King County Trial Court Coordination Committee Therapeutic Court Information

king county trial court coordination committee therapeutic court information access project – status report march 31, 2003 project g

King County Trial Court Coordination Committee
Therapeutic Court Information Access Project – Status Report
March 31, 2003
Project Goal:
To further the efforts of King County Superior Court’s Drug Court,
King County District Court’s Mental Health Court and Seattle Municipal
Court’s Mental Health Court by enabling access to data bases
cross-jurisdictionally and streamline information exchange among the
three therapeutic courts and the larger court system.
Major Objectives:
*
Develop and implement a system improving access to court
information and allowing for consolidation of cases between
different courts involving the same defendant. Case coordination
will result in more efficient utilization of treatment resources
and court monitoring, reduced court costs, and increased incentive
for compliance with court requirements and reductions of staff,
jail and court costs.
*
Improve flow of information to judges, reduce FTA rates as a
result of a reduction in the number of hearings a defendant may be
required to attend, and lessen the duplication of administrative
efforts of the courts when a defendant is identified as also
having outstanding issues with another court prior to or during
the defendant’s involvement with a therapeutic court.
Status of Tasks:
Tasks Accomplished:
*
Therapeutic Health Court staff have identified and assigned a
senior criminal justice policy analyst to analyze, develop and
implement policy and procedures to meet the goals and objectives
of the project.
*
The analyst has met with the three therapeutic court judges and
staff and has observed calendars in all three courts.
*
The analyst has met with two of the three presiding judges, and
their staff, to discuss the possible utility of access to
cross-jurisdictional databases for non-therapeutic courts.
*
An ad hoc workgroup of information systems staff has been formed
and has identified the most efficient means of information sharing
and is finalizing the implementation of access to other court’s
databases.
*
Currently finalizing most effective utilization of the three
court’s database systems for the therapeutic courts.
Tasks to be completed in second quarter of 2003:
*
Develop appropriate and consistent protocols for information
sharing between the courts.
*
Develop outcome measures and means of data collection to measure
effect of project.
*
Purchase laptop computers.
Paul L. Sherfey
Chief Administrative Officer