By Robert Selna
San Francisco Chronicle

Mayor Gavin Newsom and city criminal justice officials announced on Thursday the location of a new court the mayor has been promising to more quickly judge low-level street crimes in the Tenderloin and steer offenders into community service and rehabilitative programs. At a press conference inside the new courtroom at Polk and Turk street - just north of Civic Center Plaza - Newsom said the newly-named Community Justice Center will open in July after a five-month trial run at the Hall of Justice, where the city's other criminal courts are housed.

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By David Smith
San Francisco Examiner

A new court in San Francisco’s Tenderloin that is being created to handle low-level criminal behavior in the downtown area has found a home just two blocks from the steps of City Hall. The City’s Criminal Justice Center — a special court that Mayor Gavin Newsom has said will direct offenders of such crimes as nonviolent drug use, theft, prostitution and aggressive panhandling to appropriate social services rather than jail or fines — will be housed at 575 and 555 Polk Street. Modeled partially after New York City’s Midtown Community Court, which requires most defendants to perform community service or attend a group meeting within 24 hours of arraignment, the San Francisco’s new court will take cases from the Civic Center, Tenderloin, Union Square and South of Market neighborhoods. Read more »

By Heather Knight
San Francisco Chronicle
Originally Published August 7, 2007

After stalling for a few months, San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom's controversial plan for a new community court to prosecute quality-of-life crimes in the city's core has taken a big step forward.

Newsom and Superior Court judges have signed off on a plan for the court, dubbed the Community Justice Center, which was written by judges and presented to the mayor Friday.

The plan includes some major changes to the mayor's initial idea, including not handling infractions such as public urination and public drunkenness. Read more »