PCE Videos: Pop-Up on Lessons Learned from the Pandemic

PCE Pop-Ups review current topics through presentations and breakout groups. On June 21, 2021 we discussed what we’ve learned from the pandemic.

Materials: Meeting booklet

Prosecutors are facing a growing backlog at every stage of a prosecution, including in forensic laboratories. Reducing the backlog will require new thinking and new approaches. The backlog has also increased the pressure to try cases during the pandemic.

With input from prosecutors around the country, PCE has collected suggestions for addressing the backlog and trying cases during the pandemic.

Authors: Kristine Hamann and Sarah Solano Geisler

DA Hillar Moore discusses various topics including his White Paper on the New Normal, reducing the jail population, using  social media to keep in touch with victims, and remote court proceedings.

As the Jacksonville State Attorney’s Office looks to reopen at 25% capacity, First Assistant Steven Siegel explains how they’re working to maintain safe work environments using strategies such as “Floor Captains” and safety placards.

APA Pat Muscat shares how his division rapidly implemented a paperless system within days of the coronavirus stay at home order, despite having no pre-existing process. Through creative use of technology available to most prosecutor offices, his division gained access to necessary documents and evidence. 

Prosecutors all over the country are finding ways to adapt to the “new normal.” Hear from them in PCE’s new series of video interviews. 

Chief Deputy District Attorney Tracy Prior shares how San Diego conducts preliminary hearings by using a combination of Microsoft Teams, social distancing in the courtroom, and a secure, separate phone line that the defendant and defense attorney can use to communicate privately.

May 2020 – Arizona State University School of Criminology and Criminal Justice, The Morrison Institute for Public Policy, Prosecutors’ Center for Excellence. View the webinar

• Panelists: Allister Adel (Maricopa County Attorney), Darcel Clark (Bronx District Attorney), Jon Gould (ASU), Kristine Hamann (PCE), Jeff Reisig (Yolo County District Attorney).
• Additional Materials: May 2020 – Pandemic: A Natural Experiment for Reducing Incarceration Prosecutors Say – ASU Now. Click here

Prosecutors all over the country are finding ways to adapt to the “new normal.” Hear from them in PCE’s new series of video interviews. 

In PCE’s first interview of the series, Chief Deputy District Attorney Jonathan Raven explains their unique approach to conducting Mental Health Court hearings via Zoom. Without a bailiff, court reporter or clerk, the Mental Health Court judge and other participants have conducted these virtual, informal hearings since April, 2020 despite the challenges presented by the pandemic.