LINCOLN- The chief justice of the Nebraska Supreme Court used an annual speech to highlight a shortage of problem-solving courts and juvenile detention centers, and an outdated case management system “held together with baling wire and bubble gum.” Chief Justice Mike Heavican, in his annual “State of the Judiciary” address, said that despite an increase in drug courts and other problem-solving courts, a survey indicated that only 5% of eligible accused offenders are being served.

Nebraska now has 33 problem-solving courts in every judicial district in the state, which served almost 1,600 individuals during the last fiscal year. Participation has expanded 27% since 2020, but the judge says the state could do more for what is a “viable” and lower-cost alternative to incarceration.

Another issue, he said, is an outdated, in-house-produced judicial case management system that was launched in 1993 using COBAL programming code and an AS400 operating system. He added that it’s also a cybersecurity issue. Last year in Kansas, a foreign cyberattack shut down the state’s electronic management system for months, requiring a return to paper filing for a time and costing millions of dollars.

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