Iowa officials learn about the Polish judicial system

CEDAR RAPIDS - Officials from Cedar Rapids traveled to Poland last month to learn about the country's judicial system, and to impart lessons from Iowa as well.

Elena Wolford, assistant district attorney for Linn County, Sixth District Department of Correctional Services Director Bruce Vander Sanden and Sixth District Assistant Director Greg Fitzpatrick were in the central European nation from May 14 to 21. While there, the three spent time with judicial officials and learned about national and local law enforcement.

Vander Sanden said in February, they received an invitation to visit from the Polish National Probation Officer Delegation.

The Iowa officials attended the Polish National Probation Conference in Mielno, on the coast of the Baltic Sea. More than 200 people from Poland and France also attended.

At the conference, Fitzpatrick and Vander Sanden gave a presentation about community-based corrections, which the Sixth District utilizes, along with seven other districts in Iowa.

Those in community-based corrections, Vander Sanden said, live in the district's residential facilities but still have ties to the community. For example, most still are employed or seek other social services outside the district.

The main focus of the Sixth District officials' presentation was evidence-based practices.

'We're relying heavily on research to guide our work, and we've learned a lot,” Vander Sanden said. 'I've been in correctional work for 27 years, and what we did 27 years ago looks distinctly different than what we do now.”

While she didn't present, Wolford said she attended the conference to relay information about the U.S. and Iowa judicial systems to high-ranking Polish officials.

Wolford said she also learned from the Polish officials, and took back what she learned to her collegues in Linn County.

The Iowa officials also briefly attended a conference where Wolford spoke about changes to life sentences for juveniles in the United States.

Vander Sanden said their schedule also was packed with visits to different parts of the Polish criminal justice system. This included meetings with police, judges and a visit to the prison in Poznan.

The Cedar Rapids officials found correctional officers in Poland face similar challenges, such as substance abuse. However, there were differences as well, such as the use of resources.

The trip offered the opportunity to learn, Wolford said, and to understand how developed nations approach the same challenges.

'I walked away with more (understanding of) how individual groups of people can have similar problems but both come to different solutions on how they approach solving it,” Fitzpatrick said.

A partnership between the Polish delegation and the Sixth District has existed for the last 10 to 15 years, Vander Sanden said. Over the years, officials from each organization have visited their counterparts twice. The last time Vander Sanden visited Poland was in 2008.