For many people, the notion of coming to court or being involved in the judicial system is anxiety-inducing—especially for defendants. Seattle Municipal Court (SMC) has a resource available to help individuals who are going or have been through the court—its Community Resource Center, a service hub located in the courthouse —but it also has a community support specialist.
Jackie Victoriano is the court’s community resource specialist and has been in the role for slightly more than a year. Officially, Jackie is employed by Public Health – Seattle & King County’s Jail Health Services, but she sits at the court and supports mental health and veterans’ treatment court participants. Her role is made possible by state monies from the Administrative Office of Courts (AOC) designated to support specialized court programs.
“I help clients get services that they need, whether it’s housing, Medicaid, electronic benefit transfer (EBT) cards to access Basic Food [food stamps], assistance in finding a mental health counselor, or whatever they might need,” said Jackie. “I also help set up appointments, hail cabs, or escort them to appointments. My number one priority is finding out what clients need.”
Typically, the largest need for clients is housing. “If a client is not housed, it’s harder to stay in contact with them and it’s important for folks to have their own space to start making progress,” said Jackie.
A typical client is someone who has been referred to Jackie through SMC’s therapeutic courts. She assists with access to needed services and basic needs, while a probation counselor works in tandem with Jackie to ensure the participant meets the required court obligations. At the end of probation, there is a graduation, which Jackie says she finds particularly rewarding.
“I got into this line of work because I enjoy helping people,” Jackie said. “It’s a joy when I can witness an individual’s progress.”
Margaret McCurdy, therapeutic courts coordinator at SMC, recently completed a Year in Review of Jackie’s work, which you can read here.
“In the past year, Jackie has worked with 66 clients, spent an average of 4.5 months with each person, and connected people to services more than 700 times,” said Margaret. “I think the data from the Year in Review speaks for itself and Jackie’s work has enabled the entire therapeutic courts team to more wholistically address the needs of clients. We’re lucky to have her on the team!”