by Michael R. Jones, Senior Project Associate, Pretrial Justice Institute, Washington, D.C.

What makes some local criminal justice coordinating committees (CJCCs) so effective? Mike Jones discusses three key components that underpin teams that work especially well in developing effective solutions that make a big difference. He also highlights the formation of the Criminal Justice Coordinating Council Network, a BJA-supported community formed to share knowledge and ideas. CJCCs can be a very effective forum for finding long-term solutions and for managing justice system issues, such as jail crowding, court inefficiencies, and resource reductions, to name only a few. Mike’s expertise comes from several years leading the CJCC in Jefferson County (Golden), Colorado, plus his experiences working with many other jurisdictions as an NIC Technical Assistance provider and with the Pretrial Justice Institute team.