Plymouth Community Justice Court: A Case Study of Problem Solving Interventions, Reducing Re-offending and Public Confidence

多年来，刑事司法系统采取了一系列旨在减少犯罪和支持罪犯努力停止犯罪的举措。最近，英国法院系统采用了一种社区司法方法，这种方法起源于美国，专门针对低风险罪犯。它已经在英格兰的一些地区进行了试点，包括普利茅斯，2007年5月，普利茅斯与地方法院一起成立了社区司法法院（CJC）。刑司委与传统的治安法院有两个主要区别。首先，社区参与查明警察可以针对的犯罪或反社会行为，然后查明罪犯可以采取哪些措施向社区作出补偿。其次，刑司委可以召开问题解决会议，由罪犯和缓刑、其他第三部门和法定机构的工作人员参加。这些会议的目的是集中讨论导致罪犯犯罪行为的问题，并确定可以解决这些问题的方法。然后，问题解决会议的决定被纳入刑司委的判决中。其基本原理是，如果能找到解决这些问题的办法，那么罪犯将来就不会再犯罪了。这个项目有四个重点。首先，它将通过跟踪案件和审查再犯数据来了解刑司委的有效性。其次，它将详细审查刑司委如何运作，以及如何以及在什么基础上作出是否将特定案件提交解决问题会议的决定。第三，它将检查解决问题的会议实际上是如何运作的。解决问题会议有两个方面对其有效性至关重要：专业人员之间的合作以及违法者参与的性质和程度，这里的目的是确定这些是如何完成的，以及它们对结果的影响。最后，该项目将调查社区如何回应刑司委，以及他们对其程序表现出何种信心。为了解决这些问题，我们将进行四项研究工作，以反映这些目标。首先，我们会整理和分析法庭、警方和缓刑方面的统计数字，以估计法庭在防止再犯方面的成效。我们还将采访一些罪犯，以了解他们如何评估法庭对他们行为的影响。其次，我们将对法院的活动进行详细的观察，并采访在法院工作的人员（例如地方法官、缓刑人员、律师），了解他们对刑司委如何运作的看法，以及关于转介到问题解决会议的决定是如何产生的。三是对问题解决会议进行抽样录像。将对这些录音进行转录，然后对与协作和参与有关的互动模式进行详细分析，确定哪些模式会影响这些会议的运作和结果。最后，我们将与居民进行调查和焦点小组，以评估选定的社区如何看待法院的有效性。通过关注刑司委日常运作所涉及的流程，我们旨在更好地了解这种司法形式的运作方式，并确定促进其有效性的做法。我们项目的结果将揭示一些经验教训，这些经验教训将适用于普利茅斯模式之外，并能够更广泛地为刑事司法机构提供信息。这些调查结果将分发给在刑事司法系统和当地社区工作的人员，以增进对社区司法如何运作的了解，并更实际地帮助发展参与法院不同业务的人员的技能。

The criminal justice system has over many years introduced a range of initiatives designed to reduce crime and support offenders in their efforts to desist from crime. One recent initiative, originating in the U.S.A and aimed specifically at low risk offenders, adopted by the English court system is the community justice approach. It has been piloted in a number of areas of England including Plymouth where in May, 2007 a Community Justice Court (CJC) was established alongside the Magistrates' Court.There are two main ways in which the CJC differs from the traditional Magistrates' Court. First, the community is involved in identifying crimes or anti-social behaviours which can be targeted by the police and then in identifying work which offenders could undertake to make reparation to the community. Second, the CJC can use problem solving meetings which involve the offender and staff from probation and other third sector and statutory agencies. The aim of the meetings is to focus on the problems which have contributed to the offender's criminal behaviour and identify ways in which these problems can be tackled. The decisions of the problem solving meeting are then built into the sentence imposed by the CJC. The rationale is that if a solution can be found to these problems then the offender will be less inclined to commit crimes in the future.This project has four main foci. First, it will develop an understanding of the effectiveness of the CJC by tracking cases and examining re-offending data. Second, it will examine in detail how the CJC operates and how and on what basis decisions are made whether to refer particular cases to problem solving meetings. Third, it will examine how problem solving meetings actually function. There are two aspects of problem solving meetings which are critical to their effectiveness: collaboration between professionals and the nature and extent of the participation by the offender, and the aim here is to identify how these are accomplished and what impact they have on outcomes. Finally the project will examine how communities respond to the CJC and what sort of confidence they express in its procedures.To address these questions we will undertake four packages of research work reflecting each of these aims. First, we will collate and analyse statistics from the courts, police and probation in order to estimate how effective the court is in preventing re-offending. We will also interview a sample of offenders to gain an understanding of how they evaluate the impact of the court on their behaviour. Second, we will make detailed observations of the activities of the court and interview those who work in the court (e.g. magistrates, probation staff, solicitors) for their perceptions of how the CJC operates and how decisions about referral to problem solving meetings come about. Third, we will make video recordings of a sample of problem solving meetings. These recordings will be transcribed and then subjected to detailed analysis for patterns of interaction related to collaboration and participation and which can be identified as influencing the functioning and outcome of these meetings. Finally, we will undertake surveys and focus groups with residents in order to gauge how selected neighbourhoods perceive the effectiveness of the court.By focusing on the processes involved in the day to day operation of the CJC, we aim to understand better how this form of justice operates and to identify practices which promote its effectiveness. The results of our project will reveal a number of lessons which will be applicable beyond the Plymouth model and be able to inform criminal justice agencies more widely. These findings will be disseminated to those working in the criminal justice system and local communities in order to improve understanding of how community justice works and, more practically, to help develop the skills of those who are involved in the different operations of the court.