Newark Community Solutions

As the COVID-19 pandemic forced organizations and institutions to shift to operating remotely, disparities driven by the digital divide became a shared problem across major cross-sector systems important to a community’s well-being. The Health, Housing, and Justice Alliance sought to eliminate inequities of fully virtual legal, healthcare, and social services through the creation of pop-up navigation centers and court hubs throughout Newark, New Jersey.

After sweeping reforms to New Jersey’s criminal justice system, Newark Community Solutions joined local criminal justice practitioners and launched a pilot program in Essex County to bring supportive services to people with mental health needs awaiting trial in the community. This report gathers lessons and recommendations gleaned from Newark Community Solutions’ experience providing assessment and case management services within this pilot program.

The idea of community justice encompasses a diverse and growing range of evidence-based initiatives which seek to reduce crime by strengthening communities and redressing longstanding inequities. In recognition of the ways in which the approach has evolved over the years, this publication presents a new set of guiding principles of community justice and offers inventive models for putting them into practice, both inside and outside of the courtroom.