Scared Straight Continues, Despite Misgivings; News Roundup

Juvenile Justice Reform

• Scared Straight Continues, Despite Misgivings (JJIE.org)
  This week, the fourth season of the A&E TV show “Beyond Scared Straight” follows two young sisters to the adult jail in Douglas County, Ga., where one inmate tells one of the sisters how she could beat her up “and make you not so pretty no more.” Plenty of critics pan the show, saying it publicizes a discredited, harmful practice. Neither Georgia nor the feds will fund such jail tour programs, citing both evidence that it doesn’t work and the liabilities jails take on when they invite minors to meet with inmates.
• Announcing the New AATOD Blog (AATOD.org)
  "This represents a slightly more informal way of communicating what AATOD is doing in representing the collective interests of our field. AATOD released its most current Five Year Plan in 2012. Three of the most prominent issues affecting the existing system and the future of or field are Health Care Reform; work with the Criminal Justice System; and prescription opioid use and addiction."
• OP-ED: Troubled Young People Deserve Compassion, Not Punishment (JJIE.org)
  More than 2,500 Californians are serving life sentences in prison for crimes they committed when they were younger than 18. At San Quentin, it is all too common to come across young men serving 35 or 40 years-to-life for crimes they committed before they were old enough to drive — meaning they would be in their 50s before their first parole hearings.
• National Guard Program Gives Forest Grove, Hillsboro High Dropouts a Second Shot at Education (OregonLive.com)
  Oregon Youth Challenges Program is an alternative school for high school dropouts aged 16 to 18. The program includes a five and a half month residency in Bend, followed by a year of mandatory check-ins by a student mentor and program leaders. The program is voluntary and free for students and their families.

Jobs, Grants, Events and Webinars

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Adolescent Substance Abuse Treatment and Mental Health

• A Note On “Enabling” vs. Positive Reinforcement (Intervene.Drugfree.org)
  By way of quick review, “enabling” actually means doing positive things that will end up supporting continued negative behavior, such as providing your child with money so they won’t “go hungry” during the day, knowing they use it to buy pot. Another example is going to talk to your child’s teacher to make sure she doesn’t get a bad grade, even though her bad test score was due to drinking.
• [VIDEO] Marijuana Use in Adolescence Ups Risk of Developing Mental Disorders (ParentHerald.com)
  People suffering from schizophrenia experience difficulty differentiating real from the unreal, thinking clearly and dealing with social situations normally. They also lack normal emotional responses. According to the records, about 2.4 million Americans are affected by schizophrenia. The condition usually starts appearing during adolescence.
• Mentally Ill Kids Sent to Jail When They Need Help (Care2.com)
  Budgets cuts to mental health services and the closing of clinics have meant that more of the mentally ill have become homeless, have had to turn to emergency rooms for care, have ended up incarcerated and have found themselves dealing with police rather than care workers. Children with serious mental health issues, including bipolar disorder and schizophrenia, have also suffered.

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.