The virtual meeting presented information about resources and programs provided by the DA
By YUENJO FAN — city@theaggie.org
On Feb. 11, the Yolo County District Attorney (DA)’s Office hosted their Commons Town Hall Meeting to provide insight to community members about the DA’s outreach efforts. Since the first town hall was held in 2021, the meetings have occurred on the second Tuesday of each month. Hosted by Sacramento attorney Marcus Wiggins, the Commons Town Hall touched on Yolo County’s data transparency dashboard, Restorative Justice Partnership (RJP) and youth outreach.
“Our Commons Town Hall is about real data, real talk and real change,” Wiggins said. “This is the chance for you, the public, to engage with policymakers, discuss community issues, see real and transparent criminal justice data and promote real change in our criminal justice system.”
Alongside Wiggins were three town hall panelists: Yolo County Chief Deputy DA Melinda Aiello, Restorative Justice Partnership Manager Nicole Kirkaldy and Yolo County Deputy DA Diane Ortiz. Each member of the DA’s Office brought forth a type of outreach while also describing how they help uphold criminal justice within Yolo County.
Aiello, who holds over 28 years of prosecuting experience, introduced the Data Transparency Portal, a website that provides updated statistics about court cases, offense types and other relevant pieces of information regarding criminal prosecution in the county.
“We have a commitment to our constituents to provide transparency,” Aiello said. “The portal provides really critical information about what’s happening in our county and what’s happening to cases that get referred to us. We break it down by various types of cases and by our law enforcement agencies. [The Data Transparency Portal] is something that we continue to review and evaluate. We look at the data and if we see some trends or concerns about how things are going. We look into whether or not we need to create [new] policies.”
The Data Transparency Portal also allows members of the public to access the DA’s policy goals and see which statistics are motivating and justifying these decisions. Those who want to give feedback can message a dropdown menu of over a dozen local representatives and media outlets, bridging the gap between the county and its residents.
Furthermore, the town hall touched on restorative justice, an alternate form of approaching criminal justice. Through her 11 years of experience at the office, Kirkaldy now oversees how this program can help bring change to the county.
“[Restorative justice] asks you to shift the focus from violation of laws and rules that we have in place to looking at the damage that crime causes to relationships in our community,” Kirkaldy said. “In shifting that focus, we [change] how that crime or offense gets addressed.”
Kirkaldy also explained the RJP program’s steps to implement this newer form of criminal justice.
“RJP uses a three-step conference model where we focus on building a sense of accountability and responsibility for the crime that occurred, the harm that happened and reaching that place with the person who’s caused harm,” Kirkaldy said. “Then, we facilitate a discussion on the impacts of that offense with members of the community […] and then seek a restorative outcome.”
The RJP program, currently seeking volunteer applicants, will hold a virtual training about restorative justice values on March 1 with more details online.
To close off the Commons Town Hall Meeting, Ortiz shed light on how the Yolo County DA’s Office is seeking to include young people in criminal justice. Named the Youth Leadership Academy, the DA-sponsored program is meant to provide youth with opportunities to work alongside members of Yolo County’s criminal justice community. The academy is a three-day, back-to-back program open to high school students and can be used to earn community service hours.
“It gives an opportunity for our youth to engage and have conversations with not only law enforcement but also big players and influential people in our community,” Ortiz said. “[We do this] so that our youth understand that they do have a voice and there are people and adults that are ready to listen to them. […] As we’re working with the youth, every day they get an opportunity to meet with someone that might have a career interest that they have or someone that might relate to them on many different levels.”
The next Commons Town Hall will be hosted on March 11. More information can be found on the Yolo County District Attorney’s Office website.
Written By Yuenjo Fan — city@theaggie.org
