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Criminal justice reform – “getting at” a better model

“I run a repair shop, not a junkyard.” It’s a motto Dave Larson spouts – frequently. But he is no auto mechanic. Larson is a Municipal Court Judge in Federal Way, Washington, a community of just under 100,000 people, located between Seattle and Tacoma. This city has experienced most of its growth as an affordable bedroom community to those larger cities to the north and south. Now it’s struggling to establish an identity of its own, while grappling with all of the attendant crises of the 21st century – including the opioid epidemic, homelessness, and crime.