Transcript Slide 1

Youth in the Adult
Criminal Justice System
18th National Symposium on Juvenile Services
October 16, 2012 9:00-11:00am
Panelists
2
Removing
Youth From
Adult Jails
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Elissa Rumsey, Compliance Monitor
Coordinator
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Thach Nguyen, Senior Manager
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Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency
Prevention
Multnomah County Juvenile Service Division
Liz Ryan, President and Chief Executive
Officer
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Campaign for Youth Justice
Youth in Adult System Highlights
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An estimated 250,000 children are prosecuted, sentenced, or incarcerated
as adults each year in the United States.
Most of the youth prosecuted in adult court are charged with non-violent
offenses.
If detained pre-trial, two-thirds of youth prosecuted as adults are held in
adult jails.
Youth sentenced as adults receive an adult criminal record, are often
denied employment and educational opportunities, and can be barred from
receiving student financial aid.
While in adult jails or prisons, most youth are denied educational and
rehabilitative services that are necessary for their stage in development.
Currently, 40 states permit or require that youth charged as adults be held
before they are tried in an adult jail. In some states, if they are convicted,
they may be required to serve their entire sentence in an adult jail.
Youth Housed in Adult Jails and Prisons
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Nearly 100,000 children are housed in adult jails and prisons each year.
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Youth in adult system are at the greatest risk of sexual victimization.
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Many youth who are held in adult jails have not even been convicted.
Research shows that many never will. As many as one-half of these youth
will be sent back to the juvenile justice system or will not be convicted.
Many children are often placed in isolation which can produce harmful
consequences, including death. Youth are frequently locked down 23 hours
a day.
Youth housed in adult jails are 36 times more likely to commit suicide than
are youth housed in juvenile detention facilities.
How do Youth Get to the Adult System?
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Youth in the Adult System cont.
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State Trends Highlights
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Turning the Tide
In the past 5 years, more than 30 pieces of
legislation in nearly half of the states have changed
their laws regarding youth in the adult system.
These trends are not short-term, but is a long-term
restructuring of the juvenile justice system.
Reform efforts have been in all regions of the
country and supported by bipartisan legislators and
governors.
State Trends
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TREND 1--States and local jurisdictions remove youth from adult jails and
prisons.
Colorado, Maine, Virginia, Minnesota, Idaho, Ohio, Oregon, Texas and
Pennsylvania.
TREND 2--States raise the age of juvenile court jurisdiction.
Connecticut, Illinois and Mississippi.
TREND 3--States change transfer laws to keep more youth in juvenile courts.
Arizona, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Nevada, Ohio, Utah, Virginia and
Washington.
TREND 4--States rethink sentencing laws for youth.
Colorado, Georgia, Texas and Washington.
Oregon
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2008 Multonomah
County Resolution.
2011 statewide law to
remove youth from adult
jails through county
option.
Ohio
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2012 Law passed to remove youth from adult jails pretrial
2011 Law passed to provide for youth to be sent back to juvenile
court from adult criminal court
Texas
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2011 Law passed to
remove youth from adult
jails through county
option.
Colorado
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Series of reforms:
2012 Remove youth from
adult jails pre-trial
2012 Provide judges more
discretion whether youth
should be in adult court
Virginia
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2012
SB 259, was passed
unanimously by the Virginia
House of Delegates and the
Virginia Senate.
The legislation creates a
presumption that youth who
are being tried as adults are
held in juvenile detention
centers pretrial.
Multnomah County High-Risk Youth:
Detention Policy & Practice Options
Thach Nguyen, Senior Manager
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Department of Community Justice, Multnomah County
Profile of Multnomah County
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Oregon’s Most Populous County: 735,000 residents
Size of Juvenile Population
(10 – 17 yoa): 68,194
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White: 66%
African American: 9%
Asian: 8%
Hispanic: 15%
Other: 2%
Juvenile Offenders as Percent of
County Juvenile Population: 3%
Initiatives Shaping Multnomah
County Detention Population:
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JDAI Model Site – began 1992
Ballot Measure 11 - passed 1994
County Resolution No. 08-166 – passed
2008
Two Distinct Populations
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Trends in Annual Admissions
2008 Resolution passed
Two Distinct Populations
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Comparison of Average Length of Stay
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Common Questions:
Are the youth charged with adult crimes
significantly harder to manage?
Two Distinct Populations
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Comparison of RAI Scores
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Common Questions:
How does the County manage youth
charged with adult crimes?
Detention Enhancements:
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Modified activities for long-term populations:
 Drug and alcohol education
 Latino support group
 African American support group
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Behavior management system
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Enhanced visiting program for good behavior
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Common Questions:
Has the County seen an increase in peer
fights/assaults since the resolution passed?
Incident Reports
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Since the 2008 resolution, there has been no observable increase in
the number of reported peer fights or assaults.
Since the 2008 resolution,
there has been no
observable increase in the
number of reported peer
fights or assaults.
Year
# Fights/Assaults
2008
53
2009
39
2010
49
2011
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Common Questions:
How often has the County elected to transfer a
youth to an adult facility due to a youth’s
behavioral issues?
Youth Releases
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Since the 2008 resolution, very few youth have been released to the Adult jail
for behavior reasons:
Only nine Ballot Measure
11 Youth have been
released to an adult jail
for behavioral issues.
Year
# Youth
2009
5
2010
3
2011
0
2012 (to–date)
0
Summary:
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The Multnomah County Juvenile Detention home is the
presumptive placement for a youth facing Measure 11 charges.
Our staff are trained and committed to providing a safe, secure,
and enriching environment for these youth.
With modest enhancements to structured activities, juvenile
detention is a safe and effective placement for these youth.
Since the resolution, Multnomah County has experienced no
discernible disruptions to our operations and ability to meet our
public safety goals.
Acknowledgements
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Craig Bachman, Detention Manager
Dr. Kimberly Bernard, Communications Manager
Christina McMahan, JSD Assistant Director
Liang Wu, Data Analyst
For More
Information:
Please visit our website at:
http://web.multco.us/dcj-juvenile
National Institute of Corrections Report:
“You’re An Adult Now”
Elissa Rumsey, Compliance Monitor Coordinator
Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency
Prevention
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NIC “You’re An Adult Now” Report
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Youth in Adult
Criminal
Justice Systems
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Released
January 2012
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The report gathered statistics, reviewed
the issues, impacts, and options that
detention and correctional leaders face
when they manage youth in the adult
system.
Raise awareness of these issues.
There needs to be a re-evaluation of
the best way to curb delinquency and
increase positive youth development.
Report Contributors
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A list of some
of the
contributors to
the NIC
Report
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Multnomah County Community
Corrections – Portland, Oregon
Bureau of Justice Statistics –
Washington, DC
National Council on Crime and
Delinquency – Oakland, California
Youth in Jail
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Most states allow pre-trial youth charged as adult
be house in adult facilities
39 states allow youth to be jailed
Of the 39, only 20 states have protection for the
youth
Six of the 39 states have age restrictions
Dangers Youth Face in Jail
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75% of all deaths of youth in adult jails were due
to suicide (BJS Survey)
Little access to rehabilitation and family support
Lack of services for youth development:
 40%
of jails provided no educational services
 7% of jails provided vocational training
Dangers Youth Face in Jail
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Increase risks of self-harm and abuse when youth
are placed in adult pretrial environment
In 2005 and 2006, 21% and 13% respectively, of
the victims of sexual violence in jails were youth
under 18
Only 1% of all jail inmates are juveniles
Policy Recommendations
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Policymakers should discuss the appropriate place
for youth pretrial and consider the costs
Pretrial Release Options for Youth Defendants in
Adult Court
Stakeholders should consider case processing
agreements to reduce time for a case to go through
a system.
Federal Resources
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National Center for Youth in Custody
http://nc4yc.org/
PREA Resource Center
http://www.prearesourcecenter.org/
OJJDP Technical Assistance
http://www.ojjdp.gov/programs/tta.html
Snapshot of Policy Statements
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National Partnership for Juvenile Services resolution
on youth in adult facilities
Professional Associations with policy statements:
American Jail Association
American Correctional Association
Council of Juvenile Correctional Administrators
Coalition for Juvenile Justice
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National Youth Justice Awareness
Month – October Events
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Alabama – Oct. 27
Colorado – Oct. 20
Florida – Oct. 27
Illinois – Oct.21
Maryland – Oct. 18
Mississippi – Oct. 27
Missouri – Oct. 26
New Jersey – Oct. 20
Oregon – Oct. 27
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National Youth Justice Awareness
Month – October
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Watch and share the Alliance for Youth Justice PSA &
connect with your local AYJ affiliate:
http://www.campaignforyouthjustice.org/family-resourcecenter.html
Find a YJAM event in your hometown & take action:
http://www.campaignforyouthjustice.org/national-youthjustice-awareness-month.html
Help us spread the word about Youth Justice!
Facebook Campaign for Youth Justice or follow us on
Twitter @ JusticeForYouth