Showing papers in "Justice System Journal in 1995"

Drug Court or Probation?: An Experimental Evaluation of Maricopa County’s Drug Court

Abstract: The nationwide drug court movement represents one of the most recent innovations aimed at decreasing the number of drug-involved offenders by providing drug treatment and intensive court supervision. Although the majority of drug courts are diversion programs, the Maricopa County (Arizona) Drug Court is a postadjudication program for probationers with a first-time felony conviction for drug possession. Probationers are required to participate in an outpatient comprehensive drug treatment program, and their progress is monitored by the judge. The drug court emphasizes individual accountability through a system of rewards and sanctions. A total of 630 offenders sentenced in 1992 or 1993 were randomly assigned to either the drug court or routine probation for RAND’s experimental evaluation and tracked for a period of twelve months. Results show that 40 percent of drug court participants successfully completed the treatment program within twelve months. Although there was no statistically significant differen...

Underwriting the Risky Investment in Community Policing: What Social Science Should Be Doing to Evaluate Community Policing

Abstract: America appears to have committed itself to a profound shift in its core policing strategy, from “reform policing” to “community policing.” This shift has been propelled by a powerful historical critique of the reform strategy; by an operational movement in police departments; and by political forces. Still unanswered is the question of whether community policing “works”; that is, is a more valuable organizational strategy than the reform strategy. Social science and evaluation research are turning to this question. Implicit in the approach of community policing is a belief that the values of social science should guide social decision making; that this is a specialized task for trained outside evaluators; that “crime” is the most critical performance dimension; and that programs rather than organizations are the proper units of analysis. The authors argue that this framework may hinder the full development of community-policing departments as “learning organizations”; that dimensions other than c...

Guardian of the Public and/or the Child: Policy Questions and Conflicts for the Juvenile Court Prosecutor

Abstract: For several decades, prosecutors rarely worked in juvenile courts. The in re Gault decision in 1967, however, granted juvenile criminal defendants several constitutional rights that have transformed juvenile courts into criminal-court-like operations. Although prosecutors now regularly appear in juvenile court, generally, they have not been told whether (or how) they should promote the court’s special rehabilitation mission or emulate their counterparts in adult criminal court; research has mostly ignored this subject. In this study, 100 juvenile court workers (judges, prosecutors, defense attorneys, probation officers) from three juvenile courts (urban, suburban, rural) were interviewed to determine how prosecutors were operating in juvenile court and what these workers perceived to be the proper role for prosecutors. The data show that most workers in the urban center believed that prosecutors were ignoring the dictates of juvenile justice philosophy and were undermining the court’s operations; many wor...

Job Satisfaction Among Male and Female Public Defense Attorneys

Abstract: Writings in the legal field often allude to differences in the work orientation of men and women lawyers. Similarly, much of the research on work satisfaction suggests that men and women, in general, often hold disparate work values. This study compares men and women public defense attorneys regarding work values, career orientations, perceptions of work, and correlates of job satisfaction. The findings indicate that men and women defense lawyers share similar work values, career orientations, and perceptions of work. Both genders were relatively satisfied with their work because they valued the most positive aspects of their jobs. However, perceptions of peer support and job prestige correlated with the job satisfaction of men, while promotional opportunities and workloads correlated with job satisfaction of women. These differences were unrelated to marital status.

Conceptions of Family and Juvenile Court Processes: A Qualitative Assessment

Abstract: Prior research has not fully explained how the juvenile court uses family variables and how these variables influence decision making within the juvenile justice process. In this study, qualitative data obtained from interviews with court personnel across seven counties within a midwestern state are used to assess how family factors influence juvenile justice processes and sanctions. Findings indicate that family variables influence judicial processing as well as sanction and placement decisions and that family variables as conceived by juvenile court personnel potentially place youth of color and poorer youths at greater risk for more intrusive court interventions. Moreover, results indicate that parental sponsorship is important for court officials in deciding how to handle youths. However, parental sponsorship, as Matza defined it, was framed within the context of parental control by juvenile court decision makers.

Toward a Leadership Model in Corrections

Abstract: This article is based on a two-part study, which identifies the leadership practices of highly regarded senior-level corrections officials from across the United States. The findings suggest that leaders in corrections both understand and transcend the traditional corrections culture. Effective correctional leaders go beyond managerial tasks to adapt to a new paradigm that embraces risk taking, provides a vision of the future, and fosters cooperation both internal and external to their organizations.

Court Reform and Judicial Leadership: A Theoretical Discussion

Abstract: This article begins by discussing why it is so difficult to reform the American court system. It then points out that reform is not impossible and briefly reviews several successful reform programs and identifies effective leadership as a critical and common factor. Leadership is then discussed in general terms. The article concludes with an analysis of judicial leadership specifically as a crucial variable in court reform.

A Behavior-based Evaluation Instrument for Judges

Abstract: The beliefthatjudicialperformance shouldbe evaluatedhasgainedincreasing momentum. A numberofsiates hizve usedsurveys ofattorneysas aprimary source ofinformationabout judicial performance. The evaluation survey, if not carefully constructed, may lead to biased evaluations. This research reports on an effort to create a survey that would be easily administered while at the same time providing informationfreefrom bias. Using a proceduredeveloped in otheroccupationaljields. the researchersdevelopedan instrument that uses "critical incidents" of actual judicial behavior as benchmarks for scales to measure judicial performance across six dimensions. Each ofthe six dimensions consists ofjive items. The instrument wasjield tested and shown to be free from bias (i.e., Halo/ Horn and leniency effects) often found in evaluation instruments. The people of the United States believe that voting for public officials is the ultimate expression of democracy. In some states, this adherence to the democratic ideal means judges are elected rather than appointed to office (these elections may be partisan or nonpartisan). Otherstates initially appointjudges and still provide for a sense ofdemocratic accountability by holding retention elections. Thus, on some periodic basis. voters decide whether to retain a judge. Regardless of the circumstances, we expect the electorate to become informed about the candidates and the issues. However, research has found that the citizenry pays little heed to judicial elections (Jacob, 1990). Complicating the issue for the voters is the lack of infonnation available regarding judicial candidates. Underlying this problem in many cases is the strong norm to protect the judicial system's independence, including a desire to pennit judges to make decisions without fear of retribution nor favoritism (Farthing­ Capowich, 1985). In many states, rules ofjudicial conduct severely limit what can be said by or about a jurist or his or her judicial record. As a result, there has been a strong desire

Pushing the Envelope ?Leadership in Prosecution

Abstract: reflect problems existing in a world where no one is in charge and no single organization or institution can act alone to bring about solutions (Bryson and Crosby, 1992). To deal with these problems, a new form of leadership is needed? one that is based on influence relationships between leaders and followers created to achieve mutually agreed-upon goals. This article describes how four locally elected prosecutors adapted traditional roles of prosecution to meet the chal lenges presented by complex public problems. It describes the process that they followed, the changes that ensued, and their visions for the future. The elements common to this new direction in prosecution include 1 ) the recognition that crime prevention is a legitimate prosecutorial goal; 2) the most effective results are obtained within small, manageable geographic areas; and 3) success or change is more likely to occur through cooperative efforts or partnerships than by dictum. "Leadership is not a personal or individual thing. It is a relationship, a process whereby people influence one another concerning real changes they intend for organizations or societies'' (Rost, 1991:174).

The Law Clerks’ Recommendations and the Conference Vote On-the-Merits on the U.S. Supreme Court

Abstract: To what extent did Justice Harold Burton vote in accord with the recommendations of his clerks regarding whether to affirm or to reverse the decision of the lower court? We examined this question regarding his conference votes on-the-merits during three terms of the Vinson Court. We discovered that Burton’s agreement rate with his clerks exceeded his agreement rates with all eight of his colleagues and that the clerks’ agreement rate with Burton’s conference votes exceeded their agreement rates with the other eight justices’ conference votes. Those results support the view that the relationship between a law clerk and his justice can be perceived in terms of principal-agent theory. These findings suggest that the Court is an efficient organization and that clerks are trying to help rather than influence their employer; i.e., clerks do not use their positions to pursue ideological goals.

Case Management Techniques Work

Abstract: In 1989 a large metropolitan general jurisdiction courtfaced a backlog of 70,000 pending cases and a three-and-one-half-year wait to trial. The court was anxious to test the concept of court management of cases with a practical application. The court, working with the local bar on a delay reduction task force (DRTF), adopted the goals of eliminating the backlog and reducing the time-in-process to 18 months for civil cases and 12 months for domestic cases. After a review of the literature and techniques used elsewhere, the DRTF implemented three case management programs: a joint status report requirement, case schedules issued at filing, and a hybrid individual calendar program.The court found that although no one program met all its goals, the combination of these programs helped the court achieve its goals and led to an unexpected reduction in the number of trials and the average length of trial. Understanding how these programs affected the court’s case processing offers practical, relevant information ...

Do Courts Respond to the Political Clout of Groups or to Their Superior Litigation Resources/“Repeat Player” Status?

Abstract: This is the first attempt to classify factors that are raised in the scientific literature concerning factors related to litigation success by organizations. It develops a three-part typology, suggesting that litigation success has been linked to the litigation resources of litigants (including the fact that they are “repeat players”), the political clout of litigants, and more general organizational resources.It then proceeds to test the relative weight of these three factors by studying abortion cases decided by federal district courts from January 22, 1973, the date of Roe v. Wade, 410 U.S. 113 (1973), to 1990. Specifically, the 126 organizational litigants involved in these cases completed surveys, which gathered information on all three factors. A general picture is that the federal courts were not responsive in post-Roe v. Wade abortion cases to the litigation-related resources of groups and even their repeat player status. Instead, court outcomes in abortion cases were linked to political factors, ...

Federal Habeas Corpus Reform: The State’s Perspective

Abstract: Utilizing a national survey of assistant state attorneys general, this article examines the effects of the Rehnquist Court’s judicially initiated habeas corpus reforms upon the justice system. Although the Court’s initiatives were directed at the branch of government about which the justices presumably possess their greatest knowledge and expertise, the reforms generated unanticipated consequences. Contrary to the justices’ goal of reducing the expenditure of legal resources, the procedural focus of the reforms generated additional work for many states’ attorneys as well as administrative difficulties in obtaining court records. The perceptions and comments of states’ attorneys demonstrate that effective habeas corpus reform requires a conscious recognition that such cases affect not merely petitioners and the federal courts, but also other justice system institutions, especially state courts and state government.

Advertising and the Legal Profession

Abstract: Many state bar associations have sought to make their advertising regulations more stringent, arguably because the image of the legal profession has been suffering in recent years. This article seeks to explain these reform efforts by examining whether bar associations are responding to demands of members as demonstrated by attitudes toward advertising, as well as by their advertising behaviors. It is possible that Bates v. State Bar of Arizona (1977) and subsequent U.S. Supreme Court decisions are not having their intended effects and that advertising by lawyers is misleading and confusing, creating a climate ripe for reform. Alternatively, the decisions might be having their intended effects of driving down prices and allowing young firms/attorneys to compete for clients more effectively-outcomes leaders of the bar might like to thwart. Using survey data of small-firm lawyers gathered in four states before the reform movement received much attention, the evidence suggests that neither of these explanati...

Team Leadership: Using Selfdirected Work Teams in the Courts

Abstract: The 1990s are bringing rapid change to the management and leadership philosophies of many organizations, including the courts. Self-directed work teams (SDWTs) represent an innovative and efficient alternative to the conventional, top-down organizational structure used by most courts. Judges and court managers will be forced to assign more responsibility for decisions to firstline supervisors and frontline employees. What will this new form of court organization look like? How can courts implement this new way of “doing business”? This article will examine these and other questions concerning SDWTs in detail.

Alimony Awards and the Search for Equity in the No-Fault Divorce Era

Abstract: Among the many changes brought about by no-fault divorce was the reconceptualization of alimony from a right into a conditional means of support for the disadvantaged spouse. Under no-fault, alimony was viewed as a temporary measure to be awarded until the disadvantaged spouse became self-sufficient. Thus, economic need was the determining factor in awarding alimony under no-fault. To assist judges in deciding alimony cases, many states provide a statutory list of factors relevant for assessing the economic need and earning potential of the disadvantaged spouse. While alimony remains an option for a disadvantaged spouse, alimony is awarded in only a small percentage of cases, and much research examining the economic effects of divorce indicates that women continue to be the economic losers under no-fault. However, little research has been done examining the role that alimony plays in the postdivorce economic situations of the disadvantaged spouse. The research discussed here focuses on alimony awards and ...

Do Judges Protect Each Other?: Confidentiality of Judicial Discipline Proceedings

Abstract: One could argue that members of a profession, in disciplining those who misbehave from within their own ranks, might be particularly harsh because the miscreants bring the occupation into disrepute. On the other hand, skeptics about the process by which any profession polices itself are inclined to believe that an occupation's members protect their own. One way in which they might do so is by keeping claims of ethical transgression from the public eye?at least until the transgressions were proved or almost certainly proved. There certainly are strong, if not incontrovertible, grounds for keeping confidential the complaints that are made to professional discipline bodies, at least in the early stages of the compaint process, to protect individuals' reputations from frivolous and unfounded accu sations. Yet, particularly where confidentiality provisions cover the milder forms of discipline, such as reprimands and censure, the public's perception is that the profession is engaged in a "cover-up." Such beliefs are reinforced by the limited number of serious discipinary actions, such as suspension from practice, taken against lawyers and doctors. The question of how to evaluate actions one member of a profession takes in connection with discipline of another member is posed by a recent case in which a federal judge was called upon to rule on a challenge to a state judicial discipline system's confidentiality provisions. The judge's ruling recognizes the competing interests of openness, toward which the First Amendment strongly tilts, and confidentiality, claimed to protect the judicial discipline process so that both the process and the judiciary can be more effective. The case, therefore, is useful in presenting these competing interests. However, the judge's arguments in favor of limiting confidentiality seem also to show clearly a resistance to openness, based on an unjustified fear of its consequences. The Connecticut statute governing judicial discipline had provided that someone called before the judicial discipline commission (Judicial Review Council) "shall not disclose his knowledge of such investigation to a third party unless respondent requests that such investigation and disclosure be open" (Conn.Gen. Stat. ?51-51/). U.S. district judge Jose Cabranes, now of the Second Circuit, found that provision acceptable in barring disclosure of the fact of an investigation or of information obtained by dealing with the council. However, he held the provision to be violati ve of the First Amendment because it prevented an individual from revealing the contents of his or her own testimony to the council. Kamasinski v. Judicial Review Council, 797 F.Supp. 1083 (D.Conn. 1992). He based his conclusion as to the statute's unconstitutionality on "governing Supreme Court precedent,"

The Development of Tomorrow’s Leaders in Judicial Administration

Abstract: Leadership, or lack thereof, increasingly will define organizational success or failure. Few topics generate as much interest today. What is leadership? How do effective executives inspire and instruct their employees to do their best work? What do tomorrow’s leaders in judicial administration need to know and to do ? What are the pressing issues they must confront? What is the context in which leadership must operate today? This article explores some of the issues of leadership, ventures some tentative answers to the questions about the development of leadership in the courts, and describes four challenges and opportunities facing leaders in judicial administration in what promises to be a virtual transformation of the courts, including an increasing responsibility for social problem solving, institution building, and governance; the crumbling barrier between the public and private sectors; the need for continuous learning by individuals and court organizations alike; and the need to maintain str...

Government Consent Decrees and the Paradox of “Consent”: A Critical Case Study

Abstract: Government consent decrees afford unique opportunities for interest groups to shape the outcome of public policy. This is especially so when the defendant agency is controlled by an executive that is sympathetic to the aims of the plaintiff interest group. In such a situation, it is possible for interest groups and agencies to develop policies that go well beyond what a court might ordinarily order as a form of judicial relief, in a way that bypasses legislative branch authority. Such policies will have the additional advantage, from the parties’ point of view, of being irrevocable at the hands of succeeding administrations. Moreover, executive branch officials are able to avoid public accountability for the implementation of policies that are potentially unpopular or divisive. Placing government policy made in this fashion under the rubric of “consent” is highly problematic, because policymaking by consent decree violates constitutional norms and bears none of the indicia of popular consent.