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Welcome to CourtWatch Florida.  We began in 2004 when Ann Lickteig, a victim of domestic violence, saw that the criminal justice system failed to effectively prosecute her batterer.  He was found not guilty of inflicting the injuries that required several hours of neurosurgery to repair.

As a result of her experience, Ann vowed to monitor the courts so that other victims of domestic violence would not suffer a similar fate.  She joined the Orange County Domestic Violence Task Force and served as its co-chair.  During that time, she met Laura S. Williams, another survivor of domestic violence who shared Ann's interest in the judicial system.

Laura, a former client of Harbor House, has been a Speaker's Bureau volunteer since 1998.  In 1996, her estranged husband fatally shot their 2-year-old daughter Sarah before he committed suicide.  Unlike Ann, every encounter Laura had with the judicial system was a positive one (well, as positive as it can be when you're going through a contentious divorce!).  Because of her willingness to speak out about domestic violence, she was invited to participate in Orange County's DV and Child Abuse Commission (2003-2005) and the Commission's Implementation Team (2005-2007).  It was during this time that she joined the DV Task Force and became intrigued with the idea of establishing a court monitoring program.

CourtWatch began as a subcommittee of the Orange County Domestic Violence Task Force.  We monitor DV and sexual assault cases to make sure the system holds perpetrators accountable and doesn't re-victimize the victims. We are a member of the National Association of Court Monitoring Programs. Our first training class was held April 2007 and we have now trained over 80 people as CourtWatchers. In July 2007, we joined with a non-profit organization, The Matrix of Greater Orlando, that is acting as an umbrella for us while we pursue our own non-profit designation. We are now able to accept tax-deductible contributions.
Who Are We?
CourtWatchers are volunteers that represent a cross section of our Central Florida community. They come from a variety of backgrounds and may be retired, students or currently employed part or full-time.  Our volunteers include those with backgrounds in engineering, medicine, psychology, teaching, sales, law enforcement, social work, local government, insurance, bookkeeping and others.

Volunteers are interviewed and screened by the Program Director before they are accepted into the program. Criteria used in selecting CourtWatchers include the following: neither they nor members of their families have been recent victims of violent crime, have been arrested nor convicted of a crime, nor have a case pending before the courts in which they observe. 

As impartial observers of the judicial system, CourtWatchers document their observations and impressions.  This information will be compiled and a report that details our findings will presented to the Court and the community.
Our Mission
To provide an impartial assessment of the effectiveness with which domestic violence and sexual assault cases are handled by the Court.

Our Philosophy
The justice system is accountable to the public. The public has a right to observe the process. We expect the judicial system to meet certain standards:
  • Be fair and consistent
  • Act in a professional and respectful
         manner
  • Take into account victim safety and
         public safety
  • Hold offenders accountable
  • Follow the law
      • Our Strategy
    • Regularly monitor courts in order to
           identify patterns of behavior and
          obtain specific examples of larger
          problems or issues
    • Use information gathered to prompt
           further research and report to the
          Court and community

      • CourtWatch is NOT:
    • A vigilante or extremist organization out to "get" judges or defendants or to restrict judicial independence
    • Affiliated wth any political party or religious faith
    • A provider of victim advocacy or direct services
      • Copyright . CourtWatch Florida. All rights reserved.