The Administrative Office of the Courts and Probation, along with the Department of Health and Human Services Division of Behavioral Health, is excited to announce that registration for the Behavioral Health & Justice: Building A Comprehensive Community Response Conference is now live!  

Join us on October 28-30^th, 2019 for:

Probation Administrator, Deb Minardi, has been visiting Probation Districts around the state this summer meeting with employees and managers to discuss priorities, strengths, challenges and opportunities facing probation moving forward.   With an emphasis on serving the Courts and building relationships, the meetings have given employees the opportunity to engage in conversation, ask questions, provide valuable feedback and share ideas for the future.

by Meghan Straub
Nebraska News Service
 
LINCOLN--For years, night court has taken place across the country in areas such as New York and California. One local court hosted its first night court last month as a way to provide better access to the court system.
 
The first of two planned night court sessions in Lancaster County Court took place on the evening of May 30 with the second session scheduled June 27.
 

Every month since March, Judge Kale Burdick has been taking an innovative path to the courthouse on the days he presides over Boyd County. He walks the flood-damaged bridge on Highway 11 between O'Neill and Butte where Clerk Magistrate Cathy Reiman picks him up on the Boyd County side of the bridge and takes him to the courthouse. The two hold court in Boyd County and Reiman drives the judge back to the bridge where he walks to his car left on the Holt county side. The now-walking bridge is about 5 miles south of Butte or 30 miles north of Atkinson. 

Three veterans of the US Army and one from the US Marine Corps spent Tuesday evening, May 28, 2019, graduating from the Lancaster County Veterans Treatment Court. Veterans were surrounded by family, veteran mentors, members of the legal community, and public officials.

Participants from the nation’s state courts attended a Summit on Pandemic Preparedness at the University of Nebraska Medical Center (UNMC) May 22 – 24, 2019. The summit, hosted by Nebraska Chief Justice Michael Heavican, brought together state court chief justices and other court leaders, health officials, and members of the legislative and executive branches to discuss ways in which a pandemic outbreak will be addressed by the court system and other entities when the need arises

Students at the Creighton School of Law and the University of Nebraska Law College who provided free legal work for low income individuals were recognized for their service during May graduation ceremonies this year. Each student received a certificate of appreciation from the Nebraska Supreme Court Access to Justice Commission and Nebraska State Bar Association acknowledging their commitment to improving access to justice through contributions to law-related pro bono service as a student.

Law Students recognized at their respective ceremonies include:

The Nebraska Supreme Court dedicated their 2019 Law Day arguments at Scottsbluff High School to late Justice John F. Wright.  Wright died March 18, 2018, at the age of 72 before being able to return to his hometown for a high school argument session. According to local attorneys, Wright, who had served on the Scottsbluff School Board, would have greatly appreciated the court session.

2019-2020 Workgroups
During this year’s leadership council meeting, the Chief Justice appointed five work groups to complete projects before May 2020.  Each work group is comprised of two new-leader judge co-chairs, one committee chair/liaison, and one administrative staff member for support services.

The groups are:

Supreme Court and members of the Scottsbluff probation office gather in Scottsbluff to congratulate Stephanie Skinner, Lori Guerrero, and Sandra Raney on the establishment of the Second Chance Coalition of Western Nebraska. The Coalition is designed to assist individuals who have completed their probationary sentence to become fully productive members of their communities.