INDIANAPOLIS | Chief Justice Brent Dickson, in his first-ever State of the Judiciary address Wednesday, urged the General Assembly to approve legislation revamping Indiana's criminal code.
The Hobart native told lawmakers enacting House Bill 1006 will make the state's criminal justice system "more effective in promoting public safety, reducing repeat criminal activity, enabling offender reformation and, at the same time, reducing substantially the costs of incarceration."
Following that bit of lobbying, Dickson stepped back into his role as the state's top jurist and told the representatives and senators he respects the appropriately separate jobs of the Legislature and the Judiciary.
"You determine public policy and make the laws and we follow and apply the laws, whether we like them or not," Dickson said.
For most of his 25-minute speech, Dickson recounted the achievements of the state's courts, including an expanded online docket funded through user fees, a record number of children in the court system assisted by volunteer advocates and the availability of more than 50 specialized problem-solving courts.
He asked lawmakers to support the court's efforts to develop new technology that will make courts even more accessible and its goal to assist court users who have limited English proficiency. He also urged support for court programs promoting child welfare.
Dickson became chief justice of the Indiana Supreme Court and leader of the state's court system in May, after the retirement of Chief Justice Randall Shepard, who attended Wednesday's event.