In several countries including Australia, the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, and South Africa, a community court is a neighborhood-focused
problem-solving court that applies a problem-solving approach to local crime and safety concerns. Community courts can take many forms, but all strive to create new relationships, both within the justice system and with outside stakeholders such as residents, merchants, churches and schools. Community courts emphasize collaboration, crime prevention, and improved outcomes, including lower recidivism and safer communities. Community courts are also sometimes referred to as community or neighborhood justice centers.
In Australia, a
community court is the name given to Indigenous court proceedings conducted in the
Magistrates Court of the Northern Territory
The Local Court of the Northern Territory is one of two levels of court in the Northern Territory of Australia. It has jurisdiction in civil disputes up to , and in criminal cases in the trial of summary offences, and also deals with prelimin ...
.
Principles
According to the
Center for Court Innovation, community courts are animated by six key principles. They are:
*Restoring the community:
*Bridging the gap between communities and courts;
*Knitting together a fractured criminal justice system;
*Helping offenders deal with problems that lead to crime;
*Providing the courts with better information; and
*Building a physical courthouse that reflects these ambitions.
Research
By the end of 2010, there had been at least 19 separate evaluations conducted of community courts in the U.S., including 11 impact studies, nine process evaluations, and three cost-benefit analyses. A 2012 evaluation of the District of Columbia Superior Court's East of the River Community Court found that the program brought down rates of re-offending among misdemeanor defendants.
United States
Midtown Community Court
The first community court in the United States was the
Midtown Community Court
The Midtown Community Court is a part of the New York City Criminal Court that focuses on quality-of-life offenses, such as prostitution, shoplifting, farebeating and vandalism, with a view toward rehabilitation instead of punishment. For example ...
, launched in 1993 in
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...
. The court, which serves the
Times Square
Times Square is a major commercial intersection, tourist destination, entertainment hub, and neighborhood in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. It is formed by the junction of Broadway, Seventh Avenue, and 42nd Street. Together with adjacent ...
neighborhood of Manhattan, targets quality-of-life offenses, such as prostitution, illegal vending, graffiti, shoplifting, farebeating, and vandalism.
Operated as a public/private partnership among the New York State Unified Court System,
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...
, and the
Center for Court Innovation the court initially opened as a three-year demonstration project, designed to test the ability of criminal courts to forge closer links with the community and develop a collaborative problem-solving approach to quality-of-life offenses.
The Midtown Court experiment was born of a profound frustration with the conventional response to quality-of-life crime. Supporters of the initiative, which included justice system innovators, business leaders and neighborhood residents, felt that the justice system did not take community concerns seriously. They also felt that a court could use its leverage to more effectively address the causes and conditions that contribute to crime.
Court planners sited the new court in a renovated 1896 building. The building featured clean, bright holding rooms secured with glass panels rather than bars, a pointed contrast to the typical holding pens. The new courthouse also included a full floor of office space for social workers to assist offenders. And the building was wired for an innovative computer system that would allow the judge, attorneys and social service workers to keep in touch with each other and quickly access a defendant's full record.
Offenders at the Midtown Community Court are sentenced to pay back the community through work projects in the neighborhood—caring for street trees, getting rid of graffiti, cleaning subway stations and sorting recycled cans and bottles. At the same time, wherever possible, the court uses its legal leverage to link offenders with social services—drug treatment, health care, education—to help them address their problems. In these ways, the Midtown Community Court seeks to stem the chronic offending that demoralizes law-abiding residents.
Research conducted by the
National Center for State Courts
The National Center for State Courts (NCSC) is an independent, non-profit organization focused on improving the administration of justice in the United States and around the world. Its efforts are directed by a 27-member board of directors and thr ...
on the implementation and early effects of the Midtown Community Court over its first 18 months found that the project achieved its key operational objectives: to provide speedier justice; to make justice visible in the community where crimes take place; to encourage enforcement of low-level crime; to marshal the energy of local residents, organizations and businesses to collaborate on developing community service and social service projects; and to demonstrate that communities are victimized by quality-of-life offenses.
The researchers also credited the Midtown Court with changing conventional sentencing practices for low-level offenses, which were typically either sentences of "time served" (i.e., the time spent in jail between arrest and appearing in court) or short-term jail (a month or less). Sentencing at the Midtown Court produced significantly more intermediate sanctions than the city's conventional arraignment court. Intermediate sanctions included immediate assignment to community restitution projects (with offenders often beginning their sentences within 24 hours of their arraignments) to mandatory participation in social services, such as drug treatment or job training.
In addition, the researchers found "substantial evidence" that the Midtown Court contributed to improvements in quality-of-life conditions in Times Square and surrounding neighborhoods. Together, ethnographic observations of local crime and safety "hot spots," interviews with offenders, analysis of arrest data, focus group interviews and interviews with local police, community leaders and residents pointed to substantial reductions in concentrations of prostitution and unlicensed vending. Arrests for prostitution in the Midtown neighborhood dropped by 56 percent over the first 18 months and arrests for unlicensed vending fell by 24 percent, reflecting a visible reduction in criminal activity on the streets. Community members also reported a marked reduction in
graffiti
Graffiti (plural; singular ''graffiti'' or ''graffito'', the latter rarely used except in archeology) is art that is written, painted or drawn on a wall or other surface, usually without permission and within public view. Graffiti ranges from s ...
along Ninth Avenue, the commercial strip that serves the residential community.
By 1997, the Court was arraigning an average of 65 cases per day for an annual total of over 16,000 cases. This volume made the Midtown Court one of the busiest arraignment courts in the city. In addition, sentenced offenders were performing the equivalent of $175,000 worth of community restitution work per year. The Midtown Court's emphasis on immediacy—offenders must report to the Court's community service or social service center immediately after sentencing—also improved compliance rates. Nearly 75 percent complete their community restitution sentences as mandated, the highest rate in the city.
Replication of the community court model
Over 30 community courts, inspired by the model of the Midtown Community Court, are in operation or planning around the U.S. Although different in many ways, the various U.S. community courts all strive to create new relationships, both within the justice system and with outside stakeholders, such as residents, merchants, churches and schools. They also test new and aggressive approaches to public safety.
Community courts in the United States include: Downtown
San Diego
San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the eighth most populous city in the United State ...
Community Court Project (opened in October 2002);
Denver
Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...
Community Court (opened in September 2003);
Hartford
Hartford is the capital city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. It was the seat of Hartford County until Connecticut disbanded county government in 1960. It is the core city in the Greater Hartford metropolitan area. Census estimates since t ...
Community Court (opened in November 1998); Waterbury (
Connecticut
Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its capita ...
) Community Court, opened in October 2000; Washington, D.C. – East of the River Community Court; Washington, D.C. – Traffic and Misdemeanor Community Court (opened in January 2002); West Palm Beach (
Florida
Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...
) Community Court, opened in August 1999; Westgate Community Justice Center in Palm Beach County, Florida (opened in May 2006);
Atlanta
Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...
Community Court (opened in March 2000);
Indianapolis Community Court (opened in April 2001); Dakota County,
Minnesota
Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...
, Community Court (opened in October 2002);
Minneapolis
Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origins ...
– Hennepin County Community Court (opened in June 1999); St. Paul (Minnesota) Community Court (opened in 2000); Babylon (New York) Community Court, (opened in September 2006); Harlem Community Justice Center (opened in May 2001); Hempstead (New York) Community Court (opened in June 1999); Red Hook ( Brooklyn, New York) Community Justice Center (opened in April 2000); Syracuse (New York) Community Court (opened in July 2001); Gresham (
Oregon
Oregon () is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of its eastern boundary with Idaho. T ...
) Community Court (opened in March 1998); Westside Community Court in
Portland, Oregon
Portland (, ) is a port city in the Pacific Northwest and the list of cities in Oregon, largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon. Situated at the confluence of the Willamette River, Willamette and Columbia River, Columbia rivers, Portland is ...
(opened in April 2001); Overland Park Community Court in Clackamas County, Oregon (opened in January 2005);
Philadelphia
Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, largest city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the List of United States cities by population, sixth-largest city i ...
Community Court (opened in February 2002); Frayser Community Court in
Memphis, Tennessee
Memphis is a city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the seat of Shelby County in the southwest part of the state; it is situated along the Mississippi River. With a population of 633,104 at the 2020 U.S. census, Memphis is the second-mos ...
(opened in February 2000); Whitehaven Community Court in Memphis, Tennessee (opened in September 2002); Downtown
Austin Community Court (opened in October 1999); South
Dallas
Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...
/Fair Park Community Court (opened in October 2004); West Dallas Community Court (opened November 2008);
San Antonio
("Cradle of Freedom")
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, mapsize = 220px
, map_caption = Interactive map of San Antonio
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name = United States
, subdivision_type1= State
, subdivision_name1 = Texas
, subdivision_t ...
Community Court (opened in May 2006);
Seattle
Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest regio ...
Community Court (opened in March 2005).
''
USA Today
''USA Today'' (stylized in all uppercase) is an American daily middle-market newspaper and news broadcasting company. Founded by Al Neuharth on September 15, 1982, the newspaper operates from Gannett's corporate headquarters in Tysons, Virgi ...
'' reported in 2008 that interest in community courts was growing, citing new courts in the works in Newark, N.J., among other cities.
Interest in the American community court model has increased abroad. A report by the Open Society Institute issued in 2008 found that by the end of 2007, 52 community courts were operational around the globe. The report said an additional 27 new courts were slated to open in coming years.
United Kingdom
Based on the success of pilot community court projects in North
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a populat ...
and
Salford
Salford () is a city and the largest settlement in the City of Salford metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. In 2011, Salford had a population of 103,886. It is also the second and only other city in the metropolitan county afte ...
, in 2006 the British government announced plans to create 11 new community courts, all of which were up and running by early 2008.
South Africa
Seventeen community court projects are in operation in South Africa. (In South Africa, the term "community court" also refers to a form of tribunal also known as Courts for Chiefs and Headmen; in these courts, an authorised African headman or his deputy may decide cases using indigenous law and custom, brought before him by an African against another African within his area of jurisdiction.)
The Downtown Community Court opened in
Vancouver, Canada
Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the city, up from 631,486 in 2016. The ...
, in 2008. The court addresses the
Downtown Eastside
The Downtown Eastside (DTES) is a neighbourhood in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. One of the city's oldest neighbourhoods, the DTES is the site of a complex set of social issues including disproportionately high levels of drug use, homele ...
neighborhood. The court seeks both to reduce the harm caused to the community by crime and use collaborative case management to help offenders make long-term changes to their behavior. However, Laura Track, a lawyer and housing campaigner for Vancouver's Pivot Society, says there's a legal log jam ahead unless the government invests millions more in housing and treatment programs. This new court is presided over by Justice Thomas Gove.
A community court project is also being planned for Glasgow, Scotland.
Australia
In Australia, the term "community court" was used in
Western Australia
Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to th ...
and
Northern Territory
The Northern Territory (commonly abbreviated as NT; formally the Northern Territory of Australia) is an Australian territory in the central and central northern regions of Australia. The Northern Territory shares its borders with Western Aust ...
to refer to a type of court that is designed to be culturally competent for
Indigenous Australians
Indigenous Australians or Australian First Nations are people with familial heritage from, and membership in, the ethnic groups that lived in Australia before British colonisation. They consist of two distinct groups: the Aboriginal peoples ...
; however both of these, the
Aboriginal Community Court
Aboriginal Community Court, or Aboriginal court was the name given to the specialised courts dealing with Indigenous Australian offenders in the state of Western Australia between 2006 and 2015.
The proceedings were conducted in the Magistrates ...
in WA (2006–2015),
and the
Community Courts in the NT (2005–2012), are no longer operational.
Equivalents in other states have been the
Nunga Court in
South Australia
South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories ...
(the oldest of its type, established 1999);
Koori Court
A Koori Court is a separate division of the Magistrates', County and Children's Courts of Victoria, Australia. The Koori Court (Magistrates), Children's Koori Court, and County Koori Court hear selected cases, where Indigenous Australians have ...
, in Victoria (2002–present);
Murri Court, in Queensland (2002-2012, 2016–present); and
Youth Koori Court
The Youth Koori Court (YKC) is a court tailored to the needs of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and young people who engage with the criminal justice system in the state of New South Wales, Australia. It operates out of the Childr ...
in
New South Wales
)
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, map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates:
, subdivision_type = Country
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, es ...
.
See also
*
Indigenous court (disambiguation)
References
Sources
*
* Marchetti and Daly (2004), 'Indigenous courts and justice practices in Australia', Trends & Issues in Crime and Criminal Justice No. 277.
* YOUTH JUSTICE CONFERENCING AND RE-OFFENDING, Hennessey Hayes & Kathleen Daly, School of Criminology and Criminal Justice, Griffith University, Brisbane, Queensland https://web.archive.org/web/20070721212436/http://www.griffith.edu.au/school/ccj/kdaly_docs/daly_pt2_paper_3b.pdf and http://www.griffith.edu.au/school/ccj/kdaly_docs/kdaly_paper_17.rtf
* Crime Prevention and Socio-Legal Reform on Aboriginal Communities in Queensland by Barbara Miller, Aboriginal Law Bulletin,
991AboriginalLB 18, http://www.austlii.edu.au/au/journals/AboriginalLB/1991/18.html
* Recidivism in the Northern Territory: Adult Prisoners Released in 2001–02, Joe Yick & Peter Warner https://web.archive.org/web/20070902105724/http://www.aic.gov.au/conferences/2005-abs/yick.pdf
* Chief Magistrate's Guidelines on Community Courts, 27 May 2005.
* Peltz, Bina. ''Courting the Community: Legal Transplants, Legal Innovation, and the Community Court Model''. Princeton, New Jersey: Unpublished Thesis, 2015. http://arks.princeton.edu/ark:/88435/dsp01r781wj345
External links
Midtown Community Court official siteCollingwood Neighbourhood Justice Centre official siteNorth Liverpool Community Justice Centre official site
{{Types of courts
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