Press Releases
07/20/2023
Division of Criminal Justice Releases "Moving Justice Forward: A Blueprint for the Connecticut Division of Criminal Justice"
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
(Rocky Hill, CT) -- Chief State’s Attorney Patrick J. Griffin, in collaboration with the Herbert & Nell Singer Foundation and the Center for Justice Innovation, today announced the release of the Moving Justice Forward report, a first-of-its kind implementation blueprint for the State of Connecticut’s prosecutors that will help enhance efficiency and fairness within Connecticut’s criminal justice system.
Chief State’s Attorney Griffin, Jay H. Sandak, President of the Herbert & Nell Singer Foundation, and Theron P. Pride, Jr., Managing Director of National Initiatives and Research at the Center for Justice Innovation, gathered today with Connecticut’s State’s Attorneys and members of the Moving Justice Forward Advisory Panel at the Office of the Chief State’s Attorney to discuss how the report will help lead the Division toward effective change that ensures that every citizen in the state is treated fairly and consistently regardless of where their case is heard.
“This well-researched and thoughtful strategic plan sets goals for innovating the work of the Division of Criminal Justice in a way that strengthens the infrastructure of each of Connecticut’s 13 Judicial Districts so prosecutors can balance preserving the public’s safety with ensuring equitable justice using practices that change individual and system outcomes for the better,” Chief State’s Attorney Griffin said. “Connecticut’s prosecutors strive every day to provide fair and efficient justice in their dedicated service to the state. Together, we are enthusiastically embracing this blueprint as a roadmap for the long-term enhancement and strengthening of the Division.”
Funded with private support from the Herbert & Nell Singer Foundation, the Moving Justice Forward project conducted an 11-month comprehensive analysis of the current state of prosecutorial policies and practices in four of the state’s 13 judicial districts - Hartford, New Britain, New London and Danbury. The project examined such topics as case initiation, charging, plea-bargaining, sentencing, bail, prosecutor caseloads, training and development and communications with law enforcement and the community.
The study also looked at the Division’s data collection and transparency with the public as well as its community relations and recruitment strategies to improve diversity, equity and inclusion within the ranks of the Division’s more than 500 employees.
Following the research-grounded analysis and discussions with prosecutors and stakeholders, the public-private partnership identified 10 goals, each with concrete objectives and action steps to ensure that the implementation work is specific, measurable and achievable.
"We are grateful to the Division of Criminal Justice for opening its doors and inviting us to engage staff, partner agencies, and community organizations in candid discussion and reflection. It is only by bringing everyone to the table in this way that we can create a fair and stronger justice system," said Theron P. Pride, Jr., the Center for Justice Innovation's Managing Director of National Initiatives and Research. "The 10 goals in the blueprint reflect the diverse input of everyone we spoke with and touch on all aspects of the prosecutor's office, from expanding opportunities to divert cases safely out of the system, increasing staff diversity and training, and improving public confidence in the justice system."
The Division already has started implementation of the blueprint with the recent creation of Connecticut Prosecution Standards, a compilation of best prosecutorial practices across the nation but tailored specifically to Connecticut. The new professional standards were unveiled to the Division of Criminal Justice’s prosecutors at the Division’s annual prosecutor training conference on June 8, 2023.
The standards are meant to provide guidance to prosecutors, to ensure consistency without undue regimentation and to remove unwarranted disparities in prosecutors’ practices across the state without sacrificing the flexibility that is crucial to the prosecutorial function.
“The Herbert & Nell Singer Foundation is proud to have partnered with the Division of Criminal Justice and the Center for Judicial Innovation in this very important project,” Jay H. Sandak, President of the Herbert & Nell Singer Foundation, said. “We applaud their focus on fairness and equity. The citizens of the State of Connecticut will be the true beneficiaries.”
The Division would like to extend its sincere gratitude to the Herbert & Nell Singer Foundation for funding this important project and its appreciation for the collaboration with The Center for Justice Innovation, a leader in fostering transformative justice initiatives. The Division has partnered in the past with these institutions in the development of the Division's Early Screening and Intervention Program.
“On behalf of the Criminal Justice Commission, I would like to thank everyone who has put so much time and effort into developing this important initiative,” Senior Associate Justice Andrew J. McDonald, who also serves as chairperson of the Criminal Justice Commission, said. “I applaud the efforts Chief State’s Attorney Griffin and his team have already made toward meeting the goals of the blueprint, particularly the creation of the Connecticut Prosecution Standards. Developing a standard-setting agenda has been a Commission priority for the Division since I assumed the role of chairperson in 2017. Release of the new standards comes at a particularly vital time as the Commission works with the Division to fill an unusually high number of vacancies resulting from a recent wave of retirements of veteran and experienced prosecutors. This new generation of lawyers will now have this important resource available to guide them as they begin their service to the State of Connecticut in the criminal justice system. The Commission looks forward to the Division’s continued efforts toward implementation of the blueprint’s goals.”
The Division also would like to thank the project’s advisory panel, made up of esteemed criminal justice stakeholders, decision-makers and partners from the court system, both in prosecution and defense, law enforcement and those impacted by crime, for their strategic advice.
The Moving Justice Forward Advisory Board includes the following:
- Julian Adler, Chief Innovation and Strategy Officer for the Center for Justice Innovation
- Supervisory Assistant State’s Attorney Carl R. Ajello III
- Maura Crossin, victim’s rights advocate
- Attorney Audrey A. Felsen, private defense lawyer
- Assistant State’s Attorney Joy Gary
- Former Chief State’s Attorney Kevin T. Kane
- The Honorable Joette Katz, Connecticut Supreme Court (retired)
- Ansonia/Milford State’s Attorney Margaret E. Kelley
- Deputy Chief State’s Attorney Kevin D. Lawlor
- Luis Mattei Jr. justice-impacted individual
- Scott Murphy, Criminal Justice Commission member
- New London State’s Attorney Paul J. Narducci
- Dr. William A. Petit Jr., former state representative
- Waterbury State’s Attorney Maureen T. Platt
- West Hartford Police Chief Vernon L. Riddick Jr.
- Deputy Chief State’s Attorney John J. Russotto
- Supervisory Assistant State’s Attorney Amy Sedensky
- Stamford Police Chief Timothy Shaw
- Senior Assistant State’s Attorney Melissa L. Streeto, President of the Connecticut Association of Prosecutors
To view Moving Justice Forward: A Blueprint for the Connecticut Division of Criminal Justice and the Connecticut Prosecution Standards, go to https://portal.ct.gov/DCJ and scroll to “For the Record.” To learn more about the Center for Justice Innovation, visit https://www.innovatingjustice.org/publications/moving-justice-forward.