What is a community court? How the model is being adapted across the United States. Julius Lang. (2011) Washington, DC: Bureau of Justice Assistance.
From the report by Julius Lang: Over the past decade and a half, cities and towns across the United States and around the world have sought to test the proposition that courts can play a role in solving complex neighborhood problems and building stronger communities. Since the 1993 opening of New York City’s Midtown Community Court, dozens of cities have created their own community courts. At their outset, each court must address the following set of questions:
- Can courts assume a problem-solving role in the life of a community, bringing people together and helping to craft solutions to problems that communities face?
- How can courts’ sentencing strategies address the effect that chronic offending has on a community?
- Can local voices—residents, merchants, community groups—play a role in the administration of justice?
- How can courts best link offenders to the services they need to avoid re-offending?
- Is it possible to craft meaningful alternatives to incarceration—and ensure that there are swift consequences for non-compliance?
Community courts answer these questions in different ways. Although many community courts focus on one
neighborhood, several jurisdictions have created courts that serve a wider territory, sometimes even an entire city
or county. Some community courts were begun as court-led initiatives, while others were initially championed by
local prosecutors, executive branch leadership, or community activists. Many community courts handle only
criminal cases, focusing largely on quality-of-life offending, such as shoplifting, graffiti, illegal vending, and prostitution.
Others tackle a broader range of criminal cases, such as auto theft, low-level felony drug possession,
stalking, and assault, while still others address non-criminal matters, including juvenile delinquency, housing
issues, environmental code violations, or offender reentry. Community courts even have the capacity to combine
under one roof a number of specialized court dockets. In an experiment in Orange County, California, a community
court includes an adult drug court, a mental health court, a court for those charged with driving under the
influence of alcohol, a veterans’ court, a domestic violence court, and a homeless court.
Download, "What is a community court? How the model is being adapted across the United States." Julius Lang. (2011) Washington, DC: Bureau of Justice Assistance.
