May 2010 (Vol. 5)
Excerpt from message of Chair,Charles Hynes:
The ABA Criminal Justice Section is the national entity that brings all the players in the criminal law arena together to address critical issues for the field. The focus of the Section is not only on policy development concerning those critical issues, but also on designing collaborative practical projects that help forge solutions to those systemic problems at the local and national levels. Our work on reentry and on the disparate racial impact of the criminal justice system are but two examples of how the CJS has developed cutting edge policy coupled with consequential project work. We are currently working on a project to address issues raised by the U.S. Supreme Court Padilla decision and have already developed a web resource page to assist attorneys in complying with the decision. Further, former Chair Stephen Saltzburg is forming a Task Force on Padilla which will strengthen resources to support the ability of defense lawyers to comply.
The Section also has a new project to create Model Racial Justice Task Forces in four selected communities across the country. The project is chaired by Third Circuit, U. S. Court of Appeals Chief Judge Theodore McKee and is seeking proposals from those in the criminal justice field to apply to be one of the communities receiving financial and technical assistance under the project. The application is available here.
In light of these and many other successful policies and projects, it seems appropriate to build on this momentum and get the word out to criminal justice practitioners who are not members of the Section about the outstanding programming and numerous other activities we undertake.