California Council on Criminal Justice

Transcription

By the early nineteen hundreds, there were some eight hundred different trial courts in California operating without any centralization. People complained the courts and justice varied too much from location to location. So in 1926 voters amended the state constitution to create the Judicial Council to provide leadership for the branch. Today the judicial council is well defined as the policy-making body of the California courts, the largest court system in the nation. Chaired by the Chief Justice who is elected statewide by the people of California, the council is responsible for ensuring the consistent, independent, impartial and accessible administration of justice throughout the state. [Chief Justice seated and speaking] “It's like a board of directors for a large complex complex public organization.” [Narrator] the California constitution spells out council Membership. twenty voting members. The chief justice and one other justice of the supreme court, three justices of courts of appeal, ten superior court judges, and two non-voting court administrators. Each is appointed by the chief justice to three-year terms. One-third turnover each year. [Chief justice speaking]”This insures continuity for council, it also creates opportunities for new participation for court leaders Statewide.” [Narrator] The state bar appoints four members. And the state Senate and the Assembly each appoint one member. The chief justice can also appoint additional non-voting advisory members. The nomination process is on the court's website. Chief Justice Tani Cantil Sakauye strives for diversity in her appointments. [Chief justice speaking] “Gender, ethnic, geographic, culture, court size, and legal experience…” [Narrator] There five internal committees of the Council. Executive and Planning, Rules and Projects, Policy Coordination and Liaison, Litigation Management, and Technology. The Administrative Director of the Courts serves as secretary to the Council, A non-voting position. And the Administrative Office of the Court's provide staff support to implement the council's policies. The full council meets at the call of the chief justice no fewer than four times a year. There were eight meetings in 2011 and a record twelve in 2012. [Chief justice speaking to council] “I have little doubt that this body, the judicial council and the judicial branch is the finest judiciary in the nation, it can rise to the challenge and we can and will put in place the foundation for a new era in California.” [Narrator] Meeting agendas are posted on the court's website at least seven days in advance. Meeting reports and related materials are linked as soon as they are available. Minutes of each meeting are also archived here. Business meetings are open to the public except for when they discussed personnel issues or litigation, security and other confidential topics. And starting in 2011, the educational pre-meetings have also been open to the public. [Council member speaking] “…the more sunshine uh...as Justice (Louis) Brandeis said many years ago, um...the better.” Public comment is invited and encouraged either through correspondence or in Person. And the audio for meetings and streamed live on the web. The constitution states that council members do not represent any particular constituency notwithstanding any of their other affiliations or roles. Rather each member is responsible for ensuring the consistent, independent, impartial and accessible administration of justice for all Californians which leads to sometimes spirited conversations. [Council members presenting] “…enough is enough uh... we've really been pushed to the wall.” “The conditions, they're in my estimation deplorable.” “Many tough and often untenable choices have to made and they have to be made now.” [Narrator] But the vast majority of discussion, Investigation, and study is done long before initiatives come to the council. More than four hundred people serve on advisory committees, task forces and working groups. Judges, justices, lawyers court executive officers and experts in their respective fields. Appointed by the chief justice these groups put in countless hours of study and research to advise the council on court business, improving judicial administration and assisting the council in achieving its strategic goals. [Chief justice explains] “They don't serve for the individual purpose of their court. They're picked for those advisory committees because they're looking at statewide proposals that will best serve the public and the courts, as well. [Narrator] For example, the Trial Court Presiding Judges Advisory Committee and the Court Executives Advisory Committee developed and recommended to the council a program to help trial courts improved productivity, increase efficiencies, and reduce costs. [Council member presenting] “Clearly it can make a difference and reduce the impact of the resource cuts that we’ve had in the last couple of years.” [Narrator] Another new council Initiative, the Liaison Program. The chief justice named a small team of council members to serve as liaisons to each of the fifty-eight courts to open lines of personalized informal communication. [Council member presents] “We are making sure that each trial court has direct access to the judicial Council.” [Chief Justice] “So if something went wrong or they had a Question, they know a face, a name that they could contact over at the judicial council.” [Narrator] Council liaisons will also connect with each division in the Administrative Office of the Courts. It's an initiative that’s representative of the judicial council’s mission and priorities for the branch. [Chief justice] “I think we have many court leaders who care deeply about the future of the courts and we have much to talk about in the future.” [Narrator] Including the continuing goals of maintaining access and fairness, independence and accountability, and high quality service to the public.