community court
What is this webpage?
It's a place for some notes about community court.
At the moment it's viewable by the whole world - don't put anything here that's private. (However, the photos are only visible on campus. And it could be made more private if there's a need.)
This page is part of a "wiki", which means that anyone with access (a Marlboro college email username/password) can edit it.
- Jim Mahoney, Oct 19 2007
Fall 2008
- who's who
- students : Lindsay O'Rourke, Paige L Martin, Liz Korona, Raf Kelman, Sophia Cleary
- faculty: Geraldine Pittman de Batlle, Tim Segar, Jim Mahoney
- staff: Lynn Lundsted
- clerk : Julie Powers-Boyle
- advocate: Pooja Patel
- dean of students: Ken Schneck
- head selectperson: Georgios Tsangaris
documents
CONSTITUTION - SECTION V: COMMUNITY COURT
A. The Court shall consist of nine (9) members:
- five (5) students,
- three (3) faculty members and
- one (1) staff member.
A quorum shall consist
of any three (3) or more student members and two (2) or more faculty members and staff members. At least six (6) student nominees, at least
six (6) faculty nominees and at least two (2) staff nominees shall be placed before the last Town Meeting of the spring, from which group the Town Meeting shall elect three (3) faculty justices, five (5) student justices and one (1) staff justice for the coming academic year. Staff
members who already participate in the court process, appeals process or who have campus disciplinary, psychological or health
responsibilities shall be ineligible to serve on the Court.
The Town Meeting shall also elect a Clerk of the Court whose responsibility it is to keep a written record of both the open and closed
hearings (but not the deliberations). The clerk shall also distribute the record to all appropriate parties to the hearing. Elections shall be held
following the last Town Meeting of the spring semester.
The Dean shall maintain a file of all Court proceedings.
B. In addition, the Head Selectperson or representative, the Dean of Students, or representative, the student whose case is being heard and his or
her advisor (who may be any member of the Community), shall normally sit with the Court during the Hearing, but not during the
deliberation of the Court.
C. Jurisdiction of the Court shall include the following:
- 1. Violation of the rules promulgated by the Town Meeting;
- 2. Theft or destruction of the property of the College or others;
- 3. Conduct prejudicial to the best interests of the College.
(While it is beyond the scope of these regulations to offer any exhaustive list of what constitutes “conduct prejudicial,” cases brought under this provision in the past have included abuse drunkenness; unauthorized entry into faculty or administrative offices or into dorm rooms; violation of the confidentiality of College files or Committee deliberations and decisions; tampering with faculty or student mailboxes or their contents; kitchen raids; and violent or dangerous behavior (such as throwing bottles) even when no damage or injury resulted;
- 4. Violation of library rules;
- 5. Contempt of Court;
- 6. Interpretation of Town Meeting rules;
- 7. Determination of constitutionality of Town Meeting Laws and Bylaws.
D. Any member of the Community may bring a complaint against any other member through either the Dean or the Public Advocate. After a
preliminary investigation of the complaint, which should usually include taking statements, preferably in writing, from the parties concerned
and from any witnesses, with the clear understanding that such statements may be submitted to the Court, the Dean or the Advocate, or both,
should try to resolve the complaint, where appropriate, through consultation with the parties involved. Such resolution is appropriate when
the offense is against a single individual or a few individuals (e.g., excessive noise in the dorms) or when the offense is a minor one
committed in ignorance of regulations. It is inappropriate when the offense is against the whole Community (e.g., the improper discharge of
fire extinguishers) or where the offense is major.
E. A case not resolved by agreement between the parties shall be brought before the Community Court by the Public Advocate, after
consultation with the Dean. The purpose of such consultation is to assure that the correct procedures are followed and to determine the
specific charge to be presented to the Court. In order that the rights of the person charged shall not be violated, the Dean of Students shall
meet with each Defendant to explain: the charge, the procedure of the Court, and the rights of the Defendant. The Defendant may, if he or
she wishes, consult his or her advisor in preparing a defense.
F. The Advocate shall notify all parties to the Hearing at least twentyfour (24) hours in advance, of the time and place of the Hearing and of the
charge to be presented.
G. The Court at its discretion may declare the Hearing open, but they are normally closed. The Court normally respects the wishes of the person
charged as to whether the Hearing should be open.
H. The Court shall appoint one (1) of its members as Presiding Officer.
I. The Advocate shall open the Hearing with a statement of the charges, an overview of the material to be presented, and a list of those to
testify. The person charged may rebut or comment upon the charges immediately, or plead guilty, or wait until all the testimony has been
heard. The person charged has the right to hear all the evidence presented against him or her. Witnesses are normally present only for their
own testimony, but may be allowed to stay if the person charged so elects. Only the Court or the Public Advocate may question witnesses
directly. The testimony of prosecuting and defense witnesses must be heard unless the Court deems it irrelevant. After the witnesses called
by the Public Advocate have been heard, the Head Selectperson, the Dean, the advisor to the person charged, and finally the person charged
may address the Court as they see fit.
J. The deliberations of the Court are conducted in private and are strictly confidential. The Court shall determine its verdict before any
discussion of penalty.
K. If the Court finds the person charged guilty, it may impose penalties of fines, extra duty, community service, restriction off campus,
suspension, expulsion, or similar penalties. For serious offenses, the Court may expel for the first offense. Penalties imposed by the Court
are final. It is understood that any defendant who believes that due process has been violated may request the President to review the
procedures followed by the Court in reaching its verdict and sentence. In the event that the sentence proposed will require the supervision of
the Dean of Students (as, for instance, in all cases of suspension, expulsion, or restriction off campus), the Court shall confer with the Dean of
Students before announcing the sentence, to insure that the details of the execution of its sentence are both clear and practical. The person
charged is not normally present for such consultation, but may be allowed to be present at the discretion of the Court.