Recent News

For the third consecutive election cycle, the Council for Court Excellence (CCE) will be a part of the District of Columbia's mayoral transition team.

Last week, DC saw the election of a new mayor, three new council members, and for the first time, an attorney general. These transitions in elected leadership will mean both change and opportunity in all areas, not the least of which is continuing to improve justice for DC residents. For over three decades, the Council for Court Excellence has worked successfully with the DC mayor and council to address critical issues in both civil and criminal justice. We do this through our extensive network of board and committee members, who are able to convene stakeholders and develop policy recommendations that then are translated into law. Here are just a few examples of legislation that CCE was involved in that were passed under different mayoral administrations. Of course, these don't reflect the many studies and reports we've done that have changed non-legislative policies and practices.

The Diane Rehm Show recently featured an hour long segment on jury service, once again demonstrating the timely and important nature of CCE's jury work. Indeed, three of the four guests on the show are members of CCE's Jury Project Committee.

This is an article about CCE's presentation on Notario Fraud to Maryland Circuit Court Judges

Recently, CCE Board Director Ron Jessamy sat down with CSOSA Deputy Director & CCE Executive Member James Berry to discuss Mr. Berry's recent appointment and his history with CCE.

Over 120 people attended the "Hiring People with a Criminal Record" forum on Wednesday, September 17. Moderated by PNC Bank regional President Michael Harreld, the event included remarks by D.C. Chamber of Commerce CEO Harry Wingo and presentations by a number of businesses and experts in the areas of reentry and employment.

"Hiring DC Residents with a Criminal Record Makes Sense," a program to educate attendees on local and federal laws that affect hiring practices, will be held on September 17, 8:00-10:00 am at PNC Bank, 800 17th Street, NW, 12th Floor, Washington, DC (with a continental breakfast and networking from 8:00 to 8:30 am). Hosted and moderated by Michael Harreld, Regional President of PNC Bank, the program will include presentations from the Equal Opportunity Employment Commission, the DC Office on Returning Citizen Affairs, DC Council Chairman Phil Mendelson, and others. Harry Wingo, President & CEO of the DC Chamber of Commerce, will welcome attendees and commence the presentations.

Recently CCE participated in a roundtable discussion for a State Department-sponsored visiting delegation from Latin America touring the US to learn about the administration of justice. Executive Director, June Kress talked about the work of the Council for Court Excellence over the last 32 years, about our unique court and justice system structure in DC, and about how civil society can and should be engaged in improving the administration of justice.

CCE mourns the loss of longtime CCE Board Director Julian Riley Dugas who recently passed away of congestive heart failure on April 12, 2014. Mr. Dugas was someone whose name carried great weight in the District of Columbia because of the myriad of extraordinary contributions that he made to the city with more than 60 years as a lawyer, humanitarian, teacher and civil servant.

CCE, as part of our DC Prisoner Reentry Initiative, is considering holding an educational forum for the DC employer community about recent and current developments in law and policy about hiring people with criminal records who represent ten percent of the District's population.The survey will take less than 2 minutes to complete. We hope you'll consider completing the survey or forwarding to the person in your firm or company that manages the hiring process for both professionals and administrative personnel.

CCE received the exciting news last Wednesday that CCE's Jury Project, Changing Perceptions: Jury Service in the 21st Century, has been awarded a $56,000 grant from the City Fund, administered through the Community Foundation for the National Capital Region. Last November, over 300 applications were submitted to the City Fund with requests totaling more than $30 million. CCE joins 57 other organizations for the first round of grantmaking from the City Fund.

Theodore Whitehouse, CCE Board Director, Reentry Project Committee Chair, and partner at Willkie Farr & Gallagher recently sat down for a one-on-one conversation with Tyrone Parker, CCE Executive Committee member, a member of CCE's Reentry and School Discipline project committees, and Executive Director of the Alliance of Concerned Men.