Randis Rylander
Criminal Justice and the Community
Professor Herbeck
September 5, 2013
Abstract
Community courts and specialized courts are just that, the name says it all. Community courts work with the community, this is a neighborhood focused court that deals with more problem solving and safety in the community. These courts maintain and build relationships with the local residents, families, business owners, suppliers, schools, and even churches. Specialized courts are more to focus one specific area and address that area alone, for example juvenile courts, treatment courts, and more.
Community Courts and Specialized Courts
The first …show more content…
community court in the country was the Midtown Community Court, set up in 1993 in New York City.
Through the years many others were inspired by the Midtown model, are in operation or planning around the country. Community Court is a community involved justice initiative that provides a nontraditional approach to address traditional problems. These approaches are more problem solving. The offender would not be forced to jail time, instead the non-violent misdemeanor offenders who enter the program can help themselves in overcoming their own problems as they work to complete community service to improve their own the community and make a variety of comprehensive social service linkages to help address the root and underlying issues of repeated criminal behavior. As this focuses more on the cause, the root of the problem, and why does an individual do such offenses, this helps the criminal justice world to understand the society better. Community Court takes a different approach to the chronic social, human and legal problems that are resistant to conventional solutions and will try to use a different method …show more content…
than the traditional to solve the problem. Community Court effectively addresses neighborhood livability problems and concerns, this approach targets the quality of life crimes, while providing immediate defendant accountability to the community and making the offender liable for the offense. Eligible defendants decide to enter the program are required to do community service at approved places around their neighborhood to do time for the crime and to better the neighborhoods. The courts still apply the law from a larger political jurisdiction to individual criminal cases, the community courts do this in a way that takes in to account not only the crime but the need for the community in the way these decisions are produced and carried out.
Many Community Courts house an array of non-traditional programs, such as community mediation, job training and placement, drug treatment and homeless outreach, all of which are rigorously monitored by the court in order to address problems that seem to be the root cause of the original problem in criminal behavior. Services specifically targeted for youth include job readiness, substance abuse and HIV prevention and tutoring and mentor programs. These are all programs that would benefit them going back in to the general population and the safety of the general population. Many of the offenders will take on the community to clean it up. Many are sentenced to take care of trees, remove graffiti from signs, cleaning the subways and train stations, and sorting the recycling bins or cleaning up trash. The main principles to community courts are mainly to restoring the community and bring it together to problem solve. The community courts benefit by bridging the gap between communities and courts, they knit together a fractured criminal justice system, it helps offenders deal with problems that lead to crime and get to the root cause of it. This also help provide the courts with better information and builds a physical courthouse that reflects these ambitions. As the number of community courts are increasing in America, the international interest in community courts is also increasing. For example, community courts are already in operation in South Africa, England, Australia, Canada, and the United Kingdom.
Specialized courts came when attention was beginning to be paid to the way the courts were structured to accommodate the processes. When increasing specialization of treatment and intervention protocols that address the needs and circumstances of specific population, drug
Abusers, and child abusers were added to the mix, courts began to tailor their work to a specific community of offenders. The big courts are the general jurisdiction that have unlimited trial jurisdiction within their jurisdictional area. At the federal level, these are called district courts, at the state level, these courts have many different titles, including district court, trial court, county court, circuit court, municipal court, and superior court. Appellate courts of general jurisdiction review the decisions of inferior courts and are typically called either courts of appeal or supreme courts.
Drug courts came after the huge epidemic of crack in the 1980’s. During this time the court dockets were flooded with multiple drug offenders. When the drug courts came in they were able to speed through cases to overcome the backlog in the cases, the courts did not take in to play the returning offenders who returned upon release. The range of the treatment facilities came into effect as well as the TASC, which brought a link of treatment into the courtroom. The judge plays an active role in helping defendants conquer their addiction and live in society. Defendants who successfully finish the drug treatment usually either get a reduced sentence or a lower or dismissed charge. Now there are more than ever amount of drug courts around the country.
Domestic violence court is another specialized court, this is another that is used daily. The justice system has responded after the crisis in 1998 by developing specialized court processes to handle domestic violence cases. These courts vary widely on their structure and goal. A big focus in these courts in not only the swift and certain responses to domestic violence offenders but also relive the victim of any worries of their safety. One court may focus of the crime and victim safety as another may use focus on both the offender and victim to be a part of the judicial process.
The mental health courts specialize in the public who are mentally ill.
The creation of mental health courts is where the criminal justice system works with mental health professional to address the needs of the mentally ill person who has been charged with a non-violent crime. If the mentally ill are placed in the jails with other inmates they do not receive the proper care they need. These courts also work with assisting financial needs and proper medication to keep them off the street and keep from getting arrested again.
Teen courts focus on the young people who have broken the law. The first teen court started back in 1976 and have only blossomed in the past years. The courts serve to craft a more meaningful response to low-level teen offending. as well as positively involving young people into our justice system. They really strive to have family participation, they require the parents as well to take the stand and be monitored for their child’s
behavior.
Re-entry courts take the drug courts model of intensive court monitoring, therapy, graduated sanctions and rewards, and the combination of services in the justice case processing then applying it to the offenders who have served time and are reentering the population after a say in jail. The goal in this court is to stabilize parolees and probationers in the community when they first exit into the community. Even though each re-entry court may be different they seem to apply the same elements. Offenders are always assessed prior to release, and the plan is developed.
Bibliography
CLEAR, T. (2011). Community justice. (SECOND ed.). NEW YORK: ROUTLEDGE.
Kluger, J. H. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.nycourts.gov/courts/problem_solving/cc/home.shtml
SEK. ((n.d.)). Retrieved from http://www.seattle.gov/communitycourt/