By Benjamin Chambers, September 25 2009
Concerned about the kids in the juvenile justice system? Then check out the video above of a 29-year-old woman given life without parole at 16 for killing her pimp. I found it on this blog, without a lot of information about where or when the video was made. But man oh man, it's sure moving.
Other stories:
By Benjamin Chambers, September 22 2009
Tim, a youth on probation in Multnomah County, Oregon, testifies to County commissioners about how the juvenile justice system helped him get off alcohol and drugs, learn job skills, and begin giving back to kids in the community. (His testimony begins at 8:08.)
Related Post:
By Lori Howell, September 21 2009
Threshold Foundation is a donor-based fund that seeks to ensure human rights for youth impacted by the criminal justice and drug policy systems, and political rights for those in historically disenfranchised communities. The foundation's Justice & Democracy Committee is accepting letters of intent (LOIs) no later than September 25 from non-profit organizations working in the following focus areas:
Topics: Funding, Juvenile Justice Reform, No bio box
By Geralyn Lecesse, September 21 2009
[This article on the juvenile drug court in the Reclaiming Futures site in Nassau County, NY originally appeared, in a longer form in the Spring 2009 issue of the Nassau News, the newsletter of the 10th Judicial District, Nassau County.]
On March 4, 2009, Nassau County, NY held its first Juvenile Drug Treatment Court (JTC) graduation. Three teenagers successfully completed the program.
It was a little overwhelming to think we already had three graduates. When we first talked about creating the program, it had seemed like a logistical impossibility.
And after we got our first participant, there were immediate doubts: What were we thinking? How do we expect to help this kid get off drugs? We’re not equipped. This is never going to work.
By Benjamin Chambers, September 18 2009
A potential game-changer in the field of adolescent (and adult) substance abuse: hospitals may soon be required to screen and provide brief intervention for addictions in order to be accredited.By Benjamin Chambers, September 17 2009
Anyone interested in juvenile justice reform should check out this opinion piece from The Boston Globe by David Fathi of Human Rights Watch, "An Unfair Prison Litigation System."(Link courtesy of the National Juvenile Justice Network.)
Fathi is making a larger point about the burden on all prisoners, adult and juvenile, but his sample case is focused on a juvenile:
Topics: Juvenile Justice Reform, No bio box
By Benjamin Chambers, September 11 2009
The "Missouri Model" was featured on ABC's Primetime show this week: more good press for the importance of rehabilitation and treatment for youth in the justice system. (Click through to see show segments.) UPDATE: Youth Today also has an update on efforts to replicate the Missouri Model around the nation. Topics: Juvenile Justice Reform, No bio box
By Benjamin Chambers, September 09 2009
You may remember "Changing Lives Through Literature" (CLTL), an amazing alternative-sentencing program created by Robert Waxler, an English professor, and Judge Robert Kane, a former Massachusetts Superior Court justice. The progam is based on the idea that studying literature can change lives.
By Benjamin Chambers, September 09 2009
Friday, September 04, 2009 ABC Television Network
PRESS RELEASE - PRESS RELEASE - ENTERTAINMENT - ON ABC NEWS' PRIMETIME: CRIME (9/9)
IS MISSOURI'S RADICALLY DIFFERENT APPROACH TO THE JUVENILE JAIL SYSTEM WORKING?
There are nearly 100,000 kids in America's juvenile justice system, most in orange jumpsuits, locked behind bars and under constant guard. But the state of Missouri has cast aside the familiar model of juvenile jails in favor of a radically different approach - therapy and rehabilitation.
Topics: Juvenile Justice Reform, No bio box, Public Policy
By Benjamin Chambers, September 09 2009
First-of-its-kind Report Uncovers Successes and Challenges of State Compliance with the federal Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act
On the 35th anniversary of the enactment of the federal Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act (JJDPA), the Coalition for Juvenile Justice (CJJ) released the results of a groundbreaking report, A Pivotal Moment: Sustaining the Success and Enhancing the Future of the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act.
The release was anchored by a panel of speakers providing expertise from a variety of backgrounds in the field of juvenile justice.
Topics: Juvenile Justice Reform, No bio box, Public Policy
By Benjamin Chambers, September 03 2009
Something to think about the next time you drug test a youth: one in five teens share prescription drugs (and so do 40% of adults). By Benjamin Chambers, September 03 2009
Should judges in the juvenile justice system use their position and influence to get people to come to meetings?Judges from eight Reclaiming Futures sites debated the ethics of these statements last week, at a workshop on August 28th in Greensboro, NC.
Being good jurists, they paid close attention to the wording of the statements, and disputed the idea that judges “should” get people to come to meetings, or were “obligated” to take “direct action” – and what was meant by “direct” action, by the way?
Topics: Juvenile Justice Reform, No bio box
By Elizabeth Burke..., September 02 2009
During the past few years, Rhode Island has been in the news regarding its approach to the juvenile justice system. In June of 2007, the General Assembly passed a law that required that 17-year-olds be tried as adults for any crime, and incarcerated at the adult prison.
The initial rationale for the change was that it was a cost-saving measure because the average cost of incarceration at the adult prison was thought to be less than incarceration at the Juvenile Training School. However, it was then determined that the 17-year-olds would have to be incarcerated in the high security wing of the adult prison to separate them from the adult population, which was costlier than housing them at the Training School. Despite this finding, the law was passed and put into effect.
Topics: Juvenile Justice Reform, No bio box, Public Policy
By Benjamin Chambers, September 01 2009
Is your jurisdiction engaged in reforming its juvenile justice system? Want to make sure everything goes as planned?
Then check out a new guide from the Center for Court Innovation and the Bureau of Justice Assistance, titled Avoiding Failures of Implementation: Lessons from Process Evaluations.
Topics: Juvenile Justice Reform, No bio box, Resources
By Benjamin Chambers, August 27 2009
The so-called "Missouri Model" of juvenile justice reform received more coverage on CNN.By Linda Wagner, August 25 2009
Heated discussions arise over the societal factors that lead to juvenile criminality and the ways that public institutions fail to curtail them. A team of experts with decades of collective hands-on experience presents a book that cuts through the hype and paranoia to offer real solutions. Dispatches from Juvenile Hall – Fixing a Failing System, cuts through the war between “soft on crime” and “tough on crime” to deliver an alternative that is “smart on crime” – a progressive approach, based on the latest findings that incorporate corrections responses, treatment, and family-focused interventions.
Topics: Juvenile Justice Reform, No bio box, Public Policy
By Benjamin Chambers, August 20 2009
When it comes to the juvenile justice system and adolescent substance abuse, there's always something cooking. Check out this week's bonanza of resources and new stories:
By Benjamin Chambers, August 20 2009
Adolescent substance abuse in the juvenile justice system is the subject of Laurie Chassin's excellent article in the Fall 2008 issue of The Future of Children.
But I urge you to check out the entire issue, whose theme is "juvenile justice." Edited by Laurence Steinberg (whose recent book, Rethinking Juvenile Justice, we gave away last March), the journal brings together research from a number of scholars connected with the MacArthur Foundation Research Network on Adolescent Development and Juvenile Justice, funded by the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation.
By Benjamin Chambers, August 18 2009
One of the key parts of the Reclaiming Futures model is "beyond treatment": connecting kids in the juvenile justice system with a network of positive adults, services, and activities that will sustain them when they leave probation, incarceration, or treatment.
No problem, right? Well, as anyone who's ever wrestled with this problem knows, it's a huge problem. It can be hard for probation officers and treatment counselors to keep up with what's available. Then, too, there's the always-tricky issue of what services or activies are appropriate for which kids.
So here's an idea from Community YouthMapping (CYM): ask the kids to help you map the services; together, you can canvass neighborhoods in search of places to go and things to do. It's a great opportunity to harness their energy, given them skills, and model pro-social behavior, and you'll often find resources you wouldn't find otherwise.
By Benjamin Chambers, August 14 2009
Juvenile justice reform seemed to be on the mind of The New York Times last week, at least judging by its article documenting the increasing burden placed on the juvenile justice system by growing numbers of mentally ill youth, which was closely followed by an editorial bluntly favoring juvenile detention reform. Meanwhile, Barbara Ehrenreich, in a long op-ed on the criminalization of poverty, condemned recent trends to criminalize and fine kids for truancy.