Pre-trial Release Clinician

THE ORGANIZATION

The Center for Justice Innovation is a nonprofit organization dedicated to advancing community safety and racial justice. Since 1996, we’ve worked alongside communities, courts, and those most directly affected by the justice system to build stronger, healthier, and more equitable neighborhoods. With a team of over 900 staff and an annual budget of $130 million, the Center carries out its mission through three core strategies:

Backed by decades of on-the-ground experience and nationally recognized expertise, we bring innovative, practical, and lasting solutions to justice systems nationwide.
Learn more about our work at.

THE OPPORTUNITY

The Onondaga County Pretrial Release Program (OC PRP) provides an alternative to pretrial detention and bail by ensuring that individuals facing criminal charges attend their court appearances and avoid rearrest while remaining in their communities. This is achieved through regular check-ins with dedicated program staff who provide support and facilitate connections to community-based services and resources. OC PRP reduces detention-related costs while keeping people in their jobs and with their families during the pendency of their case.

The program's success is due to the Center's longstanding ability to integrate research and evidence-based practices to increase safety in partnership with the courts and local communities.

The Center's Upstate Office seeks a Pretrial Release Clinician (Clinician) who will report to the Upstate Office Project Director. The primary responsibility of the Clinician will be to conduct required Cognitive Behavior Therapy-informed sessions with eligible OC PRP participants who indicate that they have mental health needs during the intake assessment. CBT-informed sessions are built on foundational CBT principles, using the Center's unique pretrial release model.

The purpose of these sessions is to work with participants' existing motivation for change to support their engagement in prosocial goal identification and relevant services to address criminogenic needs. Relatedly, Clinicians also play a key role in linking assessment information to service and resource referrals, providing timely emergency referrals and crisis intervention and de-escalation support. Clinicians also work with participants to identify and address barriers to compliance and court attendance;

conduct outreach to participants, court stakeholders, community-based service providers, and community contacts; lead other suitable programming, and ensure accurate and timely court reporting on participants' compliance with program requirements. Accurate and timely data entry is a core responsibility for this position.

Responsibilities include but are not limited to:

• Facilitate mandated and voluntary evidence-based practice sessions, with a focus on Cognitive Behavioral Therapy approaches;

• Create voluntary service and resource plans that address participants' needs and goals;

• Provide assistance to participants to support engagement with referrals, as needed;

• Conduct intakes and holistic assessments for program participants, as needed;

• Provide participants with information regarding any additional court mandates, such as mandated programming;

• Schedule participants for their first check-in with their assigned Pretrial Release Specialist;

• Case conference with Pretrial Release Specialists to discuss participant needs and/or service and resource plans;

• Provide comprehensive, clinically-informed case management services;

• Work with participants to identify and address barriers to compliance with supervision requirements and court attendance;

• Monitor participants' compliance with supervision requirements;

• Conduct outreach to participants, their community contracts, and defense attorneys to maximize compliance with supervision requirements;

• Provide de-escalation and emergency intervention in response to incidents occurring in the courthouse and…