For the past 10 years, if Linda Smith saw crime in her southeast Washington neighborhood — a rash of home break-ins, for instance, or an increase in prostitution — she knew who to call.
Not just the police, she said, but D.C. Superior Court judges, too. Since 2002, one judge at any given time has handled most misdemeanor cases from Smith’s neighborhood and other communities east of the Anacostia River. The presiding judges met regularly with the community and tried to tackle deeper problems, like drug abuse and homelessness, to curb crime and repeat offenders.
