Changing Court Building Community

The Supervised Release Program, within Bronx Community Solutions, held its first annual holiday drive event on December 18, 2018 at the Bronx Criminal Court House. The holiday drive was developed by Samantha Wynn and Elizabeth Beshears as a way to make the holidays brighter for a population of people who are often discriminated against. Toys, non-perishable food items, and clothing were collected for participants of the Supervised Release program; whose mission is to reduce the number of people held in jail simply because they cannot afford bail. Families affected by the judicial system face a multitude of hardships, so much so that extras like holiday gifts either become an afterthought or are, sadly, not even a thought at all. Thanks to donations received from Trader Joe’s, Food Bazaar, friends, family and employees of Bronx Community Solutions and the Center for Court Innovation, we were able to spread holiday cheer to more than 25 Supervised Release clients who participated i...

Bronx Youth Court Member and Alahna   What was it like to go through the training you attended with other Youth Court members this summer? My experience with the Youth Court training was fun. I was nervous because I hadn’t done anything like that before. It exposed me to a lot of things that I didn’t know about the law. And since the training this summer the other Youth Court members have become like family now. I really love all of them. Was there an instructor that connected or subject that resonated with you from this summer’s training? An instructor I really connected to was Ummer. We just clicked out of nowhere. A subject that really stuck out to me was what to do when you are stopped by the police. That really stayed with me. You’ve participated in some community events since becoming a Youth Court member. Is there anything that you would want the Bronx Youth Court to do for the community as you move forward? A community cleanup would be nice. I...