The Indiana Judges Association is accepting nominations for the 2011 Commendation for Excellence in Public Information and Education.
Each year the association honors a journalist and a judge who have helped inform the public about the work of Indiana courts. The deadline for applications is July 29, 2011.
Application forms are available online at courts.in.gov/media. Click on the Commendation for Excellence in Public Information and Education information.
There are two award categories, one for journalists and one for judges. The Community Relations Committee of the Indiana Judicial Conference selects the recipients.
Nominees are judged on breadth and depth of effort, quality, ingenuity and public response. The committee is looking for newspaper, television, radio and Internet journalists or news organizations that have exhibited responsible reporting of Indiana courts.
The committee is also looking for judges who have conducted programs, projects or sustained efforts to educate the public about the courts.
The Indiana Judges Association has given the awards since 1988. The 2010 recipients were Marianne Holland of Indiana Public Broadcasting for her reporting on the Indiana Supreme Court and the retirement of Justice Theodore Boehm and Judge Allen Wheat of Steuben Circuit Court for his educational video titled “Think Before You Drive,” which showed a mock drunk driving trial from arrest to conviction.
