photo by: Chris Conde/Journal-World

Defense attorney Hatem Chahine is pictured during a jury trial on Feb. 8, 2023.

The Kansas Supreme Court has formed a 12-member group to advise it on creating rules for criminal mediation, including when it should or should not be used to help resolve a criminal case.

Lawrence attorney Hatem Chahine is in the group, as is Kevin Moriarty, a retired district judge from the 10th Judicial District who has mediated numerous cases in Douglas County. The other 10 members from around the state are district judges, district attorneys, defense attorneys, retired district judges and a representative from the Kansas Attorney General’s Office.

The group was formed to help standardize the criminal mediation process, Chief Justice Marla Luckert said.

“In recent years, we’ve seen an uptick in voluntary mediation as a method of resolving criminal cases outside of the traditional court process,” Luckert said in a news release from the court. “In criminal cases, mediation could contribute to early case resolution, helping the criminal justice system operate more efficiently. Statewide rules will help ensure standardized processes across jurisdictions and clarify when criminal mediation should or should not be used.”

Criminal mediation involves an impartial third party meeting with prosecutors, defendants and defense attorneys to help resolve a pending criminal case before trial. The process is confidential and voluntary, and the third party is often a retired judge, like Moriarty, who has no decision-making authority in the case but who has real-world experience with the criminal legal process, including applying complex sentencing guidelines.

The group created by the court, called the Ad Hoc Criminal Mediation Advisory Group, will study best practices on criminal mediation and existing local rules in Kansas and in other states. The group will then help the Office of Judicial Administration draft statewide criminal mediation rules.

Group members are:

Chief Judge Taylor Wine, 4th Judicial District

Chief Judge Jeffrey Goering, 18th Judicial District

District Judge Kendra Lewison, 21st Judicial District

Kevin Moriarty, retired district judge, 10th Judicial District

Mike Powers, retired district judge, 8th Judicial District

Tiffanie Askew, victim rights coordinator, Kansas Attorney General’s Office

Marc Bennett, district attorney, Sedgwick County

Hatem Chahine, defense attorney, Douglas County

Michael Kagay, district attorney, Shawnee County

Charles Lindberg, defense attorney, Minneapolis

Michelle Neis, deputy public defender, 3rd Judicial District Public Defender Office

Kimberly Rodebaugh, senior assistant district attorney, Reno County