PCE VIDEOS: PCE Pop-Up on Community Outreach

On January 11, 2021, PCE hosted a Pop-Up discussion on community engagement with presentations on connection, outreach and re-entry, creating a community advisory board, and moving cases out of the criminal justice system.

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.

In November 2020, the National Black Prosecutors Association in collaboration with PCE and other partners hosted a four-hour training that examined biases in the criminal justice system, using scientific data and case studies. Approximately 300 participants were provided with actionable strategies to bring about a more equitable justice system and to maintain the integrity of the legal system.

The role of the prosecutor has evolved dramatically over the last 40 years. PCE highlights a sampling of prosecutor innovations in this new report that dives into 221 programs from 150 prosecutor offices from across the country. 

Interactive Map: Find prosecutor innovations by state, office, or program category with our new interactive map, which illustrates the breadth of innovation in the U.S. by highlighting 250+ programs in 150+ offices.

Authors: PCE and Aequitas

Authors: PCE, DANY, Bronx District Attorney’s Office, and Aequitas

Presentation moderator Kristine Hamann of PCE discusses reducing the criminal justice footprint with Assistant DA Nicole Ortsman-Dauer (New York County, NY) and DA Beth McCann (Denver, CO) at the October Best Practices Conference, “The Modern Prosecutor As Problem Solver – Looking to Data and Collaboration for Solutions”.

An essential part of a prosecutor’s work is uncovering actual innocence through conviction review. PCE has developed a roadmap for offices of any size seeking to implement or enhance a Conviction Review Unit or a conviction review process. 

Ramsey County (MN) Attorney John Choi and Lucy Lang, former Director of the Institute for Innovation (IIP) in Prosecution, discuss an officer-involved fatalities toolkit spearheaded by IIP. 

Watch here. (26 minutes)

Authors: Kristine Hamann and Sarah Solano Geisler