Midtown Community Court
Encyclopedia
Times Square
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neighborhood of New York City. The court focuses on quality-of-life offenses, such as prostitution, shoplifting, farebeating and vandalism. The court, which is located on West 54th Street in Manhattan, has been replicated both in the United States
United States
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, in cities including Austin
Austin
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, Philadelphia and Portland, Oregon
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, and abroad, in countries as varied as South Africa
South Africa
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, Great Britain
Great Britain
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, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, and Australia
Australia
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.
The Midtown Community Court was established as a collaboration between the New York State Unified Court System and the Center for Court Innovation
Center for Court Innovation
The Center for Court Innovation is a non-profit think tank headquartered in New York that helps courts and criminal justice agencies aid victims, reduce crime and improve public trust in justice....
. The court relies on partnerships with local residents, businesses and social service agencies to organize community restitution projects and provide on-site social services, including drug treatment, mental health counseling, and job training. Unlike most conventional courts, the Midtown Court combines punishment and help, requiring low-level offenders to pay back the neighborhood through community service while mandating them to receive social services to address problems that often underlie criminal behavior.
The court was the subject of an independent evaluation by the National Center for State Courts. According to the National Center, the court's compliance rate of 75 percent for community service was the highest in the city. Offenders performing community service contribute hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of labor to the community each year. In conjunction with aggressive law enforcement and economic development efforts, the court has had an impact on neighborhood crime: prostitution arrests dropped 56 percent and illegal vending was down 24 percent.