A Pima County program that teaches teens about the criminal justice system celebrated its 25th anniversary Friday with the graduation of 30 students who spent the last seven weeks working in local courts.
The program was created in 1992 after retired Arizona Superior Court Judge Norman Fenton saw news reports of social unrest following the Rodney King verdict in Southern California, according to the program’s website.
Believing it was important to show young people that the legal system could be fair, Fenton launched Courts Are Us.
Each year, the program hosts 30 high school students who become paid employees with the Pima County courts, working 30 hours per week.
Students partner with supervisors to learn about the different roles in the system and work in divisions including Adult Probation, Office of the Court Interpreter, Pretrial Services, Clerk of the Court, Consolidated Justice and Tucson City courts.
Daiva Scovil, a recent University High School graduate, spent a majority of her time shadowing a support clerk.
“I’ve been doing filing, I’ve been delivering the case files to judges, I’ve also been able to go to court hearings and sit in on some policy meetings which have been really interesting,” Scovil said. She looks forward to studying pre-law at Arizona State University.
Corina Cunes, an incoming freshman at Flowing Wells High School, said the program could help shape her career path.
“On Mondays we go to Superior Court and we’ve gone into the different courts and sat in on different trials and things,” she said.
“Being a lawyer does seem pretty interesting; it’s something I might think about doing.”
Over the years, participants have returned to work in Superior Court, Adult Probation and City Court, but many also have gone on to work at the Pima County Consolidated Justice Court, the Pima County Attorney’s Office and the Pima County Legal Defender’s Office.
Many of the students’ supervisors are previous participants who are able to share their own stories about the program with interns.
“Working with the kids is something that’s always been near and dear to my heart, trying to get them to talk to more people where they want to be,” said Armando Garcia, who has been working with students for years. “The court’s a great jump-start to get them to know more of what they want to do.”
Garcia said former students who still keep in touch remember their involvement with the program.
“They’re coming back from college to see their younger siblings doing it and they say that was the best time they’ve ever had at a job,” he said.
Krisanne LoGalbo, Superior Court’s community-relations coordinator, said she hopes the program makes a lasting impact on students.
“We hope to provide them the opportunity to gain valuable work experience in a professional environment and give them tools they’ll need to be successful in life,” she said.
Once a week, the students take trips or are given the opportunity to learn from guest lecturers.
When representatives of the Sheriff’s Department recently came to speak to the students, Scovil said she met three other students who will be attending Arizona State University with her in the fall.
Each year, the culminating event of the program is a mock trial where the students play different roles.
At Friday’s graduation ceremony, the Pima County Board of Supervisors and courts honored Fenton, who spent 25 years as a judge before his retirement in 1992.
“It amazes me that Judge Fenton’s vision has enabled nearly 750 Pima County youth to see a different (and) better side of the justice system and propelled them into fields they’d have never considered prior to their participation,” LoGalbo said.
