Virginia report encourages alternatives to incarceration

Okay, so it’s only a report. But it has such distressing statistics and positive, doable reform suggestions that maybe, just maybe it won’t be tossed on the scrap heap with so many other hardly read studies.

We’re talking about Virginia’s Reinvest in Supportive Environments for Youth Campaign Coalition, or RISE for Youth report.

Want to change the world but need the funding? This contest could be your answer

The MacArthur Foundation has given away $5.5 billion since it was set up in 1978—and it still has a $6.5 billion endowment.

How one judge is making a difference in the lives of the youth and community he serves

In 1899, the first-ever juvenile court was established in Cook County, Illinois. Within 25 years, almost all states had a juvenile-court system setup. Their primary goal was to rehabilitate, not punish, young people who committed delinquent acts. Thus, from its very inception, the juvenile-justice system was intended for prevention and rehabilitation.

There are a few key differences between the juvenile-court and the adult criminal-court system. Of major significance, juveniles are not entitled to a trial by jury. 

Magistrate Charles Levesque, center

One MST supervisor’s call for treating our youth with empathy

When I tell new people what I do, I inevitably get “the face.” You know which one I’m talking about, the one that comes right before someone is going to disclose their disapproval of something. The face is most commonly followed by some version of “Well, they did a bad thing, and they need to be punished for their actions, right?”

Kansas governor signs overhaul of juvenile justice system into law

Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback has been hounded by naysayers over his fiscal policies.

Now, with a simple swoosh of his pen, Brownback is being praised for being both fiscally-responsible and improving outcomes for the youth involved in the state’s juvenile justice system. On April 11, he signed into law a bill that puts more emphasis on treatment rather than detention.

“Being smart on crime promotes public safety and the rehabilitation of youthful offenders so that they can become law-abiding citizens,” the governor said. “This bill does just that. The legislation aligns our juvenile-justice system with what the research shows works best to reduce victimization, keep families strong and guide youth towards a better path.”

Backers say the law will lower the number of kids locked up or placed out of the home. Low-level offenders will be afforded educational, vocational and therapy programs. And juveniles with drug and alcohol problems will get treatment. 

For their sake and ours, we need to stop locking up kids

A talk at the recent Blueprints for Healthy Youth Development conference in Denver made me think of a show I love, “The West Wing.” In one of my favorite episodes, after hearing of the death of a secret-service agent, a politician wonders out loud, “Crime. Boy, I don’t know.”

We all want to live in safe communities, free of crime. As a parent, this feels like an increasingly urgent need as I send my children more and more out into public without me. Levels of risk I was willing to accept in the past are now too scary to tolerate. Before, I have ignored the news of local crime, and now, there are times I have to force myself to stop thinking about it. 

So, I join the public in the wish for a silver bullet. We want safety. We want something to guarantee it. Crime. Boy, I don’t know. What are we going to do?

Evidence-based intervention keeps girl at home

Everyone was afraid that the young person would have to be taken into care. Chloe was not attending school. She was using drugs and staying out all night. Recently, she had ended up in the hospital after a night of drinking and drugs. Her caregiver was at her wit's end. But as luck would have it, she and Chloe were about to be referred to a brand-new program in their community—Multisystemic Therapy (MST).

When an MST program begins, it can take some time before anybody notices just how hard everyone is working to help young people and their families. For this young MST team and this family, the opportunity came sooner than most. 

Jury duty prompts questions about disproportionate minority contact within system

About 32 million Americans will get called for jury duty this year. Just recently, I was one of the lucky few. The case I was presented with involved a young Hispanic man who allegedly possessed cocaine and a dangerous weapon with the intent to distribute.

The right to an impartial jury is an unalienable right in the United States, written into law by our Founding Fathers. Choosing this jury, however, was especially interesting and relevant to me.

It's not enough to do no harm, we must also do some good

Leaders in evidence-based practices and their advocates are gathered this week in Denver at the biennial Blueprints for Healthy Youth Development Conference. As part of that, Multisystemic Therapy (MST) held a one-day pre-conference specifically for people looking to learn more about how and why MST is a successful treatment program. Chief Judge Steven Teske of Clayton County, Ga., kicked off the day, joined by other thought leaders such as President and CEO of The Children’s Village Jeremy C. Kohomban and Manager of Administrative Services of the CT Judicial Branch Court Support Services Division Julie Revaz. Our special keynote speaker was Nell Bernstein, author of Burning Down the House.

Bernstein, a passionate advocate for juvenile-justice reform, opened the world’s eyes to the often brutal and deadly world behind bars when she came out with her book in late 2014. The stories she told can be difficult to digest at times and beggar belief at others. It is, in short, a compelling argument in favor of completely shutting down juvenile prisons.

For those of you unable to join us at Blueprints, the brief video below sums up Bernstein’s viewpoint on juvenile incarceration.

Using MST to right the ship, Julie Revaz tells the story

What can help reduce the overall number of intakes to the juvenile justice system, support the closing of a detention center, reduce the number of young people in residential settings and help a state improve the overall quality of life for adolescents and their families? 

Julie Revaz, MSW, a manager in Connecticut’s Judicial Branch's Court Support Services Division (JC CSSD), is a key champion of evidence-based practices, and provides the answer to that question and so much more.