As we commemorate the 67th anniversary of Brown v. Board of Education, Americans have much to learn about the legacy and unrealized promise that Brown represents. The opinion famously relies on social science evidence submitted by psychologists Kenneth and Mamie Clark and other eminent scholars establishing that segregation harms the psychological development of Black children, and that official segregation “generates a feeling of inferiority as to their status in the community that may affect their hearts and minds in a way unlikely ever to be undone.”

Read more →

A new survey released by the ABA on Thursday, April 29, 2021 found stark divisions based on age and race when it comes to believing that there are racial biases built into the rules, procedures and practices of the justice system. While 45% of white respondents said they agree or strongly agree with that statement, 80% of Black respondents and 63% of Hispanic respondents agreed or strongly agreed. Additionally, the ABA 2021 Survey of Civic Literacy discovered that more than two-thirds of Americans ages 18-34 believe racial biases exist in the justice system, but only about one-third of Americans age 65 and older do.

Read more →

When U.S. District Judge Cormac Carney dismissed charges against defendants in the Central District of California for the failure of the court to provide speedy trials, he cited the success of the Orange County Superior Court in conducting trials during the pandemic. Orange County courts have conducted over 100 jury trials from the start of the pandemic, which Carney says demonstrates why trials could be held in the Central District. These rulings were appealed to the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, which questioned whether the numerous trials conducted by the Orange County court were safely conducted. I can say that they were indeed conducted safely.

Read more →

A new NCSC report, The Evolving Science of Implicit Bias: An Updated Resource for the State Court Community, is now available at the NCSC website. The report defines commonly used terms originating from the science of implicit bias; explains how the concept of implicit bias fits into broader conversations underway across the country about equity and fairness; and summarizes what is currently known from research in the psychological and brain sciences, including implicit bias interventions generally found to be effective and ineffective.

Read more →