Rosemary Martinez-Borges, Special Counsel for Juvenile Justice Initiatives.
Thursday, Aug. 9, 2018
Albany Law School
As part of a continuing series of programs to implement the “Raise the Age” legislation, the Office of Court Administration on Thursday held court attorney training at Albany Law School. The training focuses on legislation that will raise the age of criminal responsibility from 16 to 17 on Oct. 1, 2018 and from 17 to 18 on Oct. 1, 2019.
In a seven-hour program, attendees were welcomed by Hon. Michael V. Coccoma, Deputy Chief Administrative judge for the Courts Outside New York City, and Hon. Edwina G. Mendelson, Deputy Chief Administrative Judge for Justice Initiatives. Paul McDonnell, deputy counsel for UCS, provided an overview of the legislation, and was followed by Deputy Counsel Janet Fink, who reviewed the history of the juvenile justice system.
Rosemary Martinez-Borges, Special Counsel for Juvenile Justice Initiatives, and Michelle Smith, Chief of Staff, Office of Justice Initiatives, discussed the interdisciplinary and multifaceted courtroom from a court attorney’s perspective. Finally, Dennis Reilly, Statewide Drug Court Coordinator with the office of Policy & Planning, Aimee Neri, Statewide Project Manager on Integrating Trauma Informed Practices in Family Court, and Rocco Pozzi, the Westchester County Commissioner of Probation, discussed best practices.
Michelle Smith, Chief of Staff, Office of Justice Initiatives