March 20, 2002

BOISE STATE WORKSHOP TO TRAIN MEDIATORS FOR PROSECUTOR’S OFFICE

A partnership between Boise State University and the Nampa City Prosecutor’s office will allow more cases to be settled through mediation instead of through the courts.

The university’s conflict management services’ dispute resolution program will offer a one-credit pass/fail workshop this summer on mediation techniques. The program will provide mediators to the prosecutor’s office so appropriate cases can be settled between victims and offenders.

Offered at Boise State’s Canyon County Campus, the course will be taught by Nampa City Prosecutor Bryan Taylor and is open to anyone interested in victim-offender mediation. Mediators who are chosen to work with the prosecutor’s office, either as volunteers or interns, must have also had additional training in related areas.

"Criminal mediation helps reduce litigation, increase participant satisfaction, potentially save resources and alleviate court congestion," Taylor said. When the defendant and victim learn to effectively communicate, he said, they are less likely to return to the court system for the same offense.

For information on registering for the workshop, call the Division of Extended Studies at 426-1709. DISPUT 494 will be offered from 5:30-8:30 p.m. Tuesdays, July 16-Aug. 13.

Contact:
Suzanne McCorkle
College of Social Sciences and Public Affairs
(208) 426-3776

Media Contact:
Kathleen Mortensen
Boise State communications and marketing
(208) 426-3275