PALM BEACH COUNTY CRIMINAL JUSTICE COMMISSION
EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE MEETING
CareerSource, 3400 Belvedere Road
West Palm Beach, FL 33406
Monday, January 26, 2026 at 11:00 AM
MEETING MINUTES
Members Present:
Daniel Eisinger, Public Defender, 15th Judicial Circuit
Gregory Starling, Chief Probation Officer, Circuit 15, Florida Department of Juvenile Justice
Jorge Garrido, CJC Treasurer
Karen Hansen, CJC Secretary
Michelle Suskauer, CJC Chair
Oswald Newbold, Reentry Coordinator, the Reentry Center of Riviera Beach
Rachel Docekal, Hanley Foundation, Past CJC Chair (ex-officio)
Vanessa Klein, Director of Reentry Services, The Lord's Place
Members Absent:
Glenn Kelley, Chief Judge, 15th Judicial Circuit
Joel G. Flores, Palm Beach County Commissioner, District 3
Maria S. Antuña, CJC Vice Chair
Michael Coleman, President, Palm Beach County Association of Chiefs of Police
Mike Burke, PBC School District (ex-officio)
CJC Staff Present:
Angelique J. Pickett, Executive Director
Dawn Caveness-Davenport, Senior Criminal Justice Analyst
Katherine Hatos, Criminal Justice Systems Manager
Margo Smith, Administrative Assistant III
Stephanie Molière, Senior Criminal Justice Analyst
I. Call to Order
- Michelle R. Suskauer, Chair called the meeting to order.
II. Roll Call
· Angelique J. Pickett, CJC Executive Director, completed roll call of the members and determined there was quorum.
III. Approval and/or corrections to the Agenda
· Dr. Rachel Docekal made a motion to approve the agenda, seconded by Daniel Eisinger and passed unanimously.
IV. Approval and/or Corrections to the August 11, 2025 Minutes
· Dr. Rachel Docekal made a motion to approve the agenda, seconded by Daniel Eisinger and passed unanimously.
V. Chair Comments
- Chair Michelle Suskauer advised the committee that they will wait on the welcome of new CJC member Chief Michael Coleman of the Riviera Beach Police Department as he is not here. The committee moved to items 5 B
- The Committee members reviewed the Criminal Justice Commission Executive Committee Responsibilities pertaining to its boards, councils, committees, and task forces. Chair Michelle Suskauer explained each of the sections of the bylaws to the members and how they are the drivers of the work that is done in the CJC. Chair Suskauer also expressed that she would like to see each member of the CJC join a task force or subcommittee.
- PBC CJC 2025 Bylaws
Section 2. Authority:
The Criminal Justice Commission shall have the following authority and powers:
B) To establish task forces or subcommittees to study in detail key aspects of programs and systems within the scope of the Criminal Justice Commission;
Section 11. Boards, Councils, Standing Committees and Task Forces:
The Commission may designate standing committees and task forces, each of which shall have and may exercise the authority as directed by the Executive Committee. The standing committees and task forces shall make recommendations to the Criminal Justice Commission on policies and programs assigned by the Commission. A member shall perform duties, including that individual's duties as a member of any committee of the Commission upon which that person serves, in good faith, in a manner he or she reasonably believes to be in the best interest of the Commission and with such care as an ordinarily prudent person similar position would use under similar circumstances.
B) Boards, Councils and Task Forces: Task Force missions and/or goals shall be the responsibility of the Chair with ratification by the Executive Committee. Each Task Force shall include at least one Commission member. Other Task Force participants, including the Chair of the Task Force, need not be members of the Commission and may be representative of the agency, entity and/or organization.
- Annual Planning Meeting Tracks & Topics
Chair Suskauer discussed the upcoming Annual Planning meeting in February. She proposed the focus of the meeting are Challenges & Opportunities in Criminal Justice in Palm Beach County. The members reviewed the draft of the annual planning meeting schedule. The meeting will include discussion tracks on juvenile justice, behavioral/mental health challenges, and court system opportunities. One of the biggest responses from the survey sent out was juvenile justice. Therefore, a significant amount of time will be dedicated to this topic in the beginning of the meeting.
Chief Starling agreed to participate in the juvenile justice section of the annual planning meeting. He also advised the members of the juvenile justice advisory board that he is involved in, that meets quarterly to work on specific goals. He is excited to have the opportunity for the board to showcase their work as they have a lot of key stakeholders involved. One of the board's primary goals is academic achievement as there is a better chance of success when the kids evolve academically and less chances of recidivism in the juvenile/criminal justice system.
He also discussed the data subcommittee that is currently working on pre-arrest delinquency and working on filling the gaps for kids who do not have access to all the opportunities available. The respite beds for domestic violence is also a huge gap that they are currently working on.
The members discussed the strategies and goals for the topics that include juvenile justice, behavioral health/mental health, and criminal justice opportunities. They also discussed narrowing it down to 2 topics.
The members also discussed the 41% reduction in homicides in Palm Beach County over the last five years as this may be a good panel discussion on how we got there. What was implemented or innovative ideas that were put into place throughout Palm Beach County to affect that change. - CJC Task Forces
The members discussed the following task force changes for consideration which include adding a Communications Task Force, Juvenile Justice Task Force, and Justice Data Task Force. The changes also include deleting or sunsetting the STRIDE task force, which was previously the Racial Equity task force under the SJC MacArthur grant. Chair Suskauer advised embedding the system trends into all the work the task forces do as it is important to the work being done. - 2026 CJC Focus Areas & Initiatives
Chair Suskauer discussed the CJC's plans for the 2026 CJC focus areas and initiatives that include - Legislative Priorities for Palm Beach County Criminal Justice as the CJC will meet with the legislative delegation to stay in the loop.
- Fundraising will fall into Jorge Garrido's wheelhouse as the new CJC Treasurer. The committee will seek opportunities for funding now that a major funding source has been lost. The upcoming new CJC member from the Economic council is also a grant writer which will assist with applying for new funding sources.
- Messaging & Programming for the CJC will fall under the Communications Task Force/Committee.
- Awards Ceremony will be held once a year to highlight individuals, agencies, etc.
- Justice Spotlights will highlight different law enforcement officers every month on their achievements and the great work that they do.
Executive Director Updates
New Year Reminders – Robert's Rules of Order
Executive Director Pickett discussed the Rober's Rules of Order which include approval of the minutes being made by members that were present at that meeting who could speak to whether they are correct or complete. ED Pickett also discussed since the meetings are being recorded and the CJC is utilizing AI generated tools for the minutes, we are working towards speakers announcing who they are, for recording purposes so there is an accurate record.
Old Business
Updates to August 11, 2025, Meeting Action Items
ED Pickett discussed the purpose of the new process of the action items to the members to hold people accountable. ED Pickett reviewed the action items with the members and provided updates on each as the majority of the action items listed have been completed.
ED Pickett discussed the topics reviewed at the meeting and advised the members that if there was anything they would like to decide on today, they are able to make a motion and vote. Or they can put the items forward to be decided on at the annual planning meeting.
Dan Eisinger moved to delete the STRIDE task force and make that a component of the other task forces. He also expressed concern about adding additional task forces as the CJC is short staffed and they are operating on a limited budget.
The members decided to leave this item for the annual planning meeting to decide.
VIII. Member Comments
IX. Guest Comments
X. Adjournment
Next Meeting: Monday, March 23, 2026 at 11:00 AM
CareerSource, 3400 Belvedere Road
West Palm Beach, FL 33406