IU launches first juvenile justice research institute in the nation

In 1998, the Indiana Supreme Court lifted a ban for a unique production company, Calamari Productions, to film juvenile court cases in and outside the courtroom.

Karen Grau, IU alumna and president of Calamari Productions, had to get a certain number of votes from the Supreme Court justices to exempt Calamari from the law prohibiting cameras in courtrooms for juvenile cases.

Grau had to petition for the justices’ votes, which took her more than a year and turned out to be very expensive.

But since 1998, four other states have invited the filmmakers from Calamari to film the stories of delinquents. In collaboration with the IU Research and Technology Corporation, Calamari formed the Institute for Juvenile Court and Corrections Research, a repository of video footage previously inaccessible.

“In one way it becomes a huge resource for folks here at the University, here in the state,” said Tony Armstrong, CEO and president of IURTC. “I think there’s a lot of benefit for people here in the University and for people here that are studying this area and practicing in the state of Indiana to really be a part of what I think will be a unique set of content.”

The footage will run as a subscription for various organizations, law schools and universities, including IU, across the country.

“We’ve never had a digital repository or library that would be accessible by different people and like a full robust library online,” said Chip Warren, vice president at Calamari. “So that’s one of the things the institute will allow us to do, and we’ll be able to service a great many more needs by doing it that way.”

While the needs of mostly students, professors and practitioners will be met with the filmed delinquent cases, the institute’s larger focus is to inform the community about the neglected youth who are often stigmatized.

“We documented just about every kind of juvenile court hearing you can imagine,” Warren said. “I think it grabs at our basic instincts to sort of help and nurture the most vulnerable members of our community.”

Warren said Calamari is the only media company allowed to legally film delinquent cases in the courtrooms.

The company also has a strict policy of acquiring the permission of the participants, especially the children, before filming.

“It’s not easy at all to access the actual hearings or to have access to the particular files of families of children who are in the juvenile court because those cases are confidential by law,” said Viola Taliaferro, who had participated in some of the video footage found on calamariproductions.com and is a senior judge in Monroe County.

The purpose of the state law is to protect the interests of the children and families because of the sensitive nature of most juvenile cases.

“Now we’re talking about cases that might involve child molestation, neglected children,” Taliaferro said. “These are people who are actually in juvenile court and have the opportunity to make significant changes in their lives and not to have the public know every single thing that has happened to them.”

Right now the subscription service for IJCCR is not available, but some organizations and schools have been able to access and use much of the footage filmed thus far.