One of District Attorney Watkins’ mottos at the DA’s Office is that “justice is not confined to the four walls of a courtroom.”  In keeping with this motto, the culture at the Dallas County DA’s Office is one that encourages community involvement above and beyond the traditional responsibilities of a prosecutor.

In 2007, the Dallas County District Attorney’s Office participated in the following community outreach programs/projects:

• At Make a Difference Day, hosted by Dallas-based Concord Missionary Baptist Church in June of 2007, more than 30 volunteers from the DA’s Office spent a Saturday painting and making other minor home repairs for local families in need.

• Big Brothers Big Sisters of North Texas’ Amachi Program where more than 25 attorneys, investigators and support staff are actively participating as mentors to local youth who have at least one parent in prison with the goal of breaking the cycle of incarceration.

• At the Big Brothers Big Sisters of North Texas Bowling for Kids’ Sake fundraiser in August of 2007, 128 volunteers from the District Attorney’s staff along with their families and friends participated in the event and raised more than $14,000 dollars for the organization.

• American Red Cross Blood Drive, where more than 45 employees of the District Attorney’s staff including assistant district attorneys, investigators, support staff and the DA himself, donated blood to help save lives.

• Adoption of Mental Illness Court Program’s Clients for the Holidays, where DA staff volunteered to adopt a total of 25 clients of the Dallas County Mental Illness Court’s Program by donating gift cards to various retailers and grocery stores, bus passes, blankets, coats and other needed items.