Our guest speaker at the Nov 19 Rotary meeting at Shadowbrook was Russell Shurtleff. Judge Shurtleff is the President Judge of the Court of Common Pleas of Wyoming & Sullivan Counties. There are only 2 joint judicial districts in PA with one judge, so his schedule is somewhat challenging serving 2 Counties.
Judge Shurtleff spoke about the impact of Covid-19 on the local court system, which never closed but went virtual with hearings and sentencings done via Zoom with lawyers, probation and everyone online.
Crime wise, we are down. Fewer DUIs due to the bars being closed. Burglaries have dropped substantially. On the other hand, domestic violence crimes have increased and there is concern that Children and Youth cases are currently underreported.
The last drug treatment court graduation included 3 from Wyo and 1 from Sullivan Counties. Almost 100 people have graduated, and it has been successful.
They were approved by the DA and Office of Courts for the Veterans Treatment Court now. The VA will do all the counseling. They will also be assigned a mentor, who has had similar military experiences or disability.
We will have DUI, Drug and Veterans Courts. Next to be pursued will be Mental Health Court since it is underserved nationwide. People are trying to treat their mental health issues with drugs, which creates another set of issues.
President Judge Russell Shurtleff