Thursday, March 4, 2010

Happy Birthday, Community Justice Center

The Collaborative Courts blog Moving Justice Forward features a "birthday post" for the Community Justice Center. Handling serious felony cases as well as quality-of-life offenses, the court engages its clientele in services, many of which have to do with drug treatment or housing. In its first year, the court has handled 1,800 defendants. Given the critique in its early days, the post also mentions the high appearance rate.

The high percentage of felonies handled at the CJC has been a bone of contention between the court and the San Francisco Public Defender, who does not staff the court. As a message to the attorneys who work the court--many talented law students with a strong commitment to public service are graduating this Spring, and many who graduated last year with excellent grades and impressive achievements are still looking for work. Please consider sharing the work with them.

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