Victoria Pratt: How judges can show respect
Victoria Pratt: Como os juízes podem demonstrar respeito
Judge Victoria Pratt is inspiring a global revolution in criminal justice. Full bio
Double-click the English transcript below to play the video.
I want to tell you something.
Quero te falar uma coisa.
by a transgender prostitute
por uma prostituta transgênera
sitting next to her,
I look better than the girl you're with."
bonita do que a garota com quem você sai".
baixo o suficiente
be picked up by the record,
alto o suficiente
towards counselor's table with dignity.
até a mesa do advogado com dignidade.
also known as procedural fairness,
conhecida como igualdade procedimental,
of an African-American garbageman
de um lixeiro afro-americano
in the segregated South.
de una peluquera dominicana.
estão prestando atenção.
you're still paying attention.
for a better life for her unborn children.
melhor a seus filhos ainda não nascidos.
you meet with dignity and respect,
todos com dignidade e respeito,
no matter how they dress,
it would be the most important lesson
seria a lição mais importante
to the Newark Municipal Court bench.
municipal de Newark.
off the playground
fui arrancada do parquinho,
to translate for family members
to the United States,
para os Estados Unidos,
for a person, a novice,
para uma pessoa, uma novata,
and around the globe,
e no mundo, todos os dias,
com nossos tribunais,
that is foreign, intimidating
about the nature of their charges,
com a natureza das acusações,
with the police
their relationships, their finances
afetar seus relacionamentos, suas finanças
who encounters our courts.
o encontro com nossas cortes.
going through court security.
ao passar pela segurança do tribunal.
they walk around the building,
elas caminham pelo prédio,
the same question
to where they're supposed to be,
aonde deveriam estar,
when they encounter the courts.
people's court experience,
a experiência das pessoas no tribunal,
the public's trust
is procedural justice
é a justiça procedimental.
they are treated fairly
tratadas de forma justa,
Yale professor Tom Tyler found
o professor Tom Tyler, de Yale,
as far back in the '70s
quando começou a estudar
see the justice system
virem o sistema judiciário
to impose rules and regulations,
para impor regras e regulamentos,
that they were treated fairly
tratadas de maneira justa
begins with what?
to court participants.
se dirige aos membros da corte.
a reserve seat to a tragic reality show
em um "reality show" trágico,
of appearing vulnerable on the bench,
de parecer vulnerável no tribunal,
did I need to do something,
precisava fazer algo,
of procedural justice are easy
da justiça procedimental são fáceis
as quickly as tomorrow.
de um dia para o outro.
that it can be done for free.
ser aplicados de graça.
not going to let them speak.
que possa prejudicá-lo".
that's going to hurt your case."
of giving them voice.
de dar voz a eles.
college student an essay.
a um universitário de 18 anos.
por beber sendo menor de idade.
and his hands trembling,
had become an alcoholic like his mom,
um alcoólatra, como sua mãe,
due to alcohol-related liver disease.
hepáticas relacionadas ao álcool.
to my father, a letter to my son,
uma carta ao pai, ao filho:
o que sei agora...",
positive thing about myself,
algo positivo em mim mesmo,
to be introspective,
de ser introspectiva,
that goes beyond their criminal record
que vai além de seus registros criminais
in the justice system,
no sistema de justiça,
to be favoring one side over the other.
em detrimento do outro.
not to say things like,
de não dizer coisas como "meu oficial",
"my defense attorney."
when we work in environments
quando trabalhamos em ambientes
assigned to your courts,
são designados para atuar ali.
in and out of your courts as well.
a new Rutgers Law grad
recém-formada na Rutgers Law
and I was greeted by two grey-haired men
por dois homens grisalhos
the last game of golf they played together
jogo de golfe que tinham jogado juntos
a fair shot in that forum.
um resultado justo naquele fórum.
understand the process,
da corte entendam o processo,
is the language we use to confuse.
é a língua que usamos para confundir.
who appear before me,
que comparecem perante mim
their second language.
é sua segunda língua.
was when I was a young judge --
quando eu era uma jovem juíza...
a senior judge comes to me,
mais experiente me deu um roteiro e disse:
has mental health issues,
tem problemas mentais,
para ter sua própria avaliação".
and you can get your evaluation."
que achei que tivesse um problema mental,
was a mental health issue,
a fazer as perguntas.
and I started to ask questions.
um, psychotrop --
with a psychiatrist before?"
com um psiquiatra?"
was suffering from mental illness.
sofria de doença mental.
to scrap the script and ask one question.
abandonar o roteiro e mudar a pergunta.
to clear your mind?"
pra clarear as ideias?"
for my schizophrenia,
para a minha esquizofrenia,
mesmo quando não funciona.
to clear your mind?"
pra clarear as ideias?"
no medication to clear my mind.
remédio pra clarear as ideias.
to stop the voices in my head,
dentro da minha cabeça,
understand the question,
entendam a pergunta,
que a corte tome decisões relevantes
to make meaningful decisions
of the other principles can work.
dos outros princípios funciona.
"Good morning, ma'am."
who is standing before you,
que está parada na sua frente,
dando a sentença.
"Um, how are you doing today?
O que está acontecendo com você?"
realmente, interessado na resposta.
actually interested in the response.
em entender essa papelada?"
in the paperwork?"
read and write, can't you?"
ler e escrever, certo?",
there's a literacy issue.
um problema de falta de instrução.
is that it's contagious.
é que ele é contagioso.
respectful to other folks
ser respeitoso com os outros
that respect to themselves.
consigo mesmas.
the transgender prostitute was telling me.
transgênera estava me dizendo:
as you think you may be judging me.
você pensa que está me julgando".
to change the culture at my courthouse
para mudar a cultura no meu tribunal
julgando casos ligados ao tráfico,
to the criminal court,
para um tribunal criminal.
as the worst courtroom in the city,
como o pior tribunal da cidade,
with revolving door justice,
com justiça de porta de cadeia,
de pequenos transgressores...
of low-level offenders --
with quality-of-life tickets,
and the misguided young people --
e o jovem desencaminhado...
doing a life sentence
que cumprem pena de 30 dias.
decided that Newarkers deserved better,
que seus habitantes mereciam coisa melhor
com o Centro para Inovação de Tribunais
with the Center for Court Innovation
to punishment with assistance.
otherwise get a jail sentence
individual counseling sessions,
ou em grupo, de aconselhamento,
as well as community giveback,
o chamado serviço comunitário.
that this wonderful program
chegando a Newark, e seria sediado onde?
and was going to be housed where?
the attitudes were terrible there
que eram mandados para lá
para lá como punição.
being sent there as punishment.
disciplinary actions at times,
ações disciplinares,
a 30-day jail sentence on their rotation,
cumprindo pena de 30 dias,
they were being hazed
sorority or fraternity.
an attorney who worked there
que um advogado que trabalhou lá
as "the scum of the earth"
como "a escória da Terra"
com essas pessoas? Elas são horríveis.
with those people? They're so nasty.
não uma assistente social".
we criminalize social ills,
criminalizamos as doenças sociais
and say, "Do something."
para o juiz dizendo: "Faça algo".
to lead by example.
através do exemplo.
came when a 60-something-year-old man
nessa abordagem aconteceu
apareceu algemado na minha frente.
was showing the signs of drug withdrawal.
mostrava sinais de abstinência de drogas.
and he said, "30 years."
e ele respondeu: "Trinta anos".
I have a 32-year-old son."
tenho um filho de 32 anos".
had the opportunity
nunca teve a oportunidade
because of your addiction."
por causa do vício".
I'm going to let you go home,
você ir para casa
ajudá-lo com seu vício".
some assistance for your addiction."
and he was sitting the courtroom.
depois ele estava sentado no tribunal.
"Judge, I came back to court
than I had for myself."
mais amor por mim do que eu mesmo".
he heard love from the bench?
a palavra amor no tribunal?"
when the court behaves differently,
se comporta de outra forma,
reagem de outra forma.
you can go to for assistance,
onde você pode buscar ajuda,
schizophrenic homeless woman
and screams, "Judge!
dei uma passada pra ver como você está".
for a couple of months,
o caso dela há alguns meses,
a couple of weeks ago.
há algumas semanas.
of coaxing by the judge,
sendo persuadida pelo juiz,
was terrible, Judge.
foi terrível, juíza.
and it was full of empty heroin envelopes,
de envelopes vazios de heroína,
esse mesmo parque pra me drogar,
to do community service,
para o serviço comunitário,
when I wasn't high,
sem estar drogado,
the children playing there."
as crianças brincando ali".
lowered their head.
no tribunal baixaram a cabeça.
its relationship with the community,
o relacionamento com a comunidade,
through the court program.
através do programa do tribunal.
em uma empresa de limpeza
at an office cleaning company,
para dizer, com orgulho:
after the interview,
de terno depois da entrevista,
how bad I wanted the job."
como eu queria o emprego".
when a person in authority
quando uma pessoa com autoridade
who struts down the aisle
que desceu o corredor se exibindo
do you notice anything different?"
alguma coisa diferente?"
a referral from the program,
de ser indicado pelo programa,
to replace the old teeth
para repor os antigos
of years of heroin addiction.
a anos viciado em heroína.
that judges will use these tools
usem essas ferramentas
the communities that they serve.
as comunidades que eles atendem.
are not miracle cure-alls,
a cura milagrosa para tudo,
to where we want to be,
mais próximos de onde queremos estar.
that people enter our halls of justice
em que as pessoas entrem nos tribunais
with dignity and respect
com dignidade e respeito
will be served there.
ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Victoria Pratt - ProfessorJudge Victoria Pratt is inspiring a global revolution in criminal justice.
Why you should listen
Judge Victoria Pratt has gained national and international acclaim for her commitment to reforming the criminal justice system. As the Chief Judge in Newark Municipal Court in Newark, New Jersey, a busy urban court, she spent years gaining a deep understanding of how justice could be delivered to court participants in a manner that increased their trust in the legal system. While presiding over Newark Community Solutions, the Community Court Program, she provided alternatives to jail to low-level offenders. These alternatives included community service, individual and group counseling sessions, and her signature assignment of introspective essays. Her respectful approach has had a positive effect on court participant’s court experience -- and how the community viewed the court.
Pratt is now serving as a Professor at Rutgers Law School in Newark, an institution that has always been committed to social justice. Her teaching load includes problem-solving courts and restorative justice. As a graduate of Rutgers Law, she is excited by the opportunity to influence the minds of future lawyers and judges with innovative and humane ways of dealing with court participants. She also continues to champion criminal justice reform through her consulting firm Pratt Lucien Consultants, LLC, by sharing her skills and approach with others.
Pratt’s work has been featured in The Guardian and Rutgers Magazine (both written by Pulitzer-winning author Tina Rosenberg.) As a nationally recognized expert in procedural justice and alternative sentencing, she has been asked by numerous professional organizations and jurisdictions to share her story and philosophy. Judge Pratt has also appeared on MSNBC's "Melissa Harris Perry Show," the Emmy-winning PBS show "Due Process," and National Public Radio's "Conversations with Allan Wolper."
Pratt is licensed to practice law in both New Jersey and New York and is admitted to the US Supreme Court. She also facilitates empowerment sessions to help people live their best lives.
(Photo: Erik James Montgomery)
Victoria Pratt | Speaker | TED.com