Bronx D.A. Programs
| People’s Court Program (P.S. 156 ) |
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| Elementary school students from P.S. 156 travel to the Bronx District Attorney’s Office to participate in mock trials. Incidents violating school rules are brought before the mock court and the children act as defense counsel, prosecutor and court officers. With the assistance of Assistant District Attorneys, the students learn how trials are prepared and conducted. The program also assists the students by helping them to develop effective communication skills while learning more about the complexities of the judicial system. |
| S.T.A.R (Students Together Avoiding Risk) PROGRAM |
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| The S.T.A.R. Program is a multifaceted approach to battling narcotics and violence. Trained staff of the DA’s Office participate in a 3-part community outreach program for school children in grades five and six and their parents. The program provides age-appropriate information on the negative effects of gangs and anti-gun violence. It features a "say no to drugs" component. The program also provides information on the people and operations of the District Attorney’s Office and the criminal justice system. |
| Project J.U.M.P. (Juvenile Mentoring Program) |
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| Sophomores, Juniors and Seniors from the Law, Justice and Public Service Academy at Theodore Roosevelt High School are matched with volunteers from the Bronx District Attorney’s Office on a one-to-one basis. Thirty-four mentors provide much needed support and inspiration to students making their way through school. Traveling to the Bronx District Attorney’s Office to meet with their mentors allows students to experience the mentors’ work environment and learn about the functioning of the criminal justice system. |
| Youth Trial Advocacy Program (YTAP) |
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| The Bronx District Attorney’s Office Youth Trial Advocacy Program (YTAP) provides motivated students with an opportunity to explore a career in law. Students meet with Assistant District Attorneys to discuss legal careers and the criminal justice system. Students are then divided into teams, with an Assistant District Attorney serving as a coach or mentor. Each team will learn how to develop advocacy skills and debating techniques. Students will then be able to test their newly acquired skills in a moot court competition. At the end of the program, every student will be awarded a certificate marking their successful participation in the program. To find out more about this program, call the program coordinator at (718) 537-7154. |
| The NYS High School Mock Trial Competition and Mentor Program |
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| The NYS Mock Trial Competition, a statewide competition sponsored by the NYS Bar Association, is also administered by the Justice Resource Center. Assistant District Attorneys are assigned as "team trainers" to various Bronx high schools, both parochial and public. |
| Eagle Academy Mentoring Program |
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| The Eagle Academy is an all-boys public charter school that stresses academic excellence. Twenty-four male mentors from the District Attorney’s Office volunteer their time with students from the school. A staff member from the Office meets with personnel from the Academy to coordinate group activities for the mentors and mentees as well as give support and advice on fostering positive relationships. |
| Adult Workshop Series |
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| The Adult Workshop Series provides the District Attorney’s Office with an avenue to educate Bronx residents about various issues related to the criminal justice system. Workshops such as "After the Arrest," "You Be the Judge" and "Gang Awareness" have been developed in order to inform citizens about prevalent issues such as criminal court arraignment, trial procedures and the presence of gangs in our schools and neighborhoods. To find out more about these workshops, call (718) 590-2383. |
| Precinct Council Representatives |
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| There are 14 precinct community councils in the Bronx that meet on a monthly basis. Fourteen Assistant District Attorneys have been assigned to attend these meetings. These representatives assure that the District Attorney is kept informed about issues of significance to the community. |
| Tours And Speakers |
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| The Community Affairs Unit coordinates requests for tours and speakers. Assistant District Attorneys address community, religious, civic and student groups regarding the criminal justice system. Speakers discuss a variety of issues of interest to the community . In addition, Assistant District Attorneys are available to conduct tours of the courthouses and explain how a case proceeds through the criminal justice system. If you would like to schedule a tour or speaker, you can call 718-590-2383. |
| Special Projects |
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| The Community Affairs Unit implements several special events and programs throughout the year to address various community needs. Events such as the Legislative Breakfast, the adult workshop series, and special programs with various community organizations are developed in order to afford various segments of the Bronx community with the opportunity to interact with the Bronx District Attorney and his staff. |
| Operation Weed And Seed |
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| The District Attorney’s Office in cooperation with the United States Attorney’s Office of the Southern District of New York and community leaders has initiated a "Weed & Seed" program in which enhanced police and prosecution resources are dedicated to a designated area of the Bronx. The program seeks to "weed out" drug traffickers and violent gangs while "seeding" the community with community programs and federal resources to improve the quality of life. This project serves the Bronx River, Soundview, Bruckner neighborhoods of the 43rd Precinct as well as the Mott Haven section of the Bronx which is covered by the 40th Precinct. There is an additional Weed and Seed Site now located in the Mott Haven section of the Bronx. |
| "Ask the Bronx D.A." |
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| Ask the Bronx D.A.," a show co-hosted by the District Attorney and Bronxnet’s Melanie Torres is a 12-part series that serves to educate Bronx residents about the criminal justice system. The show was created as part of an outreach effort to educate the public on matters of concern ranging from on-the-street drug sales to elder abuse. Each show is a half hour long and usually deals with a particular topic. People from the community are invited to ask the D.A. and his staff various questions related to that topic. Topics of discussion thus far have focused on: Economic Crime, Quality of Life, Domestic Violence, Narcotics, Community Outreach, Elder Abuse, Homicide Survivors and The Abandoned Baby Protection Act, the Bronx Multidisciplinary Task Force on Child Abuse, Bias Crime, Crime Victims Assistance Unit/Satellite Office, Project Safe Neighborhoods and Safeguarding Your Child on the Internet. These episodes can be seen on Mondays at 5:30 PM, Wednesdays at 7:00 PM, Fridays at 5:30 PM, Saturdays at 5:30 PM and Sundays at 5:30 PM and 10:00 PM on Bronxnet channel 67. |
| The Elder Abuse Initiative/CASE |
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The Bronx District Attorney's Office has partnered with the Hebrew Home for the Aged at Riverdale and the Bronx Office of Adult Protective Services to form the Elder Abuse Initiative and Multi-Disciplinary Task Force to serve the law enforcement, social service and senior community. To heighten public awareness and prevention strategies, we provide lectures, attend health and information fairs and disseminate educational materials on elder abuse. For more information, call (718) 590-2260 or (718) 590-2272. Click here for brochure.
The Bronx District Attorney’s Office was recently selected to become a CASE Model Site (Communities Against Senior Exploitation). The CASE partnership is an elder fraud prevention and intervention program. It links the Bronx District Attorney’s Office with over 20 sites across the country that are working with faith-based communities to combat elder fraud and exploitation. As part of this program, staff from the District Attorney’s Office conduct training in the community using CASE resource materials. This program is staffed by volunteers from the Office. As part of this project, a fraud hotline is now available at (718) 590-4492.
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| Sexual Assault Intervention Program |
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| In 1997 and 1998, with funds provided by the New York State Crime Victims Board, CVAU expanded its services by hiring first a part-time and then a full-time certified social worker to provide short- and long-term therapy for adult victims of sexual assault. The addition of qualified therapists to the CVAU staff filled a gap in the Bronx community, which lacked sufficient services for adult sexual assault victims. Click here for brochure. |
| Bronx Homicide Support Project |
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In 1999, the Crime Victims Assistance Unit of the Bronx District Attorney’s Office and Safe Horizon (a non-profit provider of victim services) established the Bronx Homicide Support Project to provide support groups for Bronx homicide survivors. The Bronx Homicide Support Project offered a 14-week program of support/educational group sessions for homicide survivors. Two Bronx groups met weekly and provided survivors with the comfort and support of other people who have also experienced similar feelings of devastating anguish, loss and anger. In addition to attending weekly sessions, participants received practical assistance, court advocacy and emotional support on an as-needed basis. The project also provided information regarding how survivors could obtain funeral benefits and entitlements, and offered individual counseling and information on other support groups for the parents and siblings of murder victims.
Experience with the Bronx Homicide Project led facilitators to conclude that while the support/educational group was beneficial to participants, many survivors of homicide victims need more intensive treatment to prevail over the devastating impact of losing a loved one to homicide. In 2000, the services offered through this collaboration were expanded to provide the more intensive treatment, Trauma and Separation Distress Therapy (TST), that many survivors need. The first therapy group in the Bronx was initiated in March 2000, and since then there have been two therapy groups each year (one beginning in March and the other in September).
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| Bronx Survivors Tribute and Clothesline Project |
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| Since 1997, the Bronx District Attorney’s Crime Victims Assistance Unit has collaborated with several agencies to create and organize the Bronx Survivors Tribute and Bronx Clothesline Project. These events are always held in April in recognition of National Crime Victims Rights Week. The Survivors Tribute features statements, poems, songs and testimonies written by survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault, child abuse and homicide.
The Bronx Clothesline Project is a display of T-shirts designed by survivors of crime to "break the silence" surrounding their victimization. The Clothesline Project allows these individuals to make their voices heard by others who support them in their struggle for healing. Each shirt symbolizes pain, survival, healing and empowerment, and provides a window into the life of a victim who survived violence or died as a result of it. In addition, the project provides an ongoing source of support and inspiration to victims who are trying to come to terms with their own abuse. The messages on the shirts are individualized - some poetic, some plaintive - allowing the artists to express their feelings in their own way.
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