Good Citizen: Engaging and Participating in the Justice System
With certain exceptions, no one seems to like going to court. Despite spending a lot of time in court during my career, for some time I have been on ‘Team: Let’s Not Go to Court.’ There are those who look forward to jury duty, folks who think it is a great place to get married and others who like having a job and getting paid. Often the courthouse is the most imposing and expensive public building in a community with tighter security than some airports.
It’s understandable why some people just want to leave it alone.
I know some amazing lawyers and judges who can’t wait to get inside a courtroom to wrestle and wrangle in an intellectual war of wits. Other friends of mine serve as court deputies and bailiffs and I’m glad that they are there providing security, handling suspects, and ensuring decorum in the hearings.
My friend Darla* invited me to a misdemeanor domestic violence trial that she was prosecuting. She was a division chief in the state attorney’s office and it was an exceptional circumstance to be there as she, not one of the many lawyers under her command, was trying this case with an uncooperative witness. This was a case against a career criminal defendant, who we were both aware, had murdered several people but had never been tried, much less convicted. Most prosecutors treat those domestic violence cases as lost causes, but Darla, with the courage of a Spartan warrior, pushed the case against this reprobate even as the victim perjured herself on the stand (a felony crime) out of fear of this man – who could have Darla killed with a phone call.
There are few places we can see virtue, risk, and principle played out at this scale.
Too few of us get to see the real ‘inside of a courtroom’ and our first time shouldn’t be responding to a traffic ticket or worse. There is an opportunity for adults and youth to participate in Flagler County Teen Court. Just to temper expectations, these are not full-blown trials but more of an immersive sentencing hearing. Youth who have been accused of a delinquent act, and engaged in a diversion program, face participating youth who must follow a process to determine the defendant’s path to justice.
Teens who volunteer to participate are provided vital community service hours. As mentioned before, this is not just a program for teens but for adults also. I know of a county bar association that counted Teen Court participation by their attorneys as the pro-bono work of their dues. As youth invest their time, additional opportunities, with the same benefits will help them ‘level up’ via training activities, mock trials and other interaction with like-minded youth.
An application process is required for adults and youth. To take advantage of this opportunity, contact Flagler County Courthouse Teen Court Coordinator Ms. Briskey at wbriskey@circuit7.org.
If this article inspires you but doesn’t apply to you, please share it via your social media presence. After all, every community benefits greatly from good citizens, both youth and adult, understanding and engaging in our justice system.
*(name changed for safety purposes)
Roland Clee serves as the Executive Director of the Flagler Tiger Bay Club, a non-partisan political club. He is recently retired from the Orlando Police Department, and helps local governments with media relations, accreditation and strategic planning through his company, Command Staff Consulting.
