NEW COMMUNITY COURTS WILL FOCUS ON SOLVING PROBLEMS, NOT ON OFFENCES

Everyone in Vancouver is familiar with the epidemic of street crime ,
and just about everyone knows that many people who commit such crimes
are chronic repeat offenders who are addled by drug addiction or
mental illness.

The courts have done their best to deal with this situation, but they
are ill-equipped. After all, while criminal courts can order
offenders to receive addiction or mental health counselling, they
simply don't have the resources or expertise to act as social service agencies.

Further, going through the criminal justice system takes a
significant amount of time, which means offenders might not receive
the help they need when they need it.

Aware of this, the B.C. attorney general announced in 2004 that a
street crime working group would investigate crime in downtown
Vancouver and report back with recommendations. It did so in
September 2005, with one of the chief recommendations being the
development of a community court.

Now, less than two years later, Vancouver's community court is about
to become a reality. Provincial Court Judge Thomas Gove is currently
leading a series of community forums on the new court, which is
expected to begin operations by December.

Modelled after a successful court in New York, Vancouver's community
court will be a "real" court in the sense that it will hold trials
and sentence offenders to a variety of dispositions. But that's where
the similarities with other courts end.

In contrast to other courts, the community court will integrate
justice, health and social services to improve the response to crime.
The judiciary, court services, Community Corrections, Vancouver
Coastal Health, the Ministry of Employment and Income Assistance,
B.C. Housing, the Vancouver Police Department, and Crown and defence
lawyers have all committed to working together to support the court.

Thanks to the involvement of these diverse groups, the court will
increase the efficiency of the system and respond to offenders'
individual needs while still holding them responsible for their behaviour.

When in operation, the court will cover all of downtown Vancouver,
including the West End and the Downtown Eastside. This means that
anyone charged with certain offences in the area will appear before
the court. (The most serious offences will continue to be handled by
other courts.)

Upon appearing before the court, the judge and counsel will decide
whether the accused's case should be transferred to regular court, to
drug court or kept within the community court.

If retained within the new court and the accused pleads or is found
guilty, the court will determine an appropriate sentence. This could
include jail, though most offenders will likely receive probation.
Those with mental health, addiction and/or homelessness problems will
be the subject of a community court plan.

A downtown community court team will manage the offender, and direct
him or her to appropriate treatment, housing or employment services.
The focus of the court is on problem-solving rather than on crime and
punishment, on resolving the situation that led the offender to
commit an offence, so that he or she won't commit further offences.

Community courts in the United States, the United Kingdom and
Australia have had some success with this problem-solving approach,
so it's no surprise that many other jurisdictions, including, most
recently, Surrey, are clamouring for a court of their own.

But for Vancouver to enjoy similar success, the entire community must
be onside. To this end, the court plans to seek the input of
community members and respond to community priorities. This will
involve the creation of a community court advisory committee and
other communications.

Currently, the best way to learn about the court and to get involved
is to attend one of the two remaining community forums. One will be
held on Thursday, April 12, at the Coast Plaza Hotel (1763 Comox
St.), and the other on Wednesday, April 18, at Japanese Hall (487
Alexander St.).