Roundup: Assessing Gender-Specific Programs for Girls in the Juvenile Justice System; New Data Center on Kids' Well-Being from Casey; and More
Interested in what restorative justice looks like when it's implemented in juvenile court? Here's a long article about two restorative justice programs in Oakland: one uses a peer court to address low-level offenders; the other works with kids leaving detention after many months.- Want data on the well-being of kids in your state? Want to know how your state ranks compared with others? Check out the KIDS COUNT Data Center just launched by the Annie E. Casey Foundation, which also released its KIDS COUNT Databook for 2009.
Can Puppets Keep Kids Out of the Juvenile Justice System?
Can puppets keep kids out of the juvenile justice system? Surprisingly, the answer is "yes."
Because “early onset aggression in children as young as age 3 is the single most-important predictor of later delinquency, substance abuse and violence," Professor Carolyn Webster-Stratton at the University of Washington developed the curriculum, "The Incredible Years," part of which involves using puppets to communicate with young, at-risk children.
Juvenile Justice System Reform: New DMC Technical Assistance Manual
The Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) has released a new, fourth edition of its Disproportionate Minority Contact Technical Assistance Manual. In it, you can find:
Juvenile Delinquency Report Card Underscores Need for Reclaiming Futures and Early Intervention
[This post was written by Ashley Edwards, Kelly Graves, and Claretta Witherspoon, of the Reclaiming Futures site in Guilford County, NC.]
North Carolina’s Action for Children recently released the 2009 Youth Delinquency Prevention Report Card. The release of these data will inform service delivery and outreach to adolescents throughout the state, and can be instrumental in helping us advocate for continued investment and expansion of the Reclaiming Futures program. Marijuana Debate Turns Serious
It's remarkable how suddenly the debate over marijuana legalization has moved from the fringes to mainstream.
Decriminalizing possession of small amounts of pot (but not its cultivation and sale) has been implemented in Massachusetts, and is being considered in Chicago, Rhode Island, and other communities.
Juvenile Justice Reform - the Missouri Model on Video
Last March, Missouri's successful juvenile justice reform efforts (the so-called "Missouri Model") hit the national headlines because of their focus on treatment and rehabilitation vs. punishment, offering alternatives to incarceration, and working with teens in small groups outside of detention centers.
If you want to see the program for yourself, the Ash Institute at Harvard now has an inspiring 29-minute video describing Missouri's innovative innovative juvenile justice system. Check it out.
Juvenile Justice Reform Gets New Ally: Doctors
When I think about the many people and organizations who support juvenile justice reform, I confess I don't usually think of doctors as being among them. Not because doctors would have any reason to oppose it; it's just that I haven't run across them in advocacy circles.
Roundup: Juvenile Justice System Increases Teen Recidivism as Adults; Test "Predicts" Likelihood of Gang Involvement; Heavy Drinking Linked to Teens' Mental Health Problems; and More
- Teens in the juvenile justice system are more likely to commit crimes as adults because delinquent behavior is "contagious", according to a 20-year research project in Canada. The solutions? More investments in prevention programs for pre-adolescents, and ending the practice of grouping delinquent youth together in services designed to help them. (No advice on how to accomplish the latter item.)
- UPDATE Feb. 2, 2011: A&E's recent reality TV show, "Beyond Scared Straight," actually increases teens' contact with adult prison inmates in an attempt to terrify them into “going straight." Maybe the producer's didn't read the above study, which indicates that contact with the justice system increases teen recidivism. Check out these facts about the program from the Coalition for Juvenile Justice (CJJ).
Juvenile Justice Reforms in S.C. Threatened by Deep Budget Cuts
Drastic cuts to the juvenile justice system in South Carolina are reversing significant gains made by reforms there, according to a New York Times story (see left for a still from the accompanying video, "Beyond the Fence.")
The Center for the Study of Social Policy's blog calls cuts to juvenile justice programs like these "shortsighted," because they avoid future costs and keep the community safer.
(UPDATE: Interestingly enough, budget woes seem to be driving states to adopt alternatives to incarceration -- including drug courts -- in the adult justice system.)
But what do you think? Leave a comment.
Roundup: A Guide for Juvenile Defenders in Juvenile Court; New E-Guide for Parents on Adolescent Substance Abuse; and More
- Do too many teens in your juvenile court waive their right to counsel? The Southern Juvenile Defender Center (of the Southern Poverty Law Center) just issued a teen-friendly brochure for Florida teens in juvenile court to convince them not to waive counsel. Best of all: you may be able to have the brochure adapted for your state by contacting Marion Chartoff.
