Court Watch NOLA is proud to announce its new and expanded mission statement: Court Watch NOLA is dedicated to promoting greater efficiency, transparency, and procedural fairness in Louisiana criminal courts through citizen involvement and courtroom observation.
CWN’s new focus on procedural fairness – in addition to efficiency and transparency, our traditional areas of concern – is the result of extensive research into judicial and court monitoring best practices, and promotes both public satisfaction with the court system and public safety.
The key elements of procedural fairness – “voice (allowing litigants to be heard), neutrality (making decisions based on neutral, transparent principles), respectful treatment, and trust (the perception that the judge is sincere and caring)”[1] – not only can increase public satisfaction with criminal courts, but have also been proven to reduce recidivism and increase compliance with court orders.[2] According to the American Association of Judges, “Procedural fairness is THE critical element in public perception and satisfaction with the court system.”[3]
Court Watch NOLA volunteers are therefore being trained to watch for best-practice-based indicators of efficiency, transparency, and procedural fairness in the courtroom, and CWN reports, starting with our 2014 Report, will include extensive information on this important topic.
[1] Procedural Fairness: A Key Ingredient in Public Satisfaction, Am. Judges Ass’n White Paper at 3 (Sep. 26, 2007), attached as Ex. A.
[2] Procedural Fairness: A Key Ingredient in Public Satisfaction, Am. Judges Ass’n White Paper at 7 (Sep. 26, 2007), attached as Ex. A; Berman and Gold, Procedural Justice from the Bench: How Judges Can Improve the Effectiveness of Criminal Courts, The Judges Journal, Vol. 51, No. 2 at 22, attached as Ex. C; Lee, C.G., F. Cheesman, D. Rottman, R. Swaner, S. Lambson, M. Rempel & R. Curtis (2013) A Community Court Grows in Brooklyn: A Comprehensive Evaluation of the Red Hook Community Justice Center. Williamsburg, VA: National Center for State Courts at 178 (available at http://www.courtinnovation.org/research/community-court-grows-brooklyn-comprehensive-evaluation-red-hook-community-justice-center-f ).
[3] Burke and Leben, Procedural Fairness: A Key Ingredient in Public Satisfaction at 5, American Judges Association, 2007 (emphasis original).
