Thursday, April 28, 2005

In Problem-Solving Court, Judges Turn Therapist New York Times story - "The traditional role of a judge is a stark one: to decide who wins and who loses, who is innocent and who is guilty, who goes to prison and who goes free. Starting about 15 years ago, however, some judges began experimenting with a more active approach, intervening in the lives of drug addicts to get them into treatment and keep them out of overcrowded jails and overburdened courtrooms. Now, in drug treatment courts, judges are cheerleaders and social workers as much as jurists. New York State is pushing this approach to new frontiers, creating a homelessness court, domestic violence courts and mental health courts. Backed by the state's chief judge, and bolstered by the court system's own research, these new courts are, among other things, trying to cut down on the number of people who appear in courtrooms over and over again..." [Viewing New York Times resources requires registration, which is free].