This podcast covers the celebration of the 15th anniversary of the Red Hook Community Justice Center, with highlights
including speeches from New York State Chief Judge Jonathan Lippman, Brooklyn District Attorney Kenneth Thompson,
and honoree Stuart Gold, of Cravath, Swain, and Moore. The following is a transcript
RAPHAEL POPE-SUSSMAN: Hi. This is Raphael Pope-Sussman of the Center for
Court Innovation. Tonight we are here at the Brooklyn Museum, celebrating the 15th anniversary of the Red Hook Community
Justice Center. The Justice Center has been documented to reduce crime, increase public safety, and improve public
trust in justice. Judge Alex Calabrese, who has presided over the courtroom at Red Hook since the Justice Center
opened in 2000, said defendants who come to the Justice Center know this is a special place from the moment they
walk in the door. JUDGE ALEX CALABRESE: Justice starts
at our front door. Our clerks and court officers treat everyone who comes through our doors and throughout the building
with respect. Our community feels welcome to come to the Justice Center, and they feel it's their Justice Center
due to their efforts. They know they're in a different place. POPE-SUSSMAN:
New York 1 anchor Errol Louis, who emceed the event, said that for him, the work of the Justice Center means something
personal. ERROL LOUIS: I live here in Brooklyn, and
one of the things that I've learned is the importance of neighborhood trust, and events like this are what I
think of as the making of the glue that holds our communities together. At the end of the day, neighborhood trust
is what makes us safe. POPE-SUSSMAN: The event honored
Stu Gold, of Cravath, Swaine & Moore, for his long-time support of the Center for Court innovation and the
Red Hook Community Justice Center. Gold, who first got involved with the Center for Court Innovation through his
work with the Midtown Community Court, was an instrumental member of the planning team that launched the Red Hook
Community Justice Center. Gold spoke about the key role the Justice Center plays in the community in Red Hook.
STUART GOLD: I grew up in Brooklyn, and as many teenagers do, I got into
trouble from time to time. I remember I had an array of adults, my parents, my teachers, to help me figure out how
to rehabilitate myself and get on a better trajectory. Many teenagers and young adults, for a variety of reasons,
don't have those support structures ready at hand. The Red Hook Community Justice Center now supplies that support
for a significant part of its community. For that, it deserves to be lauded, and I'm grateful that I've
had the opportunity to help. POPE-SUSSMAN: Pauline
Nevins, a former client of the Justice Center, was also honored. PAULINE
NEVINS: I struggled with addiction for more than a decade of my life. Throughout that time, I cycled in and out of
the system, appearing before countless judges in countless courtrooms, where I was just a number: a criminal charge,
a docket number, a body that had to be moved swiftly through the system so they could make room for the next one.
But in 2010, I was fortunate enough to end up at the Justice Center in Red
Hook. Coming to the Justice Center was a whole new experience. When I went before the judge I expected what I was
used to: a quick interaction, a bail or a short jail sentence. But instead, Judge Calabrese wanted to know why I
was there and if I wanted help. POPE-SUSSMAN: New
York State Chief Judge Jonathan Lippman offered a call to arms. CHIEF
JUDGE JONATHAN LIPPMAN: It is easy in a justice system as large as we have in New York, to just count the cases coming
through, one in, one out. But that's not enough.
