With spikes in gun violence and humanitarian crises in jails, the need for meaningful reform in the justice system is more urgent than ever. On October 28, 2021, Center for Court Innovation Executive Director Courtney Bryan hosted a briefing on the state of justice reform and alternatives to incarceration. Following the briefing, she engaged in conversation with Deron Johnston, the Center’s deputy director of the Center's Community Development and Crime Prevention programs, about innovations in community-led justice.
The Harlem Community Justice Center is a neighborhood-based community court committed to bridging the gap between the court and community to achieve fairness and systematic equity in housing, community health, and access to justice. We believe the community should have a voice in addressing its problems and defining justice, we and seek to empower communities to transform the systems that serve them.
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.
An increasing number of courts are finding that the addition of a new staff role—the "resource coordinator"—enables judges and lawyers to connect defendants to the services they need to address underlying issues driving re-offending. This publication highlights four examples from around the nation.
The Center for Court Innovation’s "Taking Action" series aims to inform justice practitioners about innovations in the field and support their efforts to replicate innovative practices locally.
The Center for Court Innovation’s "Taking Action" series aims to inform justice practitioners about innovations in the field and support their efforts to replicate innovative practices locally. This publication examines the Spokane Municipal Court's groundbreaking, low-cost community court held weekly in the city's downtown library, convening a "mall" of local providers of services for people experiencing homelessness.
The Center for Court Innovation’s "Taking Action" series aims to inform justice practitioners about innovations in the field and support their efforts to replicate innovative practices locally. This publication captures some of the latest developments in community justice, highlighting ten community courts that are implementing groundbreaking approaches to working in new physical environments, serving new populations, engaging new partners, and using new tools.
Recognizing the untapped talent of young people like Jhenai, the Brownsville Community Justice Center created the Hub to offer training, cutting-edge tools, and the opportunity to give back to the community.
Experts and practitioners who attended a roundtable conversation about community justice at the Center for Court Innovation answer the question "What is a Community Court?"
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.
