Juvenile Justice Shows Progress; News Roundup

Juvenile Justice Reform

• Juvenile Justice Shows Progress (Illinois Times)
  When the Illinois Department of Juvenile Justice was created in 2006, the state’s youth prisons held 1,500 juvenile offenders. Today, there are fewer than 900 kids behind bars in Illinois juvenile justice system. It’s one sign of progress for the relatively new department, which was previously part of the adult-oriented Illinois Department of Corrections.
• Forsyth County Clerk of Court Wants to Turn Old School into a Juvenile Court (MyFox8.com)
  Forsyth County, N.C., Clerk of Court Susan Frye wants to see the now closed Hill Middle School in Winston-Salem turned into a one-stop shop for the more than 1,300 offenders who come through juvenile court each year. Frye says the courthouse is out of space and can not house the services the young offenders are often sentenced too. Hill closed last year after consolidating with Philo Middle School.
• Pennsylvania Finds 20 Percent of Juveniles Re-offend Within Two Years (JJIE.org)
  A new report issued by the Pennsylvania Juvenile Court Judges’ Commission finds that among juveniles whose cases were closed in 2007, one-in-five recidivated within two years. The Pennsylvania Juvenile Justice Recidivism Report found juvenile recidivism rates to be as high as 45 percent in some counties, with the average length between case closure and recidivism to be 11.5 months.

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Adolescent Substance Abuse Treatment and Mental Health

• Should Inmates get Mental Health Medications in Jail? (KXLY.com)
  When a person goes to jail, should they lose their right to receive medication? A Spokane father said that's what happened to his teenage son, denying his mental health drugs behind bars.
• FAST TRAC Works to Improve Mental Health in Children (Cincinnati.com)
  Clermont FAST TRAC is participating in the National Children’s Mental Health Awareness Day initiative, “My Feelings Are a Work of Art,” throughout the month of May. The initiative raises awareness of children’s mental health needs; demonstrates how children’s mental health initiatives promote positive youth development, recovery and resilience; and shows how children with mental health needs thrive in the community.
• Wellness the focus of Mental Health Month (BatesvilleHeraldTribune.com)
  May is Mental Health Month, and Community Mental Health Center, Lawrenceburg, and Mental Health America are raising awareness of “Pathways to Wellness,” the theme of this year’s campaign, which calls attention to strategies that help all Americans achieve wellness and good mental and overall health.

David Backes writes the Friday news roundup for Reclaiming Futures and contributes articles about juvenile justice reform and adolescent substance abuse treatment to ReclaimingFutures.org. He has a bachelor’s degree in sociology from Santa Clara University. David works as an account executive for Prichard Communications.