OPERATING A DEFENDER OFFICE - PARTICIPANT'S HANDBOOK

THESE 3-DAY TRAINING WORKSHOPS ARE SPONSORED FOR EXECUTIVE-LEVEL CRIMINAL JUSTICE PERSONNEL, USUALLY 50 TO 60 PARTICIPANTS ATTENDING PER WORKSHOP. TRAINING TOPICS ARE SELECTED IN A NATIONAL COMPETITION. THE SELECTED TRAINING TOPIC, OPERATING A DEFENDER OFFICE, WAS BASED ON TWO ASSUMPTIONS: THAT RECENT RESEARCH PRODUCTS WOULD OFFER TECHNIQUES TO ASSIST DEFENDER ADMINISTRATORS AND THAT PUBLIC PROVISION OF CRIMINAL DEFENSE WOULD BE STRENGTHENED BY EVALUATION FOR THE PURPOSE OF IMPROVED MANAGEMENT. WORKSHOP TOPICS WERE SELECTED FROM PLANNING CONFERENCE DISCUSSIONS AND FROM A TRAINING NEEDS ASSESSMENT QUESTIONNAIRE SENT TO 175 DEFENDER OFFICES REPRESENTING SMALL, MEDIUM, AND LARGE OFFICES IN EACH STATE. THE FOUR GENERAL TOPICS--CASE MANAGEMENT, BUDGETING, PERSONNEL ADMINISTRATION, AND EXTERNAL OFFICE RELATIONSHIPS -- WERE CHOSEN TO ADDRESS THE OVERALL GOAL OF HOW DEFENDER OFFICES CAN BEST ORGANIZE, MONITOR, AND MANAGE FOR EFFECTIVE DELIVERY OF SERVICES TO CLIENTS. THEY IMPLIED THE ADDITIONAL ISSUES OF SELF-EVALUATION TECHNIQUES AND IMPLEMENTATION STRATEGIES. SESSIONS WERE GEARED TOWARD PARTICIPANTS' OWN GOALS AND PROBLEMS. FOR EXAMPLE, SESSIONS ADDRESSED HOW TO HANDLE WORKLOAD ANALYSIS AND FORECAST FUTURE STAFF NEEDS AND HOW TO DEVELOP AND MAINTAIN DATA-KEEPING INSTRUMENTS FOR CASE MANAGEMENT. INNOVATIVE WAYS TO PRESENT, JUSTIFY, AND MARKET THE BUDGET, METHODS OF MONITORING, CONTROLLING, AND RETRIEVING INFORMATION FOR BUDGET REQUESTS, AND DEVELOPMENT OF A PERFORMANCE APPRAISAL SYSTEM WERE FURTHER DISCUSSION TOPICS, AS WERE TEAM-BUILDING FOR AN EFFECTIVE STAFF, PROMOTING GOOD COMMUNITY RELATIONSHIPS AND USING VOLUNTEER ASSISTANCE. THIS PARTICIPANT'S MANUAL PRESENTS THE 3-DAY AGENDA, SESSION TASKS AND OUTLINES, DESCRIPTIONS OF CASES FOR PROBLEMSOLVING AND MATERIALS FOR ATTACKING THE PROBLEMS, NARRATIVE FOR EACH SESSION, AND FORMS AND A BIBLIOGRAPHY. ALSO INCLUDED IS A LIST OF WORKSHOP DEVELOPERS AND THEIR CREDITS. AN EXPLANATION OF THE NATIONAL CRIMINAL JUSTICE RUP (FORMERLY THE EXECUTIVE TRAINING PROGRAM) IS INCLUDED. FOR THE MANUAL OF SESSION BACKGROUND MATERIALS, SEE NCJ 66779.