Contact Us
Minority & Justice Commission
Administrative Office of the Courts
Post Office Box 41170
Olympia, WA 98504-1170
Phone: (360) 704-5536
AOCMIN/JUS@courts.wa.gov
Find us on Facebook

Our Mission

The Minority and Justice Commission seeks to foster and support a fair and bias-free system of justice in the Washington State courts and judicial systems by: 1) identifying bias of racial, ethnic, national origin and similar nature that affects the quality of justice in Washington State courts and judicial systems; 2) taking affirmative steps to address and eliminate such bias, and taking appropriate steps to prevent any reoccurrence of such bias; and 3) working collaboratively with the other Supreme Court Commissions and other justice system partners.


News & Events

    Updated Resource: 2024 Washington Judges of Color Directory

    The 2024 Diversity in the Judiciary Directory, which highlights participating judges, commissioners, and magistrates of color from across the state, has been released by the Minority and Justice Commission to serve as a resource to the public. The directory lists the name, court, contact information, ethnicity, and languages spoken of each participating judicial officer, who have opted into the directory to serve as mentors, speakers, and share information with their communities.


    Statewide Juror Summons Demographic Survey Project 2023

    The Administrative Office of the Courts and Washington State Minority & Justice Commission has partnered with Seattle University to produce a report summarizing the findings in the state's largest jury summons demographic survey to date. In total, findings from more than a quarter-million responses are included in the report.

    The findings show that jurors of color, particularly Black and Native jurors, remained underrepresented in jury pools throughout the state, and face greater barriers to jury service. Work-related and financial barriers to serving on juries, which disproportionately impact working parents and people of color, remain an issue. In addition to the data on respondents to jury summons, the report features a deeper look into Pierce County demographics throughout the jury selection process.

    For more information and questions, please contact Frank Thomas, Senior Court Program Analyst, at Frank.Thomas@courts.wa.gov.


      Join us for the only national conference dedicated to advancing
      racial & ethnic fairness in the courts!

      National Consortium on Racial & Ethnic Fairness in the Courts
      2023 Conference and Annual Meeting

      Hosted by the Washington State Minority & Justice Commission

      "Justice: Promises to Keep"

      May 21-24, 2023
      Hilton Motif Seattle Hotel

      The Long Night of Lady Justice
      "The Long Night of Lady Justice"
      by Washington State Minority & Justice Commission member Anthony David Gipe
      Copyright ¸ Anthony David Gipe - 2018-2023; All Rights and Images Reserved to the Artist

      REGISTER TODAY!

      UPDATED preliminary conference schedule here.

      Press Release

      Conference Keynote Address with Film Screening of
      "Who We Are: A Chronicle of Racism in America" and Discussion featuring
      Jeffery Robinson, Founder of The Who We Are Project

      We look forward to seeing you!

      Is your organization interested in becoming a conference supporter?

      Supporter Form

      Please contact Carolyn Cole at carolyn.cole@courts.wa.gov if you have any questions or
      require information in an alternate format.


        Two New Reports Explore Legal Financial Obligation (LFO) Practices and Impacts in Washington State

        A new report issued by the Washington State Minority and Justice Commission sheds light on court practices regarding the imposition of fines and fees, also called "legal financial obligations" or LFOs, including the actual collection rate of such fines and how the funds are used. The Price of Justice: Legal Financial Obligations in Washington State, found that Washington courts had imposed approximately $223 million in fines and fees and within a three-year period, collected approximately $11.5 million. The original grant from the Department of Justice was awarded to five states for exploring LFO practices and issues of fairness and equity from 2016 to 2019.

        At the end of that research, the Minority and Justice Commission partnered with a non-profit organization already working with individuals struggling with court debt, Living With Conviction. This expanded the effort to include an exploration of the impacts of LFOs on the lives of people living with court debt, and those individuals' recommendations for reforming the system of LFOs. The resulting companion report, The Cost of Justice: Reform Priorities of People with Court Fines and Fees, discusses the consequences of LFOs and how court debt can plague the lives of individuals with little or no ability to pay.


          New Report Explores Jury Diversity Changes during COVID-19 Pandemic

          The Washington State Minority & Justice Commission has partnered with Seattle University to produce a report examining jury diversity changes in three Puget Sound counties due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite the move to virtual trials, jurors of color remained underrepresented in jury pools. Work-related and financial barriers to serving on juries, which disproportionately impact working parents and people of color, remain problems for eligible citizens, according to research by two Seattle University criminal justice faculty. Surveys were included in digital jury summonses in King, Pierce and Snohomish counties between Jan. 29 and May 28 of 2021. About 3,800 responses were received and analyzed by Associate Professor Peter A. Collins, PhD; and Assistant Professor Brooke Miller Gialopsos, PhD.

          For more information and questions, please contact Frank Thomas, Senior Court Program Analyst, at Frank.Thomas@courts.wa.gov.


            Special Report: Girls of Color in Detention in Washington State

            The Minority and Justice Commission has partnered with the Washington State Center for Court Research (WSCCR) to produce a first-of-its-kind analysis of racial disparities among juvenile detention admission rates in Washington State. Criminal Justice research often treats girls in juvenile detention as an afterthought, and as a consequence we see a dearth of meaningful research and data on their experiences. We hope this Report not only sheds lights onto previously-undocumented racial disproportionality rates in the Washington juvenile justice system, but also serves as a road map to further research that utilizes an intersectional and multidisciplinary approach to improving court policy. For more information and inquiries, please contact Frank Thomas at frank.thomas@courts.wa.gov.


            Legal Financial Obligations (LFO) Calculator

            A free online calculator developed in partnership with Microsoft to help Washington judges set appropriate levels of LFOs based on a defendant's ability to pay is available to the public. The calculator was developed as part of the Commission's U.S. Department of Justice Price of Justice Grant. The LFO Calculator is compatible with the most current versions of the following browsers: Microsoft Edge, Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, and Apple Safari.

            https://beta.lfocalculator.org/

 

Privacy and Disclaimer NoticesSitemap

© Copyright 2024. Washington State Administrative Office of the Courts.

S3