Welcome to the 2022 OJD Regional Youth Defender Forums! This year we are offering three regional forums in the Western, Central, and Eastern regions of our state. North Carolina is a geographically diverse state that covers a lot of mileage from the coast to the mountains and we want to make the trainings we provide accessible to all defenders. We also want to provide a meaningful way to create a sense of community amongst youth defenders, so this year we are providing three opportunities to attend our Forum - in the mountains, in the piedmont, or on the coast! Each of the three forums will be identical in content, though we will invite local defenders to co-present with us and help us identify customs unique to the courtrooms of each region. The theme for 2022 is Raise the Age: In the Courtroom and these day long trainings will cover recent legislative updates, pertinent skill development, and the opportunity to connect with youth defenders practicing in the same region. We are excited to present these forums in person, in compliance with current CDC guidelines and recommendations.

 

Eastern Region Youth Defender Forum: Registration Link

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Friday, November 4, 2022, in Kinston, NC

Lenoir County Community College: 231 North Carolina Highway 58 Kinston, NC 28504

Local Presenter: Lyana Hunter, New Hanover County Public Defender’s Office

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Central Region Youth Defender Forum (Rescheduled): Registration Link

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Friday, December 2, 2022, in Asheboro, NC

Randolph Community College, JB & Claire Davis Corp. Training Center 413 Industrial Park Avenue Asheboro, NC 27205

Local Presenter: Attorney Starr Ward and Attorney Marcus Jackson

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We are also providing for an extended lunch break to allow for attendees to get to know each other and develop the youth defender community across the state. We are a small but tight-knit community, and one of our biggest strengths is our ability to lean on each other and support other defenders as we do this important work. What better way to celebrate and grow that community than over a meal! Details will be announced closer to the date of the forum as to where we hope to meet everyone for lunch - we will strive for a location that offers choices for everyone's dietary needs and budgets.

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We encourage defenders to attend the forum in their region of the state, but if you cannot attend your region’s forum, or would like to also attend other forums, please reach out to your regional defender and we will send you the other registration links

 

2022 Agenda

• 8:50 - 9:15                     Welcome and Introductions

• 9:15 - 10:15                   Raise the Age Part II: Legislative Updates

• 10:15 -10:30                  Break

• 10:30 -11:30                  Transfer

• 11:30 -1:00                    Lunch: Social Hour

• 1:00 - 2:00                     Reverse Waiver and Prosecutorial Discretion

• 2:00 - 2:15                     Break

• 2:15 - 3:45                     Disposition and Collateral Consequences

• 3:45 - 4:45                     Role of Defense Counsel/ Vertical Representation [Ethics]

• 4:45 - 5:00                     Closing Remarks

 

CLE Credits

This year's forum will provide 5.5 hours of CLE credit: 4.5 hours of general credit and 1 hour of ethics credit. The cost of the CLE will be covered by OJD.

 

Scholarship Information

Scholarship funds are available to help defenders offset the cost of attending the forums. We understand that taking a day away from private practice isn't free. Gas prices aren't what they used to be, and Interstate 40 doesn't go through every county in our state. Please reach out to us if we can assist you in offsetting the cost of attending. We really would like to see you there!

 

OJJDP

We are proud to be able to provide this training free of cost to defenders. This training is made possible by the generosity of The Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention. OJJDP is an office of the United States Department of Justice and a component of the Office of Justice Programs. 2022 Regional Summits: Raise the Age: In the Courtroom trainings are funded by grant number 15PJDP-21-GG-02750-JIDX.

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Past and Future Forums

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Eastern Region Youth Defender Forum (Upcoming)

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Friday, November 4, 2022, in Kinston, NC

Lenoir County Community College

Local Presenter: Lyana Hunter, New Hanover County Public Defender’s Office

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Western Region Youth Defender Forum (Completed)

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Friday, June 24, 2022, in Morganton, NC

Western Piedmont Community College

Local Presenter: Tim Henderson, Buncombe County Public Defender’s Office

 

Further Questions

If you have any further questions, you may reach OJD Project Attorney Yolanda Fair at Yolanda.R.Fair2@nccourts.org or (919) 890-1644. We can't wait to see you there!