Justice Speaks Podcast Episode #54

Justice Speaks continues its series of interviews with State Treatment Court Associations’ leaders and State Treatment Court Coordinators by interviewing Chief Judge Brenda Weaver, Judge Charles Auslander, III, and Ms. Taylor Jones, the Executive Director of Georgia’s Council of Accountability Court Judges (CACJ). This episode is sponsored by Reconnect. 

Chief Judge Weaver was first appointed to the bench in 1996 and she was also elected to office that same year. She describes overseeing criminal cases and being frustrated that the only option she had for felony cases was state prison. She became interested in looking for alternatives to prison and she was aware of Treatments Courts that had begun in Florida.  She also knew that several Treatment Courts were operating in Georgia, so in 2002, she started the first felony accountability court in her district. She later started a Family Treatment Court, and Mental Health Court and finally a Veterans Treatment Court. Chief Judge Weaver was responsible for pioneering the development of Georgia’s accountability courts and she continues to preside over a Veterans and Drug Court to this day.

Judge Auslander was initially a defense attorney. He describes representing a DUI client who was under consideration for a DUI Court program after a new arrest. He shared that because of his client’s severe drinking problem, multiple prior arrests, and general attitude he did not believe his client had any chance of succeeding in the program, so his client passed on it at that time. Several years later after being appointed to the bench, he had the opportunity to cover an Accountability Court in a colleague’s DUI program and he was surprised to see his former client in the program and doing very well. From there he “fell in love “with the concept of Accountability Courts.

Ms. Jones began her career in Accountability Courts as a probation officer in 2009. She spent some time as a surveillance officer in a Mental Health Court where she observed positive changes in some of the participants.  After the Georgia legislature provided funding for the creation of the CACJ, she applied for, and she was appointed to the role of Executive Director of the Council.

The Creation of the Council

The CACJ was statutorily created by the Georgia Legislature in 2015. It is the training, technical assistance, funding, and oversight body for the current 185 of Georgia’s Accountability Court programs. The work of the Council is under the guidance of state judges. Executive Director Jones explains that much of the work of the council is done through standing committees such as:

• Elected executive committee, of which Judge Auslander is the current chair and Chief Judge Weaver was a former chair; 
• Standards committee which oversees best practices in the state; 
• Funding committee which overseeing the distribution of state and grant funding; 
• Training committee which oversees the delivery of training; 
• Data and research committee; and, 
• Nominations committee.

CACJ provides between 20-30 statewide training programs during the year that average two- and one-half days.  They are designed to keep Georgia Accountability Court programs informed of, and employ, national best practices. The council also hosts an annual state conference that draws between 1,300 and 1,400 attendees. Topics are presented by national experts from All Rise (formerly NADCP), and there is a focus on presenting local programs and innovations.  CACJ also provides training programs specifically for new Accountability Court judges.

Executive Director Jones shared that data collection and analysis is a priority for the Council. A total of 120 pieces of data are collected on each Accountability Court participant for the purpose of analyzing the impact and effectiveness of the programs. In addition, the Council, in collaboration with the University of Georgia’s Carl Vinson Institute of Government, developed an “Economic Impact Study.”  It determined the positive economic impact successful Accountability Court graduates had on the community. In FY 2022, using measures such as community service completed, avoided incarceration costs, and gainful employment, the study showed that graduates averaged a contribution of $25,000 back into community.

Most Significant Accomplishments

Chief Judge Weaver said of the many accomplishments of the Georgia Accountability Courts, she is proud that CACJ has used data to improve treatment for the thousands of participants and the communities that end up benefiting from that effort. Judge Auslander described being proud of the standards established for Accountability Courts and that funding is provided for the 185 programs. Executive Director Jones is most proud of the level of service provided by the CACJ for the state’s Accountability Courts and the community within the courts that has been created.

Where will Georgia’s Accountability Courts be in ten years?

In the next 10 years, Chief Judge Weaver would like to see a further expansion of Accountability Courts with at least one court in each of Georgia’s 159 counties. Judge Auslander looks forward to Georgia taking treatment to the next level and achieving solutions for housing problems, among the various challenges faced by the Accountability Court target populations. Executive Director Jones envisions the growth of CACJ and the Accountability Court community.

We wish to thank Chief Judge Weaver, Judge Auslander, and Ms. Jones for joining us on Justice Speaks.  We also wish to thank Reconnect for sponsoring this podcast episode.

Additional Resource

You can watch this interview by going to the Justice Speakers Institutes’ YouTube Channel or by clicking here.