Local Citizens Can Do Court Observation

This is the monthly Daily News-Record 'Justice Matters'
column for November, written by Melissa Svigelj and
Jenni Holsinger

Do you ever wonder what goes on in our local General District and  Circuit Courts? As with many of the 150 lower courts in Virginia’s judicial system, these courts handle a high volume of routine criminal cases, as well as civil cases and traffic infractions. In 2024, more than 36,000 cases were processed in the Rockingham/Harrisonburg General District Court alone.

Except in certain circumstances, courtrooms are open to the public, so community members often attend court sessions to show support for neighbors, friends, and loved ones, as part of their job, or to engage in civic life. The right of Americans to observe the functioning of their justice systems is enshrined in the U.S. Constitution. As residents, we are invited to take part in this democratic tradition in order to ensure that our courts reflect our community values and aspirations, for example, around ideas such as fairness, accountability, public safety, and individual freedoms.

According to data from a 2019 national survey, 15% of counties across the U.S. were making efforts to encourage public observation of proceedings in their local courts. Courts and communities recognize that this type of civic engagement builds trust between residents and their courts, leading to a more responsive, community-centered judicial system. Previous issues of this column have highlighted some challenges in the local legal system and how engaged residents and citizen groups like the Valley Justice Coalition have contributed to improvements.

In 2024, the Valley Justice Coalition identified the need to learn more about what happens in Harrisonburg’s General District and Circuit Courts. An informal planning committee was formed to determine the scope and goals of such a program and to investigate similar projects in other communities. During additional meetings in late 2024 and early 2025, Dr. Melissa Svigelj, an Assistant Professor at James Madison University (JMU), and Dr. Jenni Holsinger, an Associate Professor at Eastern Mennonite University (EMU), agreed to collaborate as organizers of a Community-Court Connection (C3) project in Harrisonburg.

The lower courts in Rockingham/Harrisonburg make some case information available to the public. One way to supplement public information from the courts is to engage local citizens, organizations, and stakeholders in collecting information about their local courts. In other cities that have adopted court observation programs, these efforts have contributed to more equitable and accountable legal systems and a more informed citizenry. These programs are successful largely because of community volunteers who attend court sessions and gather data that is collated and shared with the public online. A court observation program and local schools can also mutually benefit from the opportunities provided to students and future professionals working in the community.

Having students explore what meaningful citizenship entails and investigate how concepts of justice are developed and enacted in different areas of society are integral components of courses in the Department of Justice Studies at JMU. In Sociology and Criminology courses at EMU, students examine how institutional processes reproduce broader patterns of inequality and develop research skills that prepare them for professional careers. Both C3 organizers embrace the notion that students learn ethical civic engagement best when it is incorporated into the learning experience.

Through the newly designed Communities and Courts course at JMU, seventeen students with majors and minors in the Department of Justice Studies were trained alongside community volunteers by local attorneys on August 28th to become court observers. Since then, students and volunteers have been attending General District and Circuit Court sessions in downtown Harrisonburg for one hour each week and completing observation forms. Students at EMU also contribute by collecting data for the project.

Every few months, students and organizers will publish the information gathered from court observations on the publicly available Community-Court Connection website: https://sites.lib.jmu.edu/cccharrisonburg/. Court observers never record or publish names or personal identifying information of court attendees in their data collection. The website also explains how to become a court observer volunteer and provides access to training, the court observer agreement form, a volunteer manual, and the necessary documents and forms for observing courts.

The Community-Court Connection (C3) invites everyone interested in learning more about the project and how to become involved to visit the website and email organizers at cccharrisonburg@community-court-connection.org. No legal experience is required to help us connect our community with what happens in local courts. We hope you’ll join us!

The authors are active members of the Valley Justice Coalition.