county officials

This is the second of a two-part series on Reducing Racial and Ethnic Disparities in County Justice Systems. Racial and ethnic disparity (RED) refers to the unequal treatment of individuals of color in the criminal or juvenile justice systems, which is often represented in jail populations. This interactive virtual discussion will allow participants to ask questions of a national expert at the W. Haywood Burns Institute and county leaders to continue the dialogue on reducing racial and ethnic disparities.

This is the first of a two-part series on Reducing Racial and Ethnic Disparities in County Justice Systems. Racial and ethnic disparity (RED) refers to the unequal treatment of individuals of color in the criminal or juvenile justice systems, which is often represented in jail populations. On this webinar, a national expert at the W. Haywood Burns Institute will outline how county elected officials can identify racial and ethnic disparities in their justice system and discuss how to use this information to inform policy and funding decisions.

This webinar will provide guidance to county officials and administrators on creating and sustaining criminal justice reforms through effective use of criminal justice coordinating councils (CJCCs). As counties face budget deficits, local criminal justice systems are being forced to use increasingly limited resources effectively. A CJCC is a great resource for counties that want to gain a better understanding of their local criminal justice system, to develop greater cooperation among agencies and units of local government, and to establish more effective resource allocation.

County justice systems often have large amounts of data but do not always collect and analyze that information effectively. This session will identify essential data elements that pretrial justice systems should track and will offer suggestions for how this data can be presented in a useful manner to county leaders.

As many of us in the field know, the criminal justice system is comprised of various independent agencies and entities that have traditionally operated in a “silo” fashion—focusing predominantly on their individual goals, objectives, and activities. This approach has, in many respects, left the justice system fragmented and in need of reform. To achieve real, meaningful, and sustained reform in the justice system, strong and coordinated leadership is needed. Effective change management requires effective organizations and effective leaders.