For five days in August, we worked with seven international visitors from Ethiopia, Fiji, Gambia, India, Lebanon, Mauritius, and Serbia. Represented in the group were judges and attorneys who were particularly interested in the jury system and in juvenile and family law.
Our council is indebted to two individuals without whom the project would not have been a success: Sheila Sims, Chief Deputy Court Administrator with the First Judicial Circuit, coordinated appointments at the courthouse and Buddy Gissendanner, Felony Chief with the Office of the Public Defender, accompanied the group to their appointments to address questions on the U.S. judicial system.
City of Pensacola Council President Maren DeWeese and her husband, Jeff DeWeese, opened the program with a welcoming orientation and overview of area history. President DeWeese graciously welcomed the group, impressing them with her enthusiasm for the International Visitor Leadership Program and with her willingness to share knowledge on local government.
Following this overview, the visitors traveled to the private law firm of Hammons, Longoria & Whittaker where Joseph Hammons discussed his pro bono work and answered questions about mandatory sentencing. Following a quick lunch, the Honorable Thomas E. Johnson explained First Appearance to the group which then observed this video court procedure, a process whose efficiency was admired by at least two visitors.
For their second day of appointments, Clerk of the Circuit Court and Comptroller Ernie Lee Magaha invited the group to observe jury education and the Honorable Terry D. Terrell allowed the visitors to observe jury selection in his courtroom.
The group also attended a roundtable discussion moderated by the Honorable Jan Shackelford. The focus of the discussion was the role of different institutions in juvenile, family, and domestic violence cases. Local participants included Family Law Mediator Laura Creighton, Office of the Public Defender Felony Chief Buddy Gissendanner, Magistrate Michelle Inere, Court Program Specialist II with Family Law Pro Se Donna Patsucha, Program Specialist II with the Domestic Violence Program Linda Reaves, Sgt Ted Roy of the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office, Doug White of Northwest Florida Legal Services, Victims’ Advocate Gail Williamson, and Trial Court Administrator Robin Wright. After the discussion, Judges Terrell and W. Joel Boles joined the group for informal discourse.
To focus on juvenile issues, the group toured the Escambia Regional Juvenile Detention Center with Major Paul Napier and Katina Durost, Chief Assistant Public Defender, Juvenile Division. Personnel at the center explained the processes used to admit juveniles and the services then provided to them. At the Escambia County Teen Court, the group first met with Teen Court Coordinator Mark Lehmann to learn about this alternative sentencing program. They then observed the court in session. Guest speakers from the Pensacola Boys Base, a moderate-risk residential halfway house program for males between the ages of 14-18, also spoke to the Teen Court youth about choices and consequences.
To compliment their professional programs, our office works to expose international guests to the cultural attributes of the United States. Besides suggesting that the group attend a concert on the beach, we also coordinated a Sunday visit to Fort Pickens and Saturday evening dinners in local homes. We thank Karen & Mike Jurkowich, Patricia & Gary McGraw, and Bradley Proctor for opening their homes to our visitors and to the Ready family for their impromptu group dinner!
