policies and procedures of the illinois criminal justice system

Special issue: Specialty courts
Also called problem solving courts, these courts serve special populations and attempt to address
and treat the underlying reason for offending behavior. Drug courts, mental health courts, and
veterans courts are most common in Illinois. Some jurisdictions have courts dedicated to
handling only specific offenses such as domestic violence and driving under the influence, but
those are not considered “specialty courts” for the purpose of this report.
Characteristics of specialty courts
The specialty court model includes a judge, prosecutor, defense attorney, probation officer,
social worker or case manager, treatment provider, and other justice system partners who work
together to determine an appropriate combination of sanctions and treatment. Specialty courts
focus on establishing or restoring offenders as contributing members of society through a
balanced approach of treatment and supervision.
While eligible populations for specialized courts vary depending on the jurisdiction, the
following components remain constant:
• Individuals must voluntarily participate in the program.
• Individuals must have no pending charges for a violent crime and no prior conviction for
a violent crime in the past 10 years.
• Specialty courts are either housed in a separate facility or in a dedicated courtroom. This
adds to the specialized focus of these models.
• In order to encourage compliance, specialty courts must offer clear incentives. Depending
on the model, these incentives may be the prospect of dismissed charges, avoiding
incarceration, or smaller rewards, such as movie tickets or restaurant vouchers. In
addition, sanctions also may be imposed, such as increased reporting, curfew, home
confinement, and county jail time.
• Judges, prosecutors, and defense attorneys assist the offender with accepting
responsibility for his or her actions, focusing on rehabilitation, and completing the
program, rather than focusing on punishment.
• The courtroom workgroup (judge, prosecutor, defense attorney, and other administrative
staff) creates an individual plan for treatment, including available incentives and
sanctions, assesses and addresses the needs of the individual, and outlines a specific
timeline for completion.
• Judges in specialty courts become invested in the success of the offender, taking time to
monitor progress, praise compliance, and sanction non-compliance.
• Specialty courts incorporate graduation exercises, ranging from a certificate of
completion to a ceremony in the courtroom, to recognize the offender’s accomplishment.
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