This past month, The Conference of Chief Justices (CCJ) and Conference of State Court Administrators (COSCA) invited Dr. Sarah Vinson to become a member of the National Judicial Task Force to Examine State Courts’ Response to Mental Illness.
The responsibly of the Task Force is to examine the impact that individuals with mental illness have on the operations of state judicial systems. As a continuation and transition of the work of the National Initiative Advisory Committee (est. 2019; National Initiative Advisory Committee), the team will make policy and practice recommendations to help improve the state courts’ response.
In May 2020, CCJ and COSCA established the Task Force to assume leadership of the project, transitioning the Advisory Committee’s work to the Task Force. This report includes information about the current activities of the project. The work of the Task Force is led by an Executive Committee and each of the members will be assigned to and work within one of three Work Groups: Criminal Justice, Civil, Family and Probate, and Education and Partnerships. Dr. Vinson, along with the other members of the group, will use her field expertise to help ensure court systems play a leading role in understanding the issues and aid in providing practicable solutions for individuals suffering from mental illness at every intersection point within the justice system.
About The Conference of Chief Justices — The Conference of Chief Justices (CCJ) was founded in 1949 to provide an opportunity for the highest judicial officers of the states to meet and discuss matters of importance in improving the administration of justice, rules and methods of procedure, and the organization and operation of state courts and judicial systems, and to make recommendations and bring about improvements on such matters.
About The Conference of State Court Administrators (COSCA) — The Conference of State Court Administrators (COSCA), established in 1955, is dedicated to the improvement of state court systems. Its membership consists of the state court administrator or equivalent official in each of the fifty states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, Northern Mariana Islands, and the Virgin Islands.
