Kris Bryant
Principal Court Management Consultant
National Center for State Courts
kbryant@ncsc.org
Chief Justices of six New England States hold first meeting of regional judicial opioid initiative
Williamsburg, Va., April 19, 2019 – The Massachusetts Trial Court recently hosted the first meeting of the New England Regional Judicial Opioid Initiative (NE RJOI), established earlier this year. The two-day event brought together judges and court administrative staff of the six New England states -- Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont -- for discussions on how the judiciaries can positively impact the opioid crisis through sharing of best practices and effective strategies being used in each state, identifying available resources, and looking for opportunities for collective impact.
The chief justices and participants established four committees, each headed by two judicial co-chairs that will focus on the following:
- Education and Training
- Regional Resources
- Evidence Based Programming
- State Boundary Barriers (supervision/treatment/placement of children)
About the New England Regional Judicial Outreach Initiative
The New England RJOI was established through a $1.5 million grant awarded late last year by the Bureau of Justice Assistance to support the six-state initiative. The program is coordinated by the National Center for State Courts and includes a partnership with a Midwest university for research and data analysis. The initiative will develop a collaborative multi-state, multi-disciplinary response to the opioid epidemic with a focus on the courts and the criminal justice system. It is modeled on a successful, ongoing regional program established in 2016 by the Chief Justices of eight states in the Appalachia-Midwest region. The New England Regional Judicial Opioid Initiative also works closely with the National Judicial Opioid Task Force, established by the Conference of Chief Justices and the Conference of State Court Administrators.
The National Center for State Courts, headquartered in Williamsburg, Va., is a nonprofit court organization dedicated to improving the administration of justice by providing leadership and service to the state courts. Founded in 1971 by the Conference of Chief Justices and Chief Justice of the United States Warren E. Burger, NCSC provides education, training, technology, management, and research services to the nation’s state courts