Supreme Court creates ad hoc advisory group on criminal mediation

TOPEKA—The Kansas Supreme Court has created an ad hoc group to advise the court on creating criminal mediation rules.
 
The 12-member group is created by Supreme Court Administrative Order 2025-CM-011 signed today by Chief Justice Marla Luckert.
 
“In recent years, we’ve seen an uptick in voluntary mediation as a method of resolving criminal cases outside of the traditional court process,” Luckert said. “In criminal cases, mediation could contribute to early case resolution, helping the criminal justice system operate more efficiently. Statewide rules will help ensure standardized processes across jurisdictions and clarify when criminal mediation should or should not be used.”
 
What is criminal mediation?
 
Criminal mediation is when an impartial third party meets with prosecutors, defendants, and defense attorneys to help resolve a pending criminal case before trial. The process is confidential and voluntary, and the third party is often a retired judge who has no decision-making authority in the case.
 
Luckert said successful criminal mediation can give the person who has been charged an unbiased appraisal of the strengths and weaknesses of their case. It can also make the law understandable, strengthening confidence in the judicial system.
 
“Criminal mediators typically have real world experience with the criminal process, including applying complex sentencing guidelines,” Luckert said. “This knowledge makes them ideally suited to explaining the possible sentences to litigants.”
 
About the group
 
The Ad Hoc Criminal Mediation Advisory Group will study best practices on criminal mediation and existing local rules in Kansas and in other states. The group will then help the Office of Judicial Administration draft statewide criminal mediation rules.
 
The group is composed of district judges, district attorneys, defense attorneys, retired district judges, and a representative from the Kansas Attorney General’s Office. The group will be supported by Amanda Jacobsen, director of dispute resolution with the Office of Judicial Administration.

Group members are: 

• Chief Judge Taylor Wine, 4th Judicial District

• Chief Judge Jeffrey Goering, 18th Judicial District

• District Judge Kendra Lewison, 21st Judicial District

• Kevin Moriarty, retired district judge, 10th Judicial District

• Mike Powers, retired district judge, 8th Judicial District

• Tiffanie Askew, victim rights coordinator, Kansas Attorney General's Office

• Marc Bennett, district attorney, Sedgwick County

• Hatem Chahine, defense attorney, Douglas County

• Michael Kagay, district attorney, Shawnee County

• Charles Lindberg, defense attorney, Minneapolis

• Michelle Neis, deputy public defender, 3rd Judicial District Public Defender Office

• Kimberly Rodebaugh, senior assistant district attorney, Reno County