Adjudication/Courts

Enhancing Conviction Integrity through Forensics - Panel Discussions

The Sexual Assault Kit Initiative (SAKI) Training and Technical Assistance (TTA) Team is hosting the Enhancing Conviction Integrity through Forensics Panel Discussions. The SAKI website currently hosts the Enhancing Conviction Integrity through Forensics web page, which includes pre-recorded webinars and other training materials.

Webinar - Emmett Till Cold Case Investigations and Training and Technical Assistance Program

Hosted by the Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA), this webinar will provide details and guidance for potential applicants to BJA’s Emmett Till Cold Case Investigations and Training and Technical Assistance Program solicitation. This program supports efforts of state, local and tribal law enforcement and prosecutors and their partner to investigate, prosecute and resolve and support those impacted by unsolved homicides involving civil rights violations that occurred prior to December 31, 1979. This year, BJA added a category for national training and technical assistance. The presen

In October 2020, the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, together with their partners Association of Prosecuting Attorneys, National Center for State Courts, and RTI International, launched the Strengthening the Sixth website (https://strengthenthesixth.org/). The website offers helpful information about the application of the Sixth Amendment along with various carefully curated resources.

As an alternative to interrogation and standard interviewing techniques, Steve Kleinman, a career military intelligence officer, makes a case for cognitive interviewing in the webinar “BJA Upholding the Rule of Law Webinar: Cognitive Interviewing.” According to Kleinman, cognitive interviewing avoids leading questions, enhances recollection, and helps interviewees to provide more detail, which improves interview integrity. Kleinman outlines the steps for conducting a cognitive interview.

Criminal justice professionals engaged in today’s national debate about criminal justice reform can learn from past efforts at collaboration. In 2019, Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr. and New York City Police Commissioner James O’Neill saw a need for prosecutors and police chiefs to have candid conversations and really listen to each other when making policy decisions.

Webinar – Building a Successful Homicide Committee: Police-Prosecutor Collaboration in Jackson County, MO

Join the Association of Prosecuting Attorneys and the Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) for “Building a Successful Homicide Committee: Police-Prosecutor Collaboration in Jackson County, MO,” an hour-long webinar that is part of the Capital Case Litigation Initiative webinar series. The Jackson County Prosecutor’s Office and the Kansas City Police Department have instituted a successful, collaborative homicide review process.

Webinar: Social Emotional Skill Development

Social and emotional development can be defined as a process through which individuals acquire skills to increase self-awareness, improve relationships with others, and achieve their goals. These skills are essential to succeed in family, school, workplaces, and communities and are increasingly recognized as important to one’s success in a variety of life outcomes. The benefits of social and emotional skill development can therefore be leveraged in tribal communities to maximize the protective impact of these skills against negative outcomes, including addiction. Attend this webinar to discuss the importance of social emotional skills (SES) among children, youth and adults and the buffering effect of SES on addiction and trauma. Examine strategies to support SES development. Upon completion of this webinar, participants will be able to: 

  • Summarize how social emotional skill development occurs at various ages 
  • Explain the impact of SES on addiction and trauma 
  • Identify four specific strategies to support SES development

Due to the complexity of prosecuting sexual violence, a startlingly low number of cases ever make it to court let alone result in conviction. This disappointing reality can be self-perpetuating—victims do not bring charges, and law enforcement and prosecution do not pursue cases, especially if they do not seem winnable.

Webinar: Developing Effective Working Relationships with Victims and Offenders for Community Corrections Professionals

Evidence-based practices clearly demonstrate that the relationships professionals develop with their client is critical in supporting behavioral change. Creating a relationship that is supportive, empathetic, and accountable and that provides appropriate advocacy is foundational in the change process. Developing effective working relationships requires balancing empathy and boundaries with clear goals and an attention to resolving barriers.

Pages