Author: Lauren Curtis

Keys to Youth Justice Improvement: Demonstration of Practical, Sustainable, Measurable, and Replicable Solutions

The RFK National Resource Center for Juvenile Justice is pleased to announce the release of Keys to Youth Justice Improvement: Demonstration of Practical, Sustainable, Measurable, and Replicable Solutions.

The new Innovation Brief highlights the replicable processes and achievements of the Dennis M. Mondoro Probation and Juvenile Justice System Enhancement Project* (Mondoro Project). The findings illustrate how other state and local jurisdictions are enabled to replicate reforms that establish evidence-informed policies, practices, and stakeholder collaborations to produce positive, sustainable, and measurable outcomes tailored to a jurisdiction’s youth justice system.

Access here: Innovation-Brief-Keys-to-Youth-Justice-Improvement-RFKNRCJJ.pdf

Eviction Diversion Initiative Grant Application Now Open

NCSC is now accepting applications for the Eviction Diversion Initiative Grant Program through Friday, April 21. Grants will be awarded to 6-9 state and local courts to launch or expand eviction diversion programs and transform the eviction court experience. EDI grant funds can be used to hire dedicated court staff to oversee the eviction diversion and court reform work and to build community partnerships. Participating courts will also join a national network of courts at the forefront of this work and have access to intensive technical assistance and ongoing support from NCSC staff and program partners as they design, implement, and evaluate their programs. 

Two informational webinars about the grant program have been scheduled for Monday, February 13 (Register here) and Wednesday, March 15 (Register here). The webinars will also be recorded and posted to ncsc.org/eviction. Questions about the grant program and application process should be submitted to EDI@ncsc.org. Grant applications are due by Friday, April 21. 

DV AWARE Dissemination Project: Building the Training Capacity of States, Meeting the Security Needs of Courts and Families

DV AWARE stands for Domestic Violence Analysis, Warning, Action, Recovery, and Engagement. Perpetrators of domestic violence can threaten the safety and well-being not only of their intimate partners and children, but also courts and communities. Beginning with a grant from SJI in 2021, the DV AWARE Project sought to support juvenile and family court systems around the country anticipate, identify, and mitigate violent incidents in their courthouses associated with domestic violence. It addresses two of SJI’s Priority Investment Areas – (1) Emergency Response and Recovery and (2) Training, Education, and Workforce Development – through the development and distribution of a number of tools, resources, and training opportunities for courts and communities across the country interested in implementing improvements in their handling of potential threats arising from cases involving domestic violence. The NCJFCJ and SJI convened experts in security, threat assessment and management, court administration, domestic violence advocacy, and juvenile and family court practices to inform the Project and the development of multiple unique resources. (See below) 

In the spring of 2023, the NCJFCJ and SJI will further disseminate the resources developed under the Project through the pilot of its multi-disciplinary curriculum directly to a Delaware-based team that includes judicial officers, court managers, court security, domestic violence advocates, and others seeking to improve their ability to meet the security needs of their courts, community, and staff.

Highlights of products developed through the project:

  • What is DV AWARE? A short summary of the DV AWARE Project, highlighting its purpose as well as the Project’s resources developed to help courts and leadership teams looking for information that will help them understand, anticipate, identify, and mitigate incidents in their courthouses associated with domestic violence.
  • The DV AWARE Guiding Principles, which were developed by national experts, and set fourth principles for collaborative, inclusive, strategic, and informed systems improvement, risk assessment, risk reduction, safety and response.
  • The DV AWARE Blueprint, a brief guide that local leadership teams can use to form a DV AWARE Leadership Team and to guide that team in its development of training, policies, and procedures.
  • The DV AWARE Toolkit, a web-based resource structured around the elements of Analysis, Warning, Action, Recovery and Engagement.
  • The DV AWARE Multidisciplinary Curriculum. Designed to help multidisciplinary teams understand the elements of effective planning for and response to domestic violence-related dangerous incidents in courts, analyze their readiness and capacity to respond to domestic violence-related dangerous incidents, and create and apply policies, practices, and procedures aimed at improving court/system readiness and response.

New Online Assessment Tool to Guide Future Space Planning

To help courts plan for future space requirements, NCSC has launched a Modern Courthouse Self-Assessment Tool that examines existing building space and provides guidance on new courthouse space planning and design trends. Responses collected in the interactive questionnaire offer insights for potential remodels and new construction by assessing current courthouse design and current and future service requirements. At the end of the assessment, courts receive a summary report that can assist with defining, planning and reforming space needs to support and enhance updated court operations.

“Future court facilities should continue to be planned with robust integrated technologies without losing sight of the needs of self-represented litigants or those with limited access to technology,” said David Sayles, an NCSC senior court management consultant. “The tool provides some insights into planning considerations for these spaces and connects the survey to other resources within the national center on various topics.”

The self-assessment tool also offers a courtroom construction cost calculator. According to Sayles, the calculator offers a high-level, “rough, order of magnitude” estimate that compares construction costs of hybrid courtrooms and traditional, fully in-person courtrooms. 

For courts already exploring future space needs and design, NCSC has extended the deadline to enter the Court Space reDesign Challenge. Selected projects will be showcased nationally or have the opportunity to receive no-cost technical assistance, with a representative eligible to participate in the National Judicial Court Space Innovation Workshop in late Spring/early Summer 2023. The deadline to submit entries is Friday, February 17th, 2023.

Request for Applications: Enhancing State Court Efforts to Address Child Abuse and Neglect

Application Deadline: March 15th, 2023

According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families, Administration on Children, Youth and Families, Children’s Bureau, on average over 400,000 abused and neglected children live in foster care in the U.S. and foster care systems serve over 600,000 children and youth every year.[1]  According to the U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, in 2020, 34% of child maltreatment victims were under age 3, more than half were female (51%), 44% were white, and the majority (61%) experienced neglect, and American Indian/Alaskan Natives, Black, multiple race, Pacific Islander, and Hispanic youth were more likely to be victimized than white youth.[2]  State courts play a pivotal role in the lives of these children and families.  Every day judges are faced with difficult decisions affecting children and youth with foster care system involvement, continually challenged to find the right solutions in each of their cases. 

Through a special Request for Applications (RFA) process, SJI will award grants to further improve state court efforts in addressing child abuse and neglect. SJI intends to award grants that will enhance state and local court ability to handle these challenging cases, and better serve youth and their families. In addition to meeting all other application requirements, SJI will give priority consideration for funding to projects that focus on institutionalizing, replicating, and/or building on national best practices and procedures in child abuse and neglect cases. Applications should address one or more of the key principles detailed below: 

  • Keeping families together
  • Ensuring access to justice
  • Cultivating cultural responsiveness
  • Engaging families through alternative dispute resolution techniques
  • Ensuring child safety, permanency, and well-being
  • Ensuring adequate and appropriate family time
  • Providing judicial oversight
  • Ensuring competent and adequately compensated representation
  • Advancing the development of adequate resources

Project proposals must not duplicate existing activities supported by other sources, such as the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Children’s Bureau’s Court Improvement Program.

Eligible applicants may apply for funding based on the categories below:

Category 1-Local Court: Eligible local court applicants may apply for up to $50,000 for a period of up to 12 months.

Category 2-State or Territory Supreme Court and/or the Administrative Office of the Courts:  Eligible state (or territory) supreme courts and/or administrative court office applicants may apply for up to $100,000 for a period of up to 12 months. They may also submit applications on behalf of one or more local courts for up to $50,000 per locality for up to 12 months and must agree that all funds will go directly to the local court(s).

Category 3-Non-profit, For-profit Organizations and Institutions of Higher Education: Eligible non-profit, for-profit organizations, or institutions of higher education applicants may apply for up to $150,000 for a period of up to 18 months.  

Cash match for these grants will be waived; however, applicants are encouraged to include as much cash and in-kind match as possible towards their proposed project.

Applications, along with all required forms and attachments, are due to SJI the SJI Grant Management System (GMS) by March 15, 2023, to be eligible for consideration for the first round of review. Applications received after March 15, 2023, will be reviewed, and if approved, awarded on a rolling basis in FY2023.  It is anticipated that awards will be made beginning May 1, 2023.

Full instructions are available here.

[1] Children’s Bureau Adoption and Foster Care Analysis and Reporting System (AFCARS) Report #9.Online. Available:  https://www.acf.hhs.gov/sites/default/files/documents/cb/afcarsreport28.pdf.  Released on November 1, 2022.

[2] OJJDP Statistical Briefing Book. Online. Available: https://www.ojjdp.gov/ojstatbb/victims/qa02107.asp?qaDate=2020. Released on April 18, 2022

COSCA Offers New Guidance for Courting Public Trust and Confidence Through Communication

To help courts establish themselves as a trusted source for information, the Conference of State Court Administrators (COSCA) has published new guidance for developing timely, accurate and understandable communication. In “Courting Public Trust and Confidence: Effective Communication in the Digital Age,” COSCA examines three types of “bad information”—disinformation, malinformation, and misinformation—and provides guidance on how to respond without compromising the integrity of the court.

“Now, more than ever, it is critical for courts to take a proactive approach to communication,” said Karl R. Hade, COSCA president and Executive Secretary of the Supreme Court of Virginia. “It is up to us as judicial leaders to position the court as the trusted source of information.”

Instead, COSCA says, courts should look to these guidelines for effective communication with today’s audiences:

  • Use summaries directed to a general audience.
  • Provide transparency in more cases but particularly in high-profile or high-stakes cases.
  • Respond promptly to bad information.
  • Use a restrained response to undue criticism of the court system or of a specific judicial officer.
  • Increase social media presence.
  • Continue to expand civics education activities.

Additionally, COSCA provides several recommendations for combating bad information:  

  • Consider judicial code of conduct amendments that would allow judicial officers to directly respond to bad information and targeted campaigns based on bad information.
  • Provide best practices training for court staff and judges on how to respond to bad information and defuse heated media coverage.
  • Develop a communications plan and trained team to help courts monitor and respond to bad information and publicize positive information in a variety of formats.
  • Consider establishing a media committee with media organizations, journalists, attorneys, and representatives of the court.
  • Offer plain language summaries of appellate opinions and high-interest trial court cases.
  • Provide greater transparency in all cases, but particularly for high-profile cases.

For more information on this paper and others, visit the COSCA website.

National Judicial Task Force to Examine State Courts’ Response to Mental Illness

On March 30, 2020, the Boards of Directors of the Conference of Chief Justices and Conference of State Court Administrators took action to establish National Judicial Task Force to Examine State Courts Response to Mental Illness to assist state courts in their efforts to more effectively respond to the needs of court-involved individuals with serious mental illness.

Led by an Executive Committee, joined by 40 additional judges, court, and behavioral health experts, and funded by the State Justice Institute, the Task Force has engaged in research, developed tools and resources, delivered training, education, and technical assistance, and developed best practice and policy recommendations for courts and communities.

In October 2022, the Task Force released its Final Report and Recommendations to be used by state and local court leaders in their efforts to examine and address the changes that are needed. The report, endorsed by CCJ and COSCA, details the following recommendations for state court leaders:

  • Convene justice and behavioral health system partners to identify opportunities to collaboratively improve responses to individuals with behavioral health disorders.
  • Promote processes to identify and divert individuals with behavioral health disorders at every stage of system involvement towards treatment and away from further penetration into the criminal justice system.
  • Examine current case management and calendaring practices and implement strategies to more quickly and effectively address issues presented in cases involving individuals with behavioral health needs.

“The Final Report and Recommendations for change call for action by all state and local court leaders, behavioral health and community partners, and other state and federal agencies as we work together and more effectively to meet the needs of justice- involved individuals with serious mental illness.”

-Vermont Chief Justice Paul Reiber, Task Force Co-chair

OJP Announces the Inaugural Class of Reaching Rural Fellows

The Office of Justice Programs’ Bureau of Justice Assistance announced the 67 fellows selected to participate in the inaugural class of the Reaching Rural: Advancing Collaborative Solutions initiative. Co-sponsored by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the State Justice Institute, the initiative will support the fellows’ work to address the overdose crisis that has disproportionately affected rural communities across America.

The United States is experiencing an overdose epidemic. More than 107,000 Americans died from an overdose in 2021, an increase of almost 15% from 2020. While no corner of the country has gone untouched, the crisis has hit rural America particularly hard.

“Illicit substances—particularly powerful synthetic opioids like fentanyl—continue to claim lives at alarming rates. The impact of the opioid crisis has been particularly intense in smaller, more isolated communities where treatment options tend to be scarce,” said BJA Director Karhlton F. Moore. “Through the Reaching Rural Initiative, we are working to support rural public safety and public health practitioners to build deeper partnerships and develop collaborative, innovative solutions to address the needs and challenges in their communities.”

Throughout the year-long initiative, the fellows will meet monthly, virtually and in-person, to examine their local and regional challenges and identify opportunities to serve justice-involved individuals with substance use or co-occurring disorders more effectively. The fellows were selected through a competitive application process and will participate in the Reaching Rural Initiative through one of two tracks, either as part of a cross-sector team from their community or as individuals. The Initiative is part of an ongoing interagency partnership to strengthen public safety and public health collaboration under BJA’s Comprehensive Opioid, Stimulant, and Substance Abuse Program.

The selected fellows reflect a diverse network of professionals representing 80 rural communities in 14 states. The fellows include elected county leaders, county and tribal judges, law enforcement officers, prosecutors, public defenders, public health and behavioral health practitioners, emergency management professionals, reentry coordinators and individuals working in community nonprofits in the following counties:

  • Navajo County, Ariz.
  • Antelope Valley, Calif.
  • County of Del Norte, Calif.
  • Solano County, Calif.
  • White County, Ind.
  • Vigo County, Ind.
  • Hopkins County, Ky.
  • Marshall County, Ky.
  • Chippewa County, plus portions of three bordering counties: Lac qui Parle, Swift and Yellow Medicine, Minn.
  • Polk County, Minn.
  • Roseau County, Minn.
  • Louis County, Minn.
  • Todd County, Minn.
  • Wright County, Minn.
  • Rankin County, Miss.
  • Jefferson County, Neb.
  • Oneida County, N.Y.
  • Harnett County, N.C.
  • Cambria County, Pa.
  • Cocke County, Tenn.
  • 41 counties in the Panhandle and South Plains of West Texas, Texas.
  • Prince George and Surry Counties, Va.
  • Stevens County, Wash.
  • Okanogan County, Wash.
  • Fayette and Mason County, W.Va.
  • Mercer, McDowell, Wyoming, Summers, Monroe, Raleigh, Fayette, Nicholas, Webster, Pocahontas and Greenbrier Counties, W.Va.

For more information on the Reaching Rural Initiative, please visit: https://rural.cossapresources.org/reachingrural.

SJI Awards FY 2023 First Quarter Grants

The SJI Board of Directors met on December 5, 2022 to make decisions on quarterly grant applications, and approved a total of 12 new grants.

Three (3) Strategic Initiatives Grants were awarded: 1) the National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges to support court self-assessment tools, demonstration sites, and broad dissemination for the Enhanced Juvenile Justice Guidelines; 2) Rulo Strategies, National Association of Counties (NACo), and Praxis Consulting for the Courts and County Collaboration: Phase II; and 3) the National Courts and Sciences Institute to prepare and certify state court judges as resources on criminal, civil, and equitable cases involving data science and artificial intelligence.

Two (2) Project Grants were awarded: 1) The National Association for Court Management (NACM) to: develop and deliver nationally significant educational programs, related material, and curriculum with continued focus on SJI Priority Investment Areas and the NACM Core®; and continue distant learning opportunities to broaden the scope and delivery of educational opportunities available in a convenient and flexible method accessed by judges, court managers, administrators, and other judicial branch employees to include many of NACM’s justice partners; and 2) the Kentucky Administrative Office of the Courts to host a mental health summit that will provide an opportunity to discuss, develop, and implement behavioral health interventions for courts and communities.

Six (6) Technical Assistance Grants were awarded: 1) the Supreme Court of Illinois to develop court-driven solutions to improve competency to stand trial practices; 2) the 21st Judicial Circuit Court of St. Louis County, Missouri to create a strategic plan that will incorporate reforms made during the COVID-19 pandemic; 3) the Supreme Court of Wyoming to implement the Judicial Council’s strategic/operational plan; 4) the 19th Judicial District of Louisiana to improve caseflow management practices for criminal and civil cases; 5) the Delaware Administrative Office of the Courts to develop a strategic campaign for the judicial branch; and 6) Cowlitz County, Washington, Superior Court for a caseflow and COVID backlog project.

One (1) Curriculum Adaptation and Training Grant was awarded to the District of Columbia courts.