NCJ Number
183462
Date Published
1999
Length
8 pages
Annotation
This paper summarizes case flow and interventions at New York City's Midtown Community Court, which provides swift and visible justice for low-level offenses.
Abstract
A project of the New York State Unified Court System and the Center for Court Innovation, the Midtown Community Court is an official arm of the New York Criminal Court. The Community Court arraigns misdemeanor cases from three mid-Manhattan police precincts. When the court opened, these precincts accounted for over 40 percent of all misdemeanor arrests in Manhattan. The court deals with low-level offenses such as prostitution, shoplifting, minor drug possession, turnstile jumping, and disorderly conduct. This paper outlines the court's prearraignment case processing, including arrest, pretrial assessment, information processing, attorney interview, and the work of the resource coordinator. Other aspects of case processing discussed are arraignment, alternative sanctions, community service, social services, and compliance. The array of alternative sentences are designed to address behavioral problems that underlie the offenses for which persons are convicted. Among the services offered through the court are group counseling for substance abuse problems, health education groups for prostitutes and "johns," and individual counseling for persons with mental health problems.