Participation In Court Research Articles

Attachment & biobehavioral catch-up participation & reunification in a family treatment court

BackgroundChildren impacted by substances are at increased risk for child welfare involvement, which often leads to out-of-home care. Substance use disorder (SUD) impacts the family unit, and thus, prevention and intervention efforts need to target the family, not just the individual with a SUD. There are efficacious interventions for families impacted by SUD, but limited information exists on family reunification outcomes following services. ObjectiveThis study examined whether participation in the Attachment and Biobehavioral Catch-Up (ABC) model was associated with a higher likelihood of reunification among families involved with a family treatment court (FTC) per conditions of an open child welfare case. MethodsThe study sample includes a total of 215 children from 112 families, ages six months to forty-seven months, and their caregivers, all enrolled in an FTC due to SUD. Children were considered exposed to the intervention (N = 39; 18.1 %) if either they or a sibling participated with either a biological or foster parent. The ABC treatment was delivered by a trained therapist either in the home or via telehealth. Results74 % of children exposed to the ABC model reunified by study end compared to 57 % of children who were not exposed to the intervention. In a multivariable Cox regression model controlling for covariates, reunification was driven by cases with biological parent participation. Compared to no exposure, cases with biological parent exposure were 2.3 times more likely to reunify. Reunification was not impacted by foster parent exposure. ConclusionsFamilies impacted by substances need interventions that target the caregiver-child dyad. Facilitating family bonding and attachment with direct caregiver involvement is critical to serving caregivers and their children. This study shows the ABC model, particularly when delivered to biological parent-child dyads, is associated with a higher likelihood of reunification for children in child welfare, an outcome that, when safe, secure, and stable, critically improves long-term, healthy development.

Accommodating persons with communication disabilities in court: Perspectives of law students.

Individuals with communication disabilities encounter obstacles in attaining equal access to justice compared to others. Despite experiencing widespread violence and abuse, they come across as challenges in seeking remedies through the legal system. One barrier is the lack of awareness among legal practitioners regarding suitable accommodations that would facilitate effective participation in court for individuals with communication disabilities. This study explores the awareness of final-year law students concerning court accommodations available for individuals with communication disabilities, allowing them to testify in a South African court. The findings can serve as inspiration for expanding the current curriculum for law students. This qualitative study used a modified six-step nominal group technique whereby participants (six law students identified through snowball sampling) generated, discussed and reached a consensus on accommodations needed by individuals with communication disabilities, enabling them to provide testimony in court. Data were analysed using thematic analysis principles. The study found that although participants had not received any instruction on disability rights, access to justice or court accommodations during their legal training at the undergraduate level, they were able to perceive and learn about four main types of court accommodations for persons with communication disabilities to enable their testimony. Final-year law students are aware of court accommodations despite not having received formal instruction in disability law. The inclusion of disability rights and court accommodations is recommended at the undergraduate level to ensure that when in practice, lawyers have knowledge on ensuring access to justice for persons with communication disabilities.

Public perceptions of remote courts and equal access: who prefers remote video proceedings and why?

ABSTRACT The pivot to remote hearings and trials (‘remote courts’) during the COVID-19 pandemic amplified the ongoing debate about the equity and efficacy of court proceedings held over videoconferencing software. Yet, little research has studied public attitudes about remote court despite the relationship between public opinion and court legitimacy. This study helps fill that gap by surveying public attitudes about remote courts, including who prefers remote courts to traditional in-person proceedings and why they prefer them. Our findings reveal that modality preferences are influenced by perception of which modality best enables active participation in court. For example, respondents who preferred remote proceedings often emphasised that the remote option decreases barriers to court participation. They were also more likely to perceive them as equally accessible to people of all races, ethnicities, classes, and nationalities. Finally, our findings show that court modality preferences (remote v. in-person) fall sharply along racial and ethnic lines. Racially marginalised groups indicated a stronger preference than Whites, and respondents identifying as Hispanic showed a stronger preference than those identifying as non-Hispanic. This article concludes with how policymakers can utilise technology to reduce court access barriers while also addressing concerns about remote modalities.

О некоторых вопросах осуществления прокурором уголовного преследования в ходе судебного разбирательства в пореформенный период (вторая половина XIX – начало ХХ вв.)

On the basis of the legislation of the Russian Empire, judicial statistics and archival materials on the activities of the domestic prosecutor’s office as part of the implementation of the Judicial Аннотации Reform of 1864, the author analyzes the role of the public prosecutor in an adversarial criminal process and the practice of carrying out criminal prosecution in the course of judicial proceedings, including the jurors’ participation in court. Important factors in the effectiveness of prosecutorial criminal prosecution were, as the author believes, the thorough preparation of the prosecutor for the trial, the use of the entire range of his procedural powers during the trial, the consistent defense of his position in higher courts. Particular attention is paid to the reasons for the issuance of acquittals by the jury due to both miscalculations and shortcomings in the accusatory activity, and abuses by the defense, as well as the mechanism for overcoming the corresponding negative trends in prosecutorial practice.

Kekuatan Keterangan Saksi Verba Lisan (Saksi Penyidik) Dalam Kitab Undang-Undang Hukum Acara Pidana


 Verbal witnesses are investigators whose participation in court is not mandated by the Criminal Procedure Code, but who are frequently presented in court when the defendant withdraws all or part of the minutes of examination (BAP) filed before investigators at trial. “The goals of this study are to determine the legitimacy of verbal witness statements and their link to” Article 184 of the Criminal Procedure Code concerning legal evidence, as well as to determine how verbal witness statements influence judge choices in Indonesian cases today. This is normative legal research, also known as research on legal systematics. Research on legal systematics is a study of legislation or written law. The goal is to identify the fundamental conditions of rights and responsibilities, legal events, legal connections, and legal objects. The study and discussion results indicate that: first, the statement of an oral verbal witness is valid if given under oath, and the judge's statement from the verbal witness can be used as evidence in court; second, the testimony of verbal verb witnesses is limited to what is recorded by the investigative witnesses during the investigation process, so it becomes the full responsibility of the judge to conclude that the revocation of the warrant is justified.
 Keywords: statement, verbal witnesses, KUHAP

Racial differences in drug court referral, admission, and graduation rates: findings from two states and eight counties

Drug courts are often the last chance for criminal justice-involved persons with substance use disorders to avoid incarceration. Given this stark reality, participation in drug court should not be influenced by race. This study tracks cohorts of drug court referrals to compare referral, admission, and graduation rates by race in two states and eight counties in diverse regions of the United States. We compared admission and graduation rates by race in each state or county using tests of the difference between independent proportions, displayed graphically with longitudinal state-level data. Black persons had lower referral and admission rates in nearly all jurisdictions for which requisite data were available, and lower graduation rates in six of the ten jurisdictions. In statewide analyses for which adequate longitudinal data were available, racial differences in admission and graduation rates persisted for up to a decade. Practice and policy recommendations are offered to improve measurement of cultural disparities in drug courts and the broader justice system and implement remedial strategies.

Perluasan Makna Partisipasi Masyarakat dalam Pembentukan Undang-Undang Pasca Putusan Mahkamah Konstitusi

Public participation is intended the idea of forming laws and regulations does not always have to come from the power holders only, but can emerge from the society. This paper aims to determine the impact of the Constitutional Court’s decision Number 91 PUU XVIII 2020 on the formation of laws in Indonesia, especially in accommodating public participation which is limited to two main issues. First, how is the form of expanding the meaning of public participation in the Constitutional Court’s decision Number 91 PUU XVIII 2020. Second, what is the impact of expanding the meaning of public participation in the formation of laws. This doctrinal legal research uses secondary data. The results of the study show that the form of expanding the meaning of public participation in the Constitutional Court’s decision Number 91 PUU XVIII 2020 is carried out in a meaningful way, by providing guarantees of participation for affected communities and the impact of expanding the meaning of public participation in the formation of laws, namely changing the paradigm of law formation, improvement of regulations and strengthening of public participation as a basis for formal testing.

Autism and the criminal justice system: An analysis of 93 cases.

We investigate whether autistic people's vulnerability is taken into account at each stage of the criminal justice system (CJS). Defense lawyers from 12 nations were included in the study although the sample was predominantly from the UK. Lawyers completed an online survey regarding one case in which they had defended an autistic client between January 2015 and January 2020; and on one case in which they had defended a nonautistic client charged with a similar offense, to provide a comparison group. Ninety‐three lawyers (85% in the UK) reported on one autistic case, and 53 also reported on one nonautistic case. 75% of autistic clients were not given reasonable adjustments during the process. Only 43% were offered an appropriate adult during police investigations, even though they had an existing diagnosis of autism. 59% of prosecution barristers and 46% of judges said or did something during the trial that made the lawyers concerned that they did not have an adequate understanding of autism. Lawyers were 7.58 times more likely to be concerned about their autistic client's effective participation in court and were 3.83 times more likely to be concerned that their autistic clients would engage in self‐harm, compared with their nonautistic clients. There is a failure to identify and address autistic peoples' disability within the CJS. There is a need for mandatory autism training for police officers and the judiciary, with a focus on identifying autism and understanding the needs of autistic people so that reasonable adjustments are offered in all cases.Lay SummaryThis study sought to investigate if the needs of autistic people are being overlooked by the police and other professionals within the CJS. Results show that autistic people are not always given the support they need during police questioning or in court. The experience of being involved with the police may also have a more negative impact on autistic peoples' mental health than that of nonautistic people.

Foreword: Early Printed Responses to the Closing of London's Playhouses, 1641–43

ForewordEarly Printed Responses to the Closing of London's Playhouses, 1641–43 Christopher Highley (bio) in one of early modern england's most unlikely volte-faces, the notorious antitheatricalist William Prynne penned a tract defending the public stage. Published in 1649, Mr William Prynn His Defence of Stage-Plays reversed the same author's landmark denunciation of theater in his Histrio-mastix. The Players Scourge, or, Actors Tragædie (1633).1 Prynne's reference in the earlier work to "Women-Actors, notorious whores"2 was widely seen as glancing at Henrietta Maria's participation in court plays; as a result, he was quickly condemned by the court of Star Chamber to stand in the pillory and have his ears "trimmed." Prynne's outrage in the 1630s at what he considered the growing authoritarianism of the king, and the threats from bishops and a Catholic queen, had turned by 1649 into alarm at "a Tyrannical, abominable, lewd, schismatical [and] hæretical Army"3 that not only held the king captive but also controlled Parliament following Pride's Purge of its moderate members in December 1648. The specific occasion for Prynne's defense of the stage was the removal of the "Players from their Houses"4 by groups of overzealous soldiers. For [End Page 11] Prynne, this was a violation of the king's prerogative, an attempt to silence Charles I's allies in the theater and to deny him a form of royal solace. From the beginning of hostilities in 1642, Prynne had upheld royal authority and worked for a reconciliation of king and commons in defiance of more radical voices, many of which emerged from the army. In retrospect, Prynne regretted his earlier comparison of Charles I to Nero for "loving of Stage-playes," as well as his attack on Henrietta Maria "with the bitter and cruell words of whore and strumpet" for performing in plays. He now recognized that "Playes are lawfull things, and are to be allowed as recreations for honest men." Prynne claimed that when he wrote Histrio-mastix, he was unaware of the nature of the plays "as were written and acted in England of late, for the Recreation of our most gracious King and Queen, and many of their best friends."5 Although Prynne remained hostile to "lewd" plays, he recognized that "honest Playes may be tolerated," and he even disavowed his earlier objections to cross-dressing on stage.6 By 1649, then, Prynne had come to the startling conclusion that, as Sir William Davenant later put it, "they that would have no King, would have no Play."7 Mr William Prynn His Defence of Stage-Plays is one of a few printed defenses of the stage in the years between 1642 and 1660. In this essay, I examine defenses of the stage in the years immediately after the playhouses were shut, a period when we might expect a flurry of protests to this unprecedented parliamentary action. Here again, defenses of the stage are rare, although The Actors Remonstrance, or Complaint: For the silencing of their profession is one notable and well-known exception (January 1643). In particular, I want to suggest that in order to gauge resistance to the closure, we need to look beyond formal defenses of the stage. I will argue that the republication in 1643 of Thomas Randolph's play The Muses Looking-Glasse is part of a counteroffensive against the ban on plays that also reveals something about the role of local politics in motivating the parliamentary prohibition.8 There are several possible reasons why no printed defenses of playing appeared before The Actors Remonstrance of January 1643. This absence is all the stranger when [End Page 12] we recall that a tract called The Stage-Players Complaint, published in 1641 shortly before the official closure, offered a precedent and template of sorts for theater supporters and personnel. The Stage-Players Complaint is a "pleasant Dialogue between Cane of the Fortune, and Reed of the Friers" in which the two actors lament "the sad and solitary conditions for want of Imployment . . . [during] this heavie and Contagious time of the Plague in London." Whereas Cane, the pessimist, thinks that public...

Giving voice to the voices of legal practitioners with disabilities

Several international human rights conventions focus on ensuring access to justice for all. Based on their unique lived experiences, legal practitioners with disabilities have much to offer in terms of understanding – from an insider perspective – the accommodations that could be used in court. The aim of this study was to describe the perspectives of legal practitioners with disabilities on their own experience of participation in court (focusing on both barriers and facilitators), and to elicit their suggested accommodations for persons with severe communication disabilities. Online and telephonic interviews were conducted with seven legal practitioners with disabilities. In response to the questions, three themes were conceptualised: participation barriers that hinder access to justice; accommodations related to ensuring equality; and accommodations related to procedural fairness. The insider perspectives of legal practitioners with disabilities may assist other persons with disabilities to participate equally in court, thereby ensuring access to justice for all. Points of interest Law professionals with disabilities, for example lawyers and judges, have unique experiences of the court system, which means that they can offer a clearer understanding of what communication skills and strategies are needed to participate in court. Law professionals with disabilities can suggest effective communication methods and strategies that other persons with disabilities could use in court. There are certain barriers in court that make it difficult for persons with disabilities to participate in court, for example, policy barriers. There are also certain accommodations that can assist persons with disabilities to be treated with respect in court, in a fair and equal way. In the future, law professionals with disabilities should be involved when new laws, policies and guidelines are created that could assist persons with disabilities to participate in the court system in an equal way.

Presence and participation in a virtual court

The COVID-19 pandemic has led to an increase in the use of video-mediated justice practices. However, such developments have already been transforming justice over the course of the previous 20 years. Scholars and legal professinals have expressed concerns over how remote appearance in court impacts perceptions of the accused. In this article, we consider some of these concerns and explore the concept of the ‘distributed court’ as a potential remedy. Unlike traditional video appearance in court, where a defendant participates remotely while all other players are co-located in the same courtroom, in a distributed court all participants meet in a shared virtual space. Such a configuration is similar to the virtual courts developed worldwide during the COVID-19 pandemic. We draw on a reimagining of co-presence from scholars in the sociology of technology to elaborate the concept of the distributed court. We then present the results of a mock jury study that examines how jurors respond to variations in court technology configurations. We find that appearing by video does not impact the likelihood of a guilty verdict. Rather, a defendant appearing alone in a dock seems to be the most prejudicial location. We find that a distributed court can communicate equality and produce a shared experience of remote participation. We conclude with a discussion of how this research can inform best practice in a future where a significant number of criminal hearings are likely to continue in a virtual format.

Arrest and emergency medical services events among participants from one of the first mental health courts

ObjectiveThis study looked at, in addition to subsequent arrest, emergency medical services (EMS) events as an outcome of participation in mental health court (MHC). MethodsWe linked information from participants of a MHC in Marion County, Indiana with jail booking and EMS services data. To understand programmatic impact, we looked at differences in jail bookings and EMS events within one year prior to and one year after MHC participation. We ran paired t-tests to understand whether correlations were significant. We also considered differences in outcomes between those who successfully completed MHC versus those who did not. ResultsMHC participation was significantly associated with a reduction in jail bookings and EMS events in the 12 months after program participation compared to the 12 months before. When comparing MHC participant groups, a significant reduction in jail bookings is found consistently whereas a significant reduction in EMS events was found in only some participant groups: the entire MHC group and the misdemeanor-level court (PAIR) participants when they successfully completed the program. ConclusionsEMS utilization should be an outcome of consideration in evaluating the success and cost savings of MHCs. Where MHCs do not result in significantly reduced EMS events, communities should consider what individual-level and community-level factors contribute to this and adjust accordingly.

Правовое регулирование особенностей рассмотрения споров третейскими судами в Республике Таджикистан (регулирование процедуры разбирательства споров)

The work is devoted to the analysis of legal regulation of the disputes consideration procedure by arbitration courts in the Republic of Tajikistan. We comment on the content of the Law of the Republic of Tajikistan “On Arbitration Courts” dated January 5, 2008 no. 344. We provide an itemized commentary on the provisions of the above-mentioned law, which directly regulates the dispute resolution process by the arbitration court. In addition to the main issues related to the statement of claim, other requirements for the statement of claim are described, which are regulated by the arbitration rules. We carry out a comprehensive analysis of the procedure for submitting feedback on the statement of claim. We illustrate issues related to the competence of the arbitration court. We note that this is an important innovation of commented law, since the previous legislation did not consider the competence of the arbitration court. We assign a separate place to the definition of the arbitration rules, the arbitration language, and the arbitration confidentiality. We assign a separate place to the definition of the arbitral proceedings rules, the arbitral proceedings language, and the arbitral proceedings confidentiality. The features of applying interim measures are described. We consider the procedure for presenting evidence, as well as the features of the parties' participation in the arbitration court. We analyze the procedure for the appointment and submission of expertise. In addition, the regulation of the meeting protocol of the arbitration court is described. Attention is also drawn to the prohibition of bonded terms of the settlement agreement for any of the parties.

Age limits for participation in child protection court proceedings in Sweden

AbstractAccording to the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and Swedish legislation, children have the right to participate in child protection proceedings. The aim of this paper is to describe and analyse the notion of age and maturity in child protection proceedings in order to elucidate how these aspects could influence children's rights to participate. We focus on the view of three groups of actors involved in child protection proceedings in Sweden—social workers, lawyers, and laypersons in social welfare boards and administrative courts—and on how children's age and maturity should be taken into consideration in decisions on their participation in court. The analysis is based on survey data. The study found that social workers, laypersons, and lawyers have different views on when children are old enough to have the right to litigate in court. Additionally, there is no consensus on how the maturity of the child can be assessed to inform the decision about participation. More discussion is needed about what competences a child needs to participate in court and to what extent this right should be limited by their age. Importantly, courts and decision‐making proceedings can be made more child friendly.

The Effect of Reentry Court Participation on Post-Release Supervision Outcomes and Re-Arrest

ABSTRACT This research examines the impact of participation in a federal reentry court program on supervision violations, revocations, and re-arrest. We evaluate a federal reentry court that utilized random selection and random assignment of participants to treatment groups and random selection for control groups. Outcomes examined include: number of supervision violations, non-technical violations, and re-arrests; and relative risk of supervision violation, non-technical violation, supervision revocation, and re-arrest. Negative binomial and Cox regression models suggest that participation in reentry court had little impact on supervision outcomes or re-arrest. Specifically, although the reentry court participants had more supervision violations compared to the control group, on average, there were no other differences based on reentry court participation. The survival analysis revealed no statistically significant differences in supervision outcomes or re-arrest for reentry court participants compared to other study groups. This study contributes to the scant and conflicting literature on reentry court programs.

The prosecutor’s participation in the court of the first instance in case opened by other persons

The prosecutor’s participation in the court of the first instance in case opened by other persons

Testimonial Injustice and Vulnerability: A Qualitative Analysis of Participation in the Court of Protection

This article explores participation in Court of Protection (COP) proceedings by people considered vulnerable. The article is based on original data obtained from observing COP proceedings and reviewing COP case files. It is argued that the observed absence of the subject of proceedings is a form of testimonial injustice, that is, a failure to value a person in their capacity as a giver of knowledge. The issue of competence to give evidence is considered but it is argued that it is not the formal evidential rules that prohibit a vulnerable adult from giving evidence. Instead, it is the result of a persistent assumption that they are inherently vulnerable and therefore lack credibility as a knowledge giver. This assumption results in the voices of vulnerable adults being routinely absent from legal proceedings. It is argued that having a voice in the courtroom is essential and has a number of intrinsic and instrumental benefits. The article concludes with a discussion about the implications of the research, including the current trend towards the increased use of special measures, and recommends a presumption in favour of the subject of COP proceedings giving evidence.

O corpo no espaço público: Emoções e processos reivindicatórios no contexto da “Tragédia de Santa Maria”

Resumo Este artigo tem como foco as manifestações públicas realizadas por familiares e amigos de vítimas do incêndio da Boate Kiss em Santa Maria, Rio Grande do Sul, atentando para as dimensões emocionais e corporais nelas envolvidas e para as transformações que se processaram com o passar do tempo. Apesar de perceberem o agravamento de seu sofrimento no desdobramento de suas relações com as instituições (Prefeitura, Ministério Público, Câmara dos Vereadores), muitos familiares reorganizaram suas vidas acompanhando o andamento dos processos judiciais e participando de manifestações públicas cujas bandeiras são: para que “não se repita” e para que “os responsáveis paguem pela tragédia”. Através de observação participante, acompanhamento de manifestações e de reportagens sobre a “tragédia”, a pesquisa mostra o trabalho micropolítico das emoções na transformação dos sentidos do acontecimento.

Exploring the Relationship Between Dual Diagnosis and Recidivism in Drug Court Participants

There is limited research investigating the relationship between dual diagnosis and offender outcomes in drug court settings, specifically regarding recidivism. The current study examined the effects of dual diagnosis on recidivism following participation in one drug court in the Southwestern United States. Results provided mixed evidence surrounding the impact of dual diagnosis on recidivism outcomes. Dual diagnosis significantly increased the odds of recidivism for participants at 6 months but the effect was not significant at 12 months. These findings suggest that dual diagnosis may play a role in offender recidivism shortly after participation in drug court. In addition, some differences between dually diagnosed participants and those with only substance use diagnoses were found.

Co‐Parent Court: A Problem‐Solving Court Model for Supporting Unmarried Parents

Co‐Parent Court is an innovative problem solving court in Hennepin County, Minnesota, which seeks to better meet the needs of unmarried co‐parents who are establishing paternity. A 3 year, mixed method quasi‐experimental design evaluation study was conducted on the outcomes of participation in Co‐Parent Court with data collected at pre, post and follow‐up. Outcomes examined for this article included child support payments and measures assessing attitudes about the importance of the role of fathers in a child's life. Findings included that child‐support payments across groups was connected to a father's ability to pay at pre‐survey and that a majority of both fathers and mothers reported that a father's involvement in the lives of his children went beyond an ability to pay child support. Key Points for the Family Court Community Courts‐Community agencies partnering to build a quality program for unmarried parents and their children. What types of community agencies are critical to provide a network of support for young, under‐resourced, unmarried parents? What does it take to get unmarried parents to complete a multi‐component intervention (education, case management and agreed upon parenting plan)?