Community Court in Hartford selected as "mentor court"

For the second time, the Community Court in Hartford has been selected as one of only a handful of sites nationwide to serve as a “mentor court” for jurisdictions considering similar models.
 
The Center for Court Innovation, in partnership with the U.S. Department of Justice’s Bureau of Justice Assistance, chose four community court locations: Hartford, Dallas, Orange County, Calif., and San Francisco.
Federal officials first designated Hartford’s Community Court as a mentor site in 2009.  Most recently, it was chosen again through a competitive application process.  Court officials at the mentor sites have several responsibilities, including hosting site visits, answering questions over the phone or Internet; and participating in conferences and workshops.
 
According to the Center for Court Innovation, "The Hartford Community Court is the first program designed to apply community court principles to an entire city. To maintain strong community connections, the Hartford Court seeks to assign offenders to perform community service in the neighborhood where they committed their offense. The court encourages residents and local groups to recommend service sites, maintains a community service hot line, and reports back to the community via a quarterly newsletter. The Hartford Community Court now serves five surrounding towns outside of the City of Hartford, thus making it the only community court in the nation that serves both urban and suburban communities. The Hartford Community Court also served as a mentor court under the previous initiative launched in 2009."