impartial jury

July -December 2022: TTA will include:
o Implementing training and corresponding resources related to challenging prior convictions as a basis for impeachment.
o Connecting WSOPD with Professors Anna Roberts and Julia Simon-Kerr who have written extensively on the limitations of the use of prior convictions as a basis for challenging witness credibility.
Report is largely complete and currently meeting to design training for Washington state's criminal legal system stakeholders.

(July-Dec. 2022): TTA request services that include:
o Training relating to the implementation of holistic defense practices.
o Developing program assessment methodology and ideas and practices on
how to collect qualitative and quantitative data.
o Peer-to-peer learning resources.
o Connecting stakeholders with subject matter experts.

July-December 2022: provided funding travel for Chris Fabricant, a nationally recognized speaker with subject matter expertise, to present on issues relating to forensic science. Mr. Fabricant is the Director of Strategic Litigation for the Innocence Project and is based in New York.

July-December 2022: provided funding to allow the LPDA to bring a national speaker to the PDAL Annual Seminar slated for November 16-18, 2022 in Marksville.

In-depth TTA. Working with the Victim-Witness Outreach Office of the County Attorney’s Office, this project will focus on identifying barriers for low-income victims and witnesses, especially those in more rural parts of the county to participate in the court system. This will include examining gaps in resources and language related barriers for the region’s refugee population and helping to develop tools and resources to improve access. This project is being led by APA and just launched in January 2023.

Similar to the Minnesota statewide training we did, we will host a virtual Fair cross-section training in two parts. Specifically, the TTA will be aimed at educating and training criminal legal system stakeholders on how to deal with disparities in jury pools and to generally increase literacy around fair cross-section challenges. There will be one training for all stakeholders slated for August 19th and then another limited to defenders slated for August 26th.
January-June 2022: We have met with the TTA contact and developed both content and secured speakers for the programs.

JFA Team and the TTA Client will work towards addressing the underrepresentation of racial, ethnic, and other minorities on juries in St. Louis County, MN by conducting both qualitative and quantitative assessments of the jury system, developing a public education campaign for businesses and the general public on the importance of jury service, and educate court stakeholders on the importance of diverse jury pools.