The U.S Department of Justice Office of Justice Programs (OJP) has developed a two-page flyer that provides an overview of drug court and other problem solving court program models. Drug courts are specialized court-docket programs that target defendants and offenders (adults and juveniles), as well as parents with pending child welfare cases who have alcohol and other drug dependency problems.
The overview document contains various resources and training and technical assistance opportunities regarding drug court programs. The document is regularly updated by the Bureau of Justice Assistance, the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, and the National Institute of Justice.
The International Association of Chiefs of Police, in association with the Bureau of Justice Assistance, has developed the Officer Health and Wellness Agency Assessment Tool and Action Planning Roadmap as a resource for law enforcement agencies who seek to establish or enhance officer wellness programming. It articulates 10 steps for building a comprehensive officer health and wellness program, and provides tools including checklists, an agency self-assessment form, an action planning template, and an officer survey to help agencies identify strengths and gaps in their current programming. Agencies can use this insight when considering new health and wellness strategies that might work for their agency and officers.
The U.S. Department of Justice’s Office on Violence Against Women (OVW) has recently expanded its Firearms Technical Assistance Project (FTAP), which aims to help communities across the country reduce domestic violence homicides and injuries committed with firearms.
In 2019, OVW and the National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges launched FTAP, which was designed to help communities implement policies, protocols and promising practices to prevent abusers from having access to firearms in domestic violence cases. As part of the announcement, OVW released a solicitation to fund six new FTAP sites in addition to the six existing FTAP sites, which include: Birmingham, Alabama; Muscogee (Creek) Nation; Columbus, Ohio; Brooklyn, New York; the state of Vermont; and Spokane, Washington.
Pre-application information sessions will be held on September 1: see the solicitation for details on registering for these sessions. Applications for this program will be submitted through a new two-step process: step 1 must be completed by September 20, 2021, and step 2 must be completed by September 22, 2021. See the solicitation for details regarding submission requirements. View the solicitation announcement to learn more.
The Bureau of Justice Assistance is hosting its annual BJA Tribal Consultation Program that includes two virtual sessions. This program aims to ultimately improve law enforcement and public safety in tribal communities and native villages and support grant administration and criminal justice policy development to support local, state, and tribal law enforcement in achieving safer communities. Tribal Leaders are invited to both sessions. Other tribal stakeholders are also invited to participate including tribal justice practitioners, grantees, evaluators/researchers, statisticians, tribal organizations, nonprofit organizations working on tribal issues, and representatives of tribal, federal, state, and local governments working on public safety in tribal communities and native villages. Both sessions are closed to the press.
The first virtual session will take place on Wednesday, August 25, 2021. In this session, BJA will provide information on tribal justice funding and programs; and preview questions that will be posed during the upcoming Tribal Consultation Virtual Session. The second virtual session will take place on Wednesday, September 15, 2021. During this session, BJA will hear from Tribal Leaders, tribal designee and stakeholders to help inform how Tribal Assistance funds and programs can best support tribal communities and native villages.
As part of the Biden-Harris Administration’s efforts to support communities seeking to implement or expand community violence intervention efforts, the Bureau of Justice Assistance, in collaboration with the U.S. Department of Justice, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, the U.S. Department of Labor, the U.S. Department of Education, and the White House Domestic Policy Council, has hosted a webinar series on Community Violence Intervention (CVI). Throughout the webinar series, subject matter experts have presented on CVI-related topics.
The third webinar, “Community Violence Intervention (CVI) Webinar Series Part 3: CVI in Practice” will take place on Wednesday, August 18, 2021 from 1:00–2:30 p.m. ET. During this webinar, leading CVI experts will share their on-the-ground experiences on how to implement CVI strategies within communities. They will share insights on what communities should consider in order to effectively implement and sustain CVI efforts.
The recently published third edition of Law Enforcement Intelligence – A Guide for State, Local, and Tribal Law Enforcement Agencies (Law Enforcement Intelligence Guide) aims to spark a policy-oriented discussion of current initiatives, national standards, and best practices for law enforcement agencies aiming to enhance intelligence capabilities. The guide builds upon the previous two editions by describing changes in intelligence practices in the context emerging threats and criminal extremism beyond international terrorism. The guide addresses topics including targeted violence, such as school shootings, right-wing extremism, drug trafficking, gangs, and various types of criminal enterprises. The guide was updated under a grant from the Bureau of Justice Assistance in collaboration with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.
A question that we are often asked at the National Center on Restorative Justice (NCRJ) is “how does restorative justice differ from more mainstream approaches to justice-making in the criminal justice system and beyond?”
At its core, restorative justice defines “justice” in a radically different way than conventional criminal justice responses. Rather than justice as “punishment,” restorative justice conceives of justice as “repair” to the harm caused by crime and conflict. Understanding and responding to the needs of each involved party and the broader community is central to the collective creation of a just outcome.
In order to better understand this shift, we ask that you engage in a quick reflective exercise that we often facilitate with our students.
First, we ask that you reflect for a moment on a time that you became aware of a crime having been committed in your community. What were your needs as a community member? What was most important to you in that moment?
When we pose this question to students in our courses and trainings, we receive remarkably consistent responses. We hear, “I needed to feel safe again” or “I wanted to feel like I can trust the people in my community.” Some also express a need to understand why the crime took place or what led to the incident and to form a plan for how the community can prevent this sort of thing from happening in the future.
Next, we ask you to think back on a time that you experienced significant harm. Maybe you were the victim of a crime or maybe it was an instance in your personal life where you were wronged by another person. What were your needs at that time?
Again, responses to this question are generally consistent. We hear answers such as “I needed the person who harmed me to know how it had impacted my life. I needed to know that he wouldn’t do it again to me or anyone else” or “I wanted to know that she understood what she had done and that she was sorry.” Some also express a need to have their questions answered. We also hear many practical needs for reparations, such as “I needed someone to fix the damage to my property.” Rather than a need for the person who caused the harm to be punished, what we hear are needs for information, validation of their experience and pain, assurance that it will not happen again, repairs, and an apology.
Finally, we ask that you think back on a time that you caused harm to another person. Maybe you committed a crime, or maybe you hurt someone, intentionally or not, through your words or actions. What were your needs?
When we ask this question, we again hear remarkably consistent responses. Many people say, “I needed to be able to apologize and do something to try to make it right.” Others express, “I needed to know that this one incident wouldn’t define me. That I would be seen as a whole person outside this one harmful behavior” or “I needed to share with the person I hurt about what was going through my mind at that time. I wanted to be understood.”
What we glean from this exercise is that there are some common human needs experienced in the wake of crime—needs for safety, understanding, validation, information, apology, and repair. These are needs that so often go completely unmet by our mainstream punitive justice responses, which are concerned primarily with assigning guilt and doling out punishments.
By bringing the involved parties together in a safe and voluntary dialogue with well-trained facilitators, restorative justice creates an opportunity for those human needs following crime to be met. It offers a more humanizing view of what it means to pursue justice.
The impact of this approach is evident in its outcomes including reduced recidivism and increased satisfaction on the part of all involved parties, particularly the harmed party or victim. Because of this positive impact, the use of restorative justice is rapidly expanding in criminal justice systems around the United States and the world.
Of course, restorative justice will not be an appropriate option for all incidents of harm. It is a voluntary process and both the harmed party and responsible party need to engage willingly. Furthermore, it is only effective when the responsible party is taking responsibility. It does not have a mechanism for determining guilt. Restorative justice processes should always be guided by well-trained facilitators who first take the time to meet individually with all involved parties and determine that no further harm will be caused by bringing those involved together in dialogue.
Restorative justice can be used across the spectrum of criminal justice interventions. It is often used as a diversion, with cases being referred directly by police officers or judges. It is also sometimes used alongside conventional criminal justice procedure, including during a prison sentence or upon reentry from incarceration. Many restorative justice programs also accept direct community referrals, allowing the criminal justice system to be bypassed entirely.
We encourage you to learn more about this promising approach to justice reform. NCRJ is a partnership between Vermont Law School, the University of Vermont, the University of San Diego, and the U.S. Office of Justice Programs, Bureau of Justice Assistance. NCRJ is funded by a federal grant to serve as the premier education, training, and research location for the advancement of restorative justice. If you are interested in learning more about restorative approaches to justice-making, please be in touch and consider one of our educational or training offerings.
Visit the NCRJ Art Gallery to view art created by individuals who have participated in NCRJ’s “Reimagining Justice” virtual restorative justice art show. These art submissions are depictions of what restorative justice means to them.
If your jurisdiction is in need of training or technical assistance, or if you know of a community that would benefit from this type of assistance, please contact BJA NTTAC at BJANTTAC@ojp.usdoj.gov and we can connect you to the appropriate training, assistance, TTA partner, and/or resources.
If you are interested in submitting the work of your organization or jurisdiction for consideration in a future TTA Today blog post or in obtaining information related to a particular topic area, please email us at BJANTTAC@ojp.usdoj.gov.
Points of view or opinions on BJA NTTAC’s TTA Today blog are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice, BJA, or BJA NTTAC.
On July 21 2021, the Bureau of Justice Assistance, in collaboration with the U.S. Department of Justice, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, the U.S. Department of Labor, the U.S. Department of Education, and the White House Domestic Policy Council, hosted the second webinar in the Community Violence Intervention (CVI) Webinar Series. During the webinar, titled “CVI Webinar Series Part 2: Place-based Approaches to CVI”, presenters discussed CVI efforts in the context of a place-based approach.
Framed in the social ecological model, place-based approaches can reduce and prevent community violence and crime by enhancing and maintaining the physical characteristics of settings where people come together to foster social interaction, strengthen connectedness, and increase collective efficacy (e.g., shared trust among residents and willingness to intervene). Presenters highlighted the importance of community engagement within place-based approaches and discussed how incorporating community revitalization efforts, such as increasing green spaces and addressing abandoned buildings can reduce and prevent community violence.
On July 20th, 2021, the Office of Violence Against Women (OVW) partnered with the Bureau of Justice Assistance to host a pre-application webinar for the National Service Line for Incarcerated Victims of Sexual Abuse Initiative. The National Service Line for Incarcerated Victims of Sexual Abuse Initiative aims to identify if a National Sexual Abuse Service Line will effectively assist correctional facilities and agencies with complying with and achieving Prison Rape Elimination Act (PREA) Standards. The solicitation aims to identify an eligible organization to develop a comprehensive plan for designing and implementing the service line.
During the webinar, OVW guided listeners through the application process for the FY2021 National Service Line for Incarcerated Survivors of Sexual Abuse Initiative, including eligible organizations and application materials. Additionally, OVW answered questions from program grant applicants.
Applications are due by Wednesday, August 25th, 2021.
The Regional Information Sharing Systems (RISS) Program, with support from the Bureau of Justice Assistance, supports local, state, federal, and tribal criminal justice entities by offering various resources to enhance law enforcement efforts. For example, RISS helps facilitate cross-agency collaboration through the RISSLeads Investigative website. Through this platform, law enforcement officers can interact with one another across jurisdictions to share investigative leads, information, or other issues. Additionally, RISS provides law enforcement officers with a centralized resource portal that features training and information around officer safety through the RISS Officer Safety Website.