Dec 27, 2006 — This week, North Country Public Radio is speaking with North Country members of Eliot Spitzer's transition team. These are the people who are helping the Governor-elect formulate his policies going forward. Lee Clary of Black River sits on the criminal justice transition committee. Clary retired as a Jefferson County Court judge in 1999. He served as Jefferson County's district attorney for 10 years. He spoke with David Sommerstein about the Rockefeller drug laws, civil confinement of sex offenders, and the local justice court system. Clary says rural communities deal with a different mix of crimes than cities.  Go to full article

Sep 28, 2006 — Town and village judges hold a lot of power over the people who come before their courts. They can send people to jail or levy fines. But a New York Times report published this week found widespread examples of incompetence and improper behavior, especially here in the North Country. Martha Foley has more.  Go to full article

Sep 28, 2006 — State officials have begun implementing reforms to the local court system in New York, including a new measure requiring local courts to keep records of legal proceedings and more training for local judges. Lawrence Marx is administrative director for the State Office of Court Administration. He's the man who will make those changes. He spoke with Brian Mann.  Go to full article

Jul 19, 2006 — One of the touchiest subjects about sex offenders is recidivism. Some say that therapy isn't effective because sex offenders will almost always try to repeat their crimes. And that's true--for a very small percentage of sexual predators. But most sex offenders have low recidivism rates, lower than any other criminal except murderers. St. Lawrence County just launched a new treatment program for sex offenders. It's a 16-week program meant to teach so-called "low-risk" offenders to control their behavior. It also prepares them for the next 20 years of probation. Gregory Warner stopped by one class in Potsdam. They had just watched The Woodsman the week before, a 2004 film where Kevin Bacon plays a child molester just released from prison.  Go to full article

Jun 18, 2006 — The Champlain Valley chapter of the National Alliance on Mental Illness gives its top award to Judge Penelope Clute in Plattsburgh tonight. It's an unusual partnership. The criminal justice system isn't well suited to dealing with the mentally ill. Jails and prisons are the de facto asylums of our times. Judge Clute is breaking ground in Clinton County, with a court specifically designed for people with severe mental illness. Mental health court codifies a team approach that brings the mental health and the justice systems together. It gives people with mental illness new opportunities to stay out of jail, and the "system" new leverage to intervene. There are only eight other courts like it in the state. Gregory Warner went to court, and has this story.  Go to full article

Aug 09, 2005 — Plattsburgh is launching a new mental health court, the first in the region. The court will be for misdemeanor offenders. The new concept court will be a collaborative effort between criminal justice and mental health professionals.  Go to full article

May 12, 2005 — St. Lawrence University is seeking a court order to track down the operators of a left-leaning Website they say has targeted students and faculty for harassment.  Go to full article

Jun 25, 2004 — The New York Court of Appeals yesterday threw out the death sentence for a Long Island killer, declaring that a part of New York's death penalty law violates the state constitution. An anti-death penalty group says it's time for a moratorium so state lawmakers can decide whether capital punishment should be allowed to continue at all. Karen DeWitt reports from Albany.  Go to full article

Mar 18, 2004 — The leader of the Senate Democrats is trying to jump start the stagnating Rockefeller drug law reform movement. Senator David Paterson has offered a compromise proposal. Karen DeWitt reports from Albany.  Go to full article

Jun 13, 2003 — New York's highest court ruled yesterday that the St. Regis Mohawk Tribe's gaming compact for its Akwesasne Mohawk Casino near Massena is invalid. As David Sommerstein reports, the decision is unlikely to have any immediate effect, but it sets the stage for a face-off over the legality of casinos in New York.  Go to full article