Special Adjudication for Enforcement (SAFE), Volume 1

• NCJ Number: 84416
• Author(s): D Arnold; D Fleissner
• Date Published: 1979
• Length: 94 pages
• Contract Number(s): DOT-HS-343-3-682
• Sponsoring Agency: US Dept of Transportation National Highway Traffic Safety Admin
• Corporate Author: Washington Office of the Administrator for the Courts
• Sale Source: National Technical Information Service; Not Available Through National Institute of Justice/NCJRS Document Loan Program
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America
• Note: *This document is currently unavailable from NCJRS.

Annotation

The Special Adjudication for Enforcement (SAFE) Project was designed to demonstrate the feasibility of using informal parajudicial hearings for adjudication of non-mandatory moving traffic violations (those offenses not requiring mandatory appearance in court).

Abstract

The SAFE procedures were intended to simplify the administrative tasks associated with the traditional arraignment/trial process. Informal hearings are conducted by magistrates (practicing attorneys). Magistrates can accept guilty pleas, reduce and/or suspend fines, and, in extreme situations, dismiss cases. If the defendant is adamant about his/her not guilty plea, a trial is set (bypassing the formal arraignment). The program emphasizes referrals to driver educational programs and is oriented toward driver improvement. Evaluation based on fifteen months of operations has indicated that the SAFE Project was easily and quickly incorporated into the existing District Courts system and reduced the administrative and judicial burden on the courts. Cases handled by SAFE require less time to process, are more convenient for the public, and cost approximately six dollars per case as compared to fifteen/sixteen dollars per case using the traditional adjudication process. (NTIS abstract)