By: Aaleah McConnell, WHQR
The New Hanover County Community Justice Center was unveiled to the public on Wednesday with a ribbon-cutting ceremony. Many members of law enforcement and the judiciary were in attendance.
District Attorney Ben David unveiled the Community Justice Center, which will assist survivors of trauma and adverse childhood experiences through wraparound services from law enforcement, prosecutors, and counselors.
Funded by a grant from the New Hanover Community Endowment, the center is located within the Harrelson Center – a former jail that now houses several nonprofits. It’s nestled between the New Hanover County Courthouse and the Juvenile Justice building.
David, who was named CEO of the center, says the goal is for those working in the criminal justice system to collaborate together, not only to respond to crime, but to prevent it through community involvement.
“To have this continuum of care under one roof with the men and women of law enforcement and those in the justice system is going to be absolutely transformational in this community.”
The concept of centralized crime services originated over two decades ago in San Diego with the Family Justice Center created by Casey Gwinn, a former attorney.
There are over 100 family justice centers around the country, but David said what distinguishes this center from its counterparts is the focus on healing adverse community experiences along with adverse childhood experiences (ACEs).
To fight crime by building a safer community, the CJC will follow what David has long called the “five arms of the starfish.”
“It really takes all the areas of outreach… around this idea that the social determinants of health are the same thing as the root causes of crime, and when we make people healthier, we make them safer,” David said. “If we’re going to be spending the hospital’s money, we should tie public health and public safety to this idea of the pursuit of happiness.”
The CJC is supported by many in law enforcement, including New Hanover County Sheriff Ed McMahon.
“I learned a long time ago, you can’t just arrest away a lot of problems that we have. So we’re working with our community partners, getting people that need help, help; and then going after really the bad people, and as a team, we are so much more effective.”
District Court Judge for the fifth Judicial District, James Fason III, who serves on the CJC board, said “What I love about this, is it’s a way of merging heart with hands, in terms of helping victims and giving them a comprehensive approach to getting healed, and getting the services that they need to rebuild their lives.”
Nicole Petito, mother of Gabby Petito, who was a victim of domestic violence, also spoke.
Petito believes her daughter, who briefly lived and worked in Wilmington, would still be alive today if trauma-informed campuses like the CJC were nationwide.
“We just decided we needed to help all the Gabby’s out there and all the victims out there who need voices like ours to remind them that they’re not alone and they are loved and supported,” Patito said. “And it’s all through community efforts like these Community Justice centers, which need to be everywhere.”
The opening of the center comes on the heels of a new Carousel Center in Pender County, another community initiative launched with David’s help, just weeks before his planned retirement.
“I’m very confident that with Carousel [Center] and Coastal Horizon rape crisis all working together with the men and women of law enforcement in the DAs office, Pender County can succeed just as it’s succeeding here in Wilmington,” David said.
The CJC will be open Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., but emergency services like forensic interviews and physical evidence collection will be available 24/7.
David said the goal is for the center to operate for the next 100 years. It’s slated to open next month, following David’s planned retirement.