Highlight of the Month: Focus on Youth Members
- Interview with CJJ National Youth Chair and Kentucky Youth SAG Member Ben Deaton
Read More
CJJ Leadership News
- Join the 2010 CJJ Circle of Leaders
- Nominations to the CJJ Executive Board, Last Call - Due March 30
- Minnesota Leadership News
Read More
CJJ Government Relations Alert
- National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges Endorses Phase Out of Valid Court Order Exception
- ACTION ALERT - Call on Senate Leaders to Reauthorize the JJDPA
- ACTION ALERT - Help Preserve and Increase Federal Appropriations for Juvenile Justice Reform
- House Subcommittee Holds Hearing on Girls in the Juvenile Justice System
Read More
CJJ Conference News
- CJJ Annual Spring Conference – Please Join Us!
Read More
National Juvenile Justice Network (NJJN) News
- Washington Bill to Limit Restraint of Pregnant Women and Girls Awaits Governor's Signature
- Wyoming Legislature Passes Laws to Establish Risk Assessments and Standards for Detention
Read More
Resources and Information of Note
Funding Opportunities
- OJJDP Announces FY 2010 Funding Opportunities
- U.S. Department of Education Announces Drug Abuse Prevention Funding Opportunity
- Bureau of Justice Assistance Announces Justice and Mental Health Collaboration Program
Reports and Fact Sheets
- OJJDP Fact Sheet Addresses Girls' Delinquency
- Caged Birds Sing: ACLU of Maryland Releases Report by Girls at DJS's Waxter Center
- W. Haywood Burns Institute posts “Racial and Ethnic Disparities Juvenile Justice Data Map”
- OJJDP Fact Sheet Confirms Continued Decline in Number of Juveniles in Residential Placement
- The Sentencing Project releases two reports, and its Race and Justice Clearinghouse
Events
- 1st Global Youth Justice Institute
- DMC Learning Workshop
Models for Change Newsletters of Note
- Models for Change Newsletter
- Models for Change’s JIDAN Journal
Leadership
- New NCCD President
Read More
In the News
- Christian Science Monitor: Mentoring Juveniles Before They Become Adult Criminals
- Changing the Way We Think about Teens: Q & A with Laurence Steinberg
- Good Morning America: How Young Is Too Young to Face Life in Prison?
- The Adam Walsh Act and Juvenile Sex Offender Registration
- Scandals Highlight the Need for Juvenile Justice Reform in Illinois
- Chicago Public Radio: Inside and Out Series
Read More
Highlight of the Month: Focus on Youth Members
Interview with CJJ National Youth Chair and Kentucky Youth SAG Member Ben Deaton
Q. What kind of experience has it been serving as a youth State Advisory Group (SAG) member?
A. Being a youth member of the Kentucky Juvenile Justice Advisory Board (JJAB), the Kentucky SAG, has been such a rewarding and unique part of my life. The state Juvenile Justice Specialist has done a phenomenal job engaging youth on the JJAB.
I got involved because of work I was doing in high school with a teen court program. My senior year of high school I became chair of the state teen court and was invited to be part of the Subcommittee for Kentucky Youth (SKY). We have a process for youth to be nominated to SKY, which serves as a starting point for youth members who can then be appointed to serve on the JJAB.
Q. What kinds of young people participate in SAGs, and what are their unique contributions?
A. In Kentucky, most of our youth members have an interest in law and justice, or a career in youth services. Some are high school students who just want to serve and make a difference. Others may have direct experience with the juvenile justice system, currently or in their past.
Youth members have an enormous amount to offer their SAGs. In addition to fulfilling a requirement under the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act (JJDPA), Youth SAG members’ involvement offers unique perspectives on the potential effectiveness of interventions. Having a diversity in ages is important too, since the insights of 14-year olds will differ considerably from those of 24-year olds.
Adult SAG members are often seasoned professionals. Youth members can bring energy, current ideas and fresh points of views that stir the pot. They also come from diverse backgrounds and can bring skills that may otherwise be missing, such as in outreach, communications and technology.
Q. What is your role as CJJ’s National Youth Chair?
A. I was elected last May as National Youth Chair. Since then, CJJ’s National Youth Committee and I have worked very hard to ensure youth representation occurs across the board in all SAGs. We organized a youth summit at the CJJ office and laid out a set of challenges to tackle. We have completed a new CJJ Youth Manual for State Advisory Groups that will be published in the coming weeks and will serve as a toolkit for youth members with resources for how to be comfortable and effective SAG members. The other piece the Youth Committee is working on is a training curriculum for both youth and adult SAG members. It focuses on how to identify, recruit, and retain youth members and best practices for engaging youth members and encouraging their development and leadership.
The National Youth Committee will have resources available at the CJJ Spring Conference. We invite anyone interested in youth involvement in SAGs to learn how to best utilize the skills, insights, and energy of youth for their SAG. There is so much to be gained.
CJJ Leadership News
Join the 2010 CJJ Circle of Leaders
From the Desk of Rev. Dr. Jim Kirk (MD), CJJ Resource Development Committee Chair and Northeast Region Chair
CJJ has entered a new era. Last year, we celebrated our founder, Ms. A.L. Carlisle of Maine – who remains a child advocate today – and the 25th Anniversary of CJJ’s founding as a national association of JJDPA State Advisory Groups and allies. In 2010, we renew our commitment as CJJ members, nationwide, to continue and expand in scope and impact critical efforts to improve juvenile justice and delinquency prevention practices and policies.
The CJJ Circle of Leaders has raised more than $50,000 for CJJ over the past seven years! Gifts to the Circle ensure CJJ’s steady and strong voice to address the unmet and urgent needs of vulnerable and troubled children, youth and families—through its state-based members and allies across the United States and its territories.
CJJ invites you to provide a fully tax deductible contribution to the Circle of Leaders Fund during our spring membership campaign. [1] Please click here for more information. Each year, this unrestricted fund enables CJJ flexible and useful support for leadership, policy development and charitable activities – for instance, it supports our work to prepare and engage expert witnesses to come before Congress, as we did for the [2] Healthy Families and Communities Subcommittee hearing about the challenges girls are facing in the juvenile justice system.
Please feel free to contact me ([3] kirkjgk@comcast.net) or our executive director, Nancy Gannon Hornberger ([4] nancy@juvjustice.org and 202-467-08674, ext. 111) with any questions. Many thanks for your continued support.
Nominations to the CJJ Executive Board, Last Call - Due March 30:
Elections will be held April 10 and 11.
Please consider placing yourself or another member of CJJ into nomination for the open Executive Board posts to be voted by the Council of SAGs and the regions on April 10 and 11, as part of the upcoming [5] CJJ Spring conference. Please go to CJJ’s Web site for a complete list of the open positions, responsibilities related to each and eligibility criteria: [6] www.juvjustice.org/announcement_149.html.
Minnesota Juvenile Justice Advisory Committee News
The Minnesota Juvenile Justice Advisory Committee (JJAC) is sponsoring a series of Disproportionate Minority Contact (DMC) trainings for law enforcement personnel in collaboration with Metropolitan State University's School of Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice. The project, titled The Police Input Project on DMC, is intended to provide training and get feedback from law enforcement officers regarding the causes of and strategies to address DMC in Minnesota. Upon completion of the project, Metro State staff will prepare an analysis of the input from police officers that may be used by JJAC, police chiefs and sheriffs, and their professional organizations for policy making, identification of future training, and DMC issues that require further research. The training sessions and focus groups will be offered at various metro and outstate locations.
This is one in a series of forums and trainings that JJAC has established over the past year on matters of significant importance to juvenile justice, such as an investigation into the impact of the Adam Walsh Act on juvenile records. The Police Input Project on DMC recognizes the distinct and varied challenges of providing law enforcement services in Minnesota communities whether rural, suburban, or urban. JJAC’s support of this project is one small but important step toward finding the very best in juvenile justice practices to support public safety for communities all across Minnesota. For more information about the Police Input Project on DMC, contact Paul Schnell at 651-755-1520 or [7] paul.schnell@metrostate.edu.
CJJ Government Relations Alert
National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges Endorses Phase Out of Valid Court Order Exception
At its March 14 meeting, the Board of Trustees of the [8] National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges (NCJFCJ) voted to support the phase out of the Valid Court Order (VCO) exception and to fully support the language in the Senate reauthorization bill to limit/eliminate detention of status youth and other non-delinquent youth.
Both Nancy Gannon Hornberger and Tara Andrews were invited in January by the NCJFCJ board to discuss this issue and encouraged them to support the phase out. CJJ applauds this critical support for change, which is consistent with positions held by both CJJ and the [9] Act-4-JJ Campaign and provides critical safeguards for non-delinquent youth.
For further information, [10] click here.
ACTION ALERT – Call on Senate Leaders to Reauthorize the JJDPA
The [11] Coalition for Juvenile Justice (CJJ), in partnership with the [12] Act 4 Juvenile Justice Campaign (Act4JJ), is asking all CJJ members and allies to call on Senate leaders to pass S. 678, the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Reauthorization Act of 2009.
[13] Click here to learn more and take action.
ACTION ALERT - Help Preserve and Increase Federal Appropriations for Juvenile Justice Reform
The time is now for CJJ members and allies to send a strong message to Congress – one that affirms the cost-effectiveness of federal juvenile justice programs, and speaks to the positive and sustainable benefits these programs produce for youth, families, and communities.
[14] Click here to learn more and take action.
House Subcommittee Holds Hearing on Girls in the Juvenile Justice System
On March 11, the Subcommittee on Healthy Families and Communities of the House Education & Labor Committee held a hearing titled “Meeting the Challenges Faced by Girls in the Juvenile Justice System”. The Subcommittee received testimony from a number of witnesses including the Honorable Brian Huff, Presiding Judge of the Jefferson County Family Court in Birmingham, Alabama, whose presence at the hearing was proudly supported by CJJ.
[15] Click here to learn more.
CJJ Conference News
CJJ Annual Spring Conference – Please Join Us!
Please join us for the Coalition for Juvenile Justice (CJJ) [16] Annual National Conference & Council of SAGs’ Meeting, April 10-13, Washington, D.C.
[17] The conference agenda offers innovative workshops, exciting keynote speakers, prominent federal representatives and member business meetings. A highlight of the CJJ conferences annually, this year’s awards luncheon will be held on Monday, April 12. Please join CJJ members and allies in honoring recipients of the three national CJJ awards:
- 2010 A. L. Carlisle Child Advocacy Award recipient: Robert Schwartz, Pennsylvania
- 2010 Spirit of Youth Award recipient: Brandon McMillian, Washington, D.C.
- 2010 Tony Gobar Outstanding Juvenile Justice Specialist Award recipient: Christian Kervick, Delaware
[18] Click here to register online. For assistance with registrations, contact Lauren Edwards at [19] lauren@juvjustice.org or 202-467-0864, ext. 122.
We hope to see you in Washington, D.C. this April!
National Juvenile Justice Network (NJJN) News
Washington Bill to Limit Restraint of Pregnant Women and Girls Awaits Governor's Signature
On March 11, HB 2747, which limits the use of restraints on pregnant women and girls in both the criminal and juvenile justice systems, was delivered to the governor for signature. The bill bans all use of restraints on women and girls who are in labor and delivery, and limits restrains of pregnant women and girls who are recovering post-delivery, and who are in their third trimester while they are being transported to medical care or court proceedings. [20] Click here to read the legislation.
Wyoming Legislature Passes Laws to Establish Risk Assessments and Standards for Detention
On March 4, two positive bills were signed into law in Wyoming, thanks in part to the advocacy efforts of NJJN member [21] Wyoming Children’s Action Alliance. [22] HB 0012 requires sheriffs to develop and utilize risk assessments for detention and requires the Department of Family Services to collect, analyze and report to the legislature on the risk assessments' application. [23] SF 0009 requires sheriffs to develop and implement standards for juvenile detention facilities based on nationally recognized criteria, and report on progress to the legislature. Both laws will go into effect on July 1, 2010. The Casper-Star Tribune reported on the hope that the new laws will lower unnecessary incarceration of youth and concerns about the effectiveness of the laws without additional resources dedicated to alternative services (“New Juvenile Assessments Create Debate,” Joshua Wolfson, March 8). [24] Click here to read the Casper-Star Tribune article.
Resources and Information of Note
Funding Opportunities
OJJDP Announces FY 2010 Funding Opportunities
The Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) has announced FY 2010 funding opportunities for: AMBER Alert Training and Technical Assistance; Family Drug Court Programs; ICAC Program - Law Enforcement Strategies for Protecting Children from Commercial Sexual Exploitation; Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force: Minnesota; Multi-State Mentoring Initiative; National Mentoring Programs; and Research on Technology-Facilitated Crimes Against Children. [25] Click here for more information.
U.S. Department of Education Announces Drug Abuse Prevention Funding Opportunity
The U.S. Department of Education seeks applicants for its FY 2010 solicitation for Models of Exemplary, Effective, and Promising Alcohol or Other Drug Abuse Prevention Programs on College Campuses. [26] Click here for more information.
Bureau of Justice Assistance Announces Justice and Mental Health Collaboration Program
The Office of Justice Programs' Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) seeks applicants for its fiscal year (FY) 2010 [27] Justice and Mental Health Collaboration Program. BJA will only accept applications that demonstrate that the proposed project will be administered jointly by a unit of government with responsibility for criminal or juvenile justice activities and a mental health agency. [28] Click here for more information.
Reports and Fact Sheets
OJJDP Fact Sheet Addresses Girls' Delinquency
This OJJDP Fact Sheet assesses trends of girls’ delinquency and whether girls were becoming more violent or if other factors contributed to their higher arrest rates. [29] Click here to read the fact sheet. [30] Click here to be directed to the OJJDP Girls' Delinquency Web page.
Caged Birds Sing: ACLU of Maryland Releases Report by Girls at DJS's Waxter Center
A report by girls from the Thomas J.S. Waxter Children’s Center in Laurel, MD, detailing problems they have had at Waxter and offering their own solutions to state leaders. [31] Click here to read the report. [32] Click here to read a Washington Post article about the report.
W. Haywood Burns Institute Posts “Racial and Ethnic Disparities Juvenile Justice Data Map”
The map offers access to One-Day Count Incarceration Data, Annual Juvenile Justice System Data by Decision-Making Point, and other information regarding state efforts around juvenile justice and DMC. [33] Click here to access the map.
OJJDP Fact Sheet Confirms Continued Decline in Number of Juveniles in Residential Placement
OJJDP published "Juveniles in Residential Placement, 1997–2008." Data cited in this fact sheet are derived from the Census of Juveniles in Residential Placement and the Juvenile Residential Facility Census, both of which include one-day counts of the juvenile placement population. [34] Click here to read the fact sheet.
NCLR Fact Sheet Shows Young Latinos Overrepresented in Juvenile Justice System and Adult Prison Facilities
Among the overall youth population of the United States, Latinos make up 19 percent of all 10- to 17-year-olds, yet they represent 25 percent of youth who are incarcerated. This [35] National Council of La Raza (NCLR) fact sheet examines the racial and ethnic backgrounds of young people in the juvenile justice system. [36] Click here to read the fact sheet.
The Sentencing Project releases two reports and its Race and Justice Clearinghouse
As states grapple with the fiscal crisis and confront costly and overburdened criminal justice systems, [37] The Sentencing Project released two new reports that offer roadmaps to successful prison downsizing that maintain public safety. The reports document a growing reform of sentencing policies and means to scale back the use of imprisonment in order to control spending. [38] Click here to read "Downscaling Prisons: Lessons from Four States," and [39] click here to read "The State of Sentencing 2009: Developments in Policy and Practice."
The Sentencing Project also introduced the [40] Race and Justice Clearinghouse, a database of annotated citations for more than 450 research articles, studies, reports, and books that explore the intersection of race and ethnicity within the criminal justice and juvenile justice systems.
Events
First Global Youth Justice Institute
This institute is designed for adult staff who currently or previously worked full or part-time in a local youth justice program. It will be held at Cape Cod, MA, June 15-17. For registration details, please [41] click here.
DMC Learning Workshop
The Illinois Juvenile Justice Commission and Illinois Department of Human Services present a workshop on DMC, June 17-18, Doubletree Hotel, Oak Brook, Illinois. For more information, please contact Miguel Millett, [42] mmillett@youthnetworkcouncil.org or 312-949-5632.
Models for Change Newsletters of Note
Models for Change Newsletter
The Models for Change: Systems Reform in Juvenile Justice initiative supported by the MacArthur Foundation distributes a monthly newsletter including feature stories about breaking issues in juvenile justice reform, news on promising practices in Models for Change states, and links to new publications. This month's issue is available online [43] here. Anyone can register and subscribe - please [44] click here.
JIDAN Journal
The Models for Change Juvenile Indigent Defense Action Network also has a monthly newsletter on indigent defense work going on in its eight sites. Subscribe by [45] clicking here. The [46] JIDAN website contains links to past issues of the JIDAN Journal.
Leadership
New NCCD President
The Board of Directors of the [47] National Council on Crime and Delinquency (NCCD) announced the selection of Alex Busansky as the organization’s new President, effective May 1. Mr. Busansky brings with him more than two decades of direct experience with the criminal and juvenile justice systems, working in law enforcement, government, and the nonprofit sector. We bid fond farewell and a debt of gratitude to Barry Krisberg, as he retires from his long service as NCCD President.
In the News
Christian Science Monitor: Mentoring Juveniles Before They Become Adult Criminals
[48] Mentoring Today, former NJJN staff member Penelope Spain’s organization, is featured in an article about youth mentoring. [49] Click here to read more.
Changing the Way We Think about Teens: Q & A with Laurence Steinberg
APA Monitor: Laurence Steinberg’s internationally recognized research is changing the way we think about teenagers – a question and answer session with the leading national researcher on how adolescent development affects juvenile justice. [50] Click here to read more.
Good Morning America: How Young Is Too Young to Face Life in Prison?
A judge will soon decide whether Jordan Brown should be tried as an adult for the murder of his soon-to-be stepmother, and face a possible life sentence. [51] Click here to read more.
The Adam Walsh Act and Juvenile Sex Offender Registration
Champion Magazine: Registering Harm: The Adam Walsh Act and Juvenile Sex Offender Registration. [52] Justice Policy Institute’s Tracy Velazquez and Nastassia Walsh write about the potential harm done to youth who have been convicted of sex offenses under The Adam Walsh Act and Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (SORNA). [53] Click here to read more.
Scandals Highlight the Need for Juvenile Justice Reform in Illinois
Illinois Issues opines on the need for juvenile justice reform in Illinois. The column includes the Illinois SAG Chair, The Honorable George Timberlake, and several leaders of the Illinois Models for Change effort. [54] Click here to read more.
Chicago Public Radio: Inside and Out Series
Chicago Public Radio has launched a six-month investigative project following the stories of young people—to “find out how they get caught up in the system and what happens to them when they get out. The series will include personal stories, investigative reports, interviews, analysis, photo essays, and community events. We invite you to participate in an ongoing conversation about juvenile justice.” Complete content is available on the [55] Inside and Out Web site.
[1]: http://www.juvjustice.org/getinvolved_support.html
[2]: http://edlabor.house.gov/hearings/healthy-families/
[3]: mailto:kirkjgk@comcast.net
[4]: mailto:nancy@juvjustice.org
[5]: http://www.juvjustice.org/conference_8.html
[6]: http://www.juvjustice.org/announcement_149.html
[7]: mailto:paul.schnell@metrostate.edu
[8]: http://www.ncjfcj.org
[9]: http://www.act4jj.org
[10]: http://www.ncjfcj.org/content/view/1306/347/
[11]: http://www.juvjustice.org
[12]: http://www.act4jj.org
[13]: http://www.juvjustice.org/gr_update19.html
[14]: http://www.juvjustice.org/gr_update20.html
[15]: http://www.juvjustice.org/gr_update21.html
[16]: http://www.juvjustice.org/conference_8.html
[17]: http://juvjustice.org/media/resources/public/resource_337.pdf
[18]: https://guest.cvent.com/EVENTS/Register/IdentityConfirmation.aspx?e=45849aa4-fdf5-485e-95c7-3b95a63aecfa
[19]: mailto:lauren@juvjustice.org
[20]: http://njjn.org/resource_1497.html
[21]: http://www.wykids.org/
[22]: http://legisweb.state.wy.us/2010/introduced/hb0012.pdf
[23]: http://legisweb.state.wy.us/2010/introduced/sf0009.pdf
[24]: http://njjn.org/resource_1496.html
[25]: http://ojjdp.ncjrs.gov/funding/FundingList.asp
[26]: http://www2.ed.gov/programs/dvpcollege/index.html
[27]: http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/BJA/grant/10JMHCPsol.pdf
[28]: http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/BJA/grant/JMHCprogram.html
[29]: http://ojjdp.ncjrs.gov/publications/PubAbstract.asp?pubi=250433
[30]: http://ojjdp.ncjrs.gov/programs/girlsdelinquency.html
[31]: http://www.aclu-md.org/aPress/Press2010/Caged_Birds_Sing.pdf
[32]: http://voices.washingtonpost.com/crime-scene/juvenile-justice/ahead-of-talks-about-md-girls.html
[33]: http://www.burnsinstitute.org/state_map.php
[34]: http://www.ncjrs.gov/pdffiles1/ojjdp/229379.pdf
[35]: http://www.nclr.org/
[36]: http://www.nclr.org/content/publications/detail/62194/
[37]: http://www.sentencingproject.org/template/index.cfm
[38]: http://sentencingproject.org/doc/publications/publications/inc_DownscalingPrisons2010.pdf
[39]: http://sentencingproject.org/doc/publications/s_ssr2009Update.pdf
[40]: http://org2.democracyinaction.org/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=QZSSl6KfnE%2B%2FyjFdgaEaRURb2a5bhfCe
[41]: http://www.globalyouthjustice.org/Training_and_Events.html
[42]: mailto:mmillett@youthnetworkcouncil.org
[43]: http://www.modelsforchange.net/newsletters/5
[44]: http://www.modelsforchange.net/createaccount.aspx
[45]: http://visitor.constantcontact.com/manage/optin/ea?v=001Olbj1iTXQSX6aPMjyLmKQA%3D%3D
[46]: http://www.modelsforchange.net/about/Action-networks/Juvenile-indigent-defense.html
[47]: http://www.nccd-crc.org
[48]: http://www.mentoringtoday.org/
[49]: http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Justice/2010/0316/Mentoring-juveniles-before-they-become-adult-criminals
[50]: http://apa.org/monitor/2010/03/adolescence.aspx
[51]: http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/young-child-face-life-sentence-jordan-brown-murder/story?id=10065643
[52]: http://www.justicepolicy.org
[53]: http://www.nacdl.org/public.nsf/01c1e7698280d20385256d0b00789923/49866029f7f8475c852576d6005aad6a?OpenDocument
[54]: http://illinoisissues.uis.edu/archives/2010/03/state.html
[55]: http://insideandout.chicagopublicradio.org/