Recipients

December 2016

Karpel Foundation Awards Six Beta Sites for Testing the

Media and Community Engagement Tool Kit


Prosecutors have the responsibility to fight for both the rights of the victims and the rights of the accused. With this, they are uniquely positioned to build confidence, accountability and transparency in the criminal justice system through their actions and their voices. The simple question is... If they don't do it, who will?


In an effort to improve the social and economic well-being of the United States by improving the prosecution of crimes, the Karpel Foundation has granted six prosecuting attorneys offices with grant funds to equip them with tools to help them better communicate with their communities.


The Karpel Foundation is working with Vera Causa Group to develop a Media and Community Engagement Tool Kit that would provide communication resources for prosecuting attorney offices in the United States. After the beta test is completed, the foundation board will review the results and determine the next step in offering this program for grant applications and funding in the future.


The Media and Community Engagement Tool Kit includes:


  • Media and Community Engagement Tool Kit - A tool that provides prosecutors wth media relations, social media and web engagement tools to better communicate and focus on transparency and accountability to their communities.

  • Website - As part of the tool kit, Karpel Solutions will build a complementary new website to help the District Attorney achieve his/her communication and community engagement goals. For grant recipients that utilize Karpel Solutions for data management, a website search feature is being offered to help citizens better access open records data regarding cases in each jurisdiction. The search feature will create a new level of transparency for the criminal justice system.

  • Training and Consulting Services: Vera Causa Group will spend 20 hours over a four-month period to help train, coach and build capabilities within the office so the DA can move forward with confidence in building stronger, more accountable relationships with the community and promoting confidence in the criminal justice system.

Beta-site grants were awarded to:

  • Amador County District Attorney's Office, CA
  • Baker County District Attorney's Office, OR
  • St Charles Prosecuting Attorney's Office, MO
  • Rockingham County Attorney's Office, NH
  • 40th Judical District Attorney's Office, LA
  • 9th Circuity Charleston County Solictor's Office, SC

 


WHEELER COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY

FOSSIL, OREGON


Desktop scanners to facilitate the migration to a file-less office.


“Truly a best practices move for our office. The increase in efficiency was immediately apparent. By utilizing the grant funds provided by the Karpel Foundation, our office has increased productivity while also providing more quality services to the public. These desktop scanners will ultimately reduce our cost of operation and help us efficiently protect our community.”


                                                                         Terry L. Ignowski
                                                                         Administrative Assistant
                                                                         Wheeler County District Attorney’s Office