Angela Corey talks “smart justice”

Angela Corey

It’s nearly a year to go till Election Day, but State Attorney Angela Corey is messaging hard and pushing back against criticism that she’s been too punitive a prosecutor, especially when it comes to juvenile offenders.

Corey presented on the concept of “smart justice” at Monday’s Justice Summit in Sarasota. The three-day event was organized by the Florida Smart Justice Alliance, a business-backed group working to change the state’s approach to crime and punishment.

Speaking to WJCT, Corey says her office has actually expanded the smart justice concept first pioneered in the 1970s by the late Ed Austin, with diversion programs for juveniles and adults.

Her presentation at the conference cited 11 diversion programs during the Austin era, such as pretrial intervention and youth offender programs, with 15 today under her administration, diverting mainly first-time, nonviolent offenders.

“We have cut juvenile cases in half,” Corey said. “I’ve spent $1.2 million of my own budget on this.”

The Smart Justice Alliance is part of a growing national movement questioning tough-on-crime laws. Corey has faced years of criticism for the handling of high-profile cases ranging from George Zimmerman‘s acquittal, to the prosecution of 13-year-old Cristian Fernandez, to outrage over Marissa Alexander, the Jacksonville mother who was sentenced to 20 years (then later released) for firing what she claimed was a “warning shot” at an abusive husband.

Corey calls the criticism misplaced. She has an opponent for the re-elect, Wes White, who can be expected to hit on these themes in the coming months. White has struggled to match Corey in terms of both fundraising and endorsements.

Melissa Ross

In addition to her work writing for Florida Politics, Melissa Ross also hosts and produces WJCT’s First Coast Connect, the Jacksonville NPR/PBS station’s flagship local call-in public affairs radio program. The show has won four national awards from Public Radio News Directors Inc. (PRNDI). First Coast Connect was also recognized in 2010, 2011, 2013 and 2014 as Best Local Radio Show by Folio Weekly’s “Best Of Jax” Readers Poll and Melissa has also been recognized as Folio Weekly’s Best Local Radio Personality. As executive producer of The 904: Shadow on the Sunshine State, Melissa and WJCT received an Emmy in the “Documentary” category at the 2011 Suncoast Emmy Awards. The 904 examined Jacksonville’s status as Florida’s murder capital. During her years in broadcast television, Melissa picked up three additional Emmys for news and feature reporting. Melissa came to WJCT in 2009 with 20 years of experience in broadcasting, including stints in Cincinnati, Chicago, Orlando and Jacksonville. Married with two children, Melissa is a graduate of Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism/Communications. She can be reached at [email protected].



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