitment to offering treatment rather than incarceration to people with mental illness who have been convicted of a crime. In 2019, the court commemorated the graduation of its thousandth successful participant.
An evaluation of the Brooklyn Young Adult Court—a misdemeanor court for 16- to 24-year-olds—found fewer convictions and less use of jail for participants, with no discernible risk to public safety. The court provides social services and alternatives to traditional prosecution, partly in response to research showing young people have markedly different brain development from older adults. The report ends with recommendations for other jurisdictions looking to adopt a new approach to young adult justice.
Honoring Judge Alex Calabrese as a "fierce advocate for justice," John Jay College of Criminal Justice awarded the presiding judge of our Red Hook Community Justice Center an honorary degree alongside the class of 2019. Featured at the May commencement, this short film highlights Calabrese's transformational leadership in Red Hook, Brooklyn, and how an emphasis on healing can advance a more humane and effective justice system.
How effective is therapy or treatment when it's used instead of incarceration, and what are the challenges to conducting it inside the coercive context of the criminal justice system? New Thinking host Matt Watkins is joined by clinical psychologist Jacob Ham who works with justice-involved young people affected by trauma, and John Jay College's Deborah Koetzle who evaluates programs aiming to help participants rebuild lives outside of the justice system.
Explore the 25-year history of Midtown Community Court as the nation’s first community court, its impact on the justice landscape, and its unique community partnerships, including an emphasis on using arts programming as an alternative to incarceration.
In 2010, the National Institute of Justice funded the Center for Court Innovation and partners to complete an evaluation of eight reentry courts across the country created by the federal government's 2007 Second Chance Act. This page brings together the series of reports presenting the results of an impact evaluation, a cost-effectiveness study, and a multi-year process evaluation.
Since 2016, the community court in Eugene, Oregon, has met every week in the downtown library. It's part of an effort getting a lot of attention on the West Coast to bring problem-solving justice to friendlier settings. On our 'New Thinking' podcast, hear about Eugene's success with the new model.
This brief outlines successful prosecutor-researcher collaborations and offers ideas to improve the working relationships of prosecutors and researchers. It was written by the Center for Court Innovation in collaboration with the Association of Prosecuting Attorneys with funding from the U.S. Department of Justice.
