Federal Advisory Committee on Juvenile Justice (FACJJ) 2008 Annual Request for Information (ARI)
Presented by CSR, Incorporated
August 2008
ARI Areas of Inquiry
► Key current and emerging juvenile justice issues and how they affect a respondent’s State or territory
► Policies and practices relating to a youth’s right to effective assistance of counsel
► Problems identified in most recent 3-year plans ► Promising practices a State or territory is using ► Total juvenile justice budget and budgets for juvenile crime prevention (request by OJJDP Administrator) ► Recommendations for the President and Congress ► Recommendations for the OJJDP administrator ► Types of assistance OJJDP could offer
Methods and Response Rate
► Respondents from 47 of 55 States and territories (85%) entered at least some data
► Partially completed responses were included in the analysis (n = 23) ► All respondents answered questions 1 to 3
► Web-based ARI accepted data between January 28 and April 30, 2008
Key Current and Emerging Issues
► The top 5 issues reported by respondents were: 1. Disproportionate minority contact (DMC) (n = 40) 2. Mental health assessment and treatment (n = 38) 3. Juvenile reentry (n = 28) 4. Detention reform (n = 26) 5. Community-based programs (n = 25) ► DMC and Mental health were also the top 2 issues in 2007.
Top Five Juvenile Justice Issues
Community Programs 15.3% Other 3.7% DMC 24.5%
Detention Reform 16%
Reentry 17.2%
Mental Health 23.3%
Current and Emerging Juvenile Justice Issues
► Issues were grouped into five categories: – Justice System – Core Requirements – Service System – Research to Policy and – Emerging Social Trends
Current and Emerging Juvenile Justice Issues by Category
40% 35% 30% 25% 20% 15% 10% 5% 0%
Justice System Issues Core Requirement Issues Service System Issues Research to Policy Emerging Societal Trends
34.44%
21.05% 17.22% 13.63% 14.35%
Promising Practices Used To Address Most Common Problems
► DMC – Applying reliable and accurate data – School-based programs – Juvenile Detention Alternatives Initiative (JDAI) model – DMC taskforce – Schoolhouse adjustment program – Youth/law enforcement forums – Evidence-based programming for youth and evaluation ► Mental health assessment and treatment – Expedite processing of evaluations
Promising Practices Used To Address Most Common Problems (cont.)
► Juvenile Reentry – Providing emotional, social, educational, and economic assistance – Mentoring and advocacy services – Clinical intake assessments – Prerelease individual contacts – Post-release family therapy – Case management – Aftercare support program ► Detention Reform – Implementing Annie E. Casey Detention Reform guidelines
Juvenile’s Right to Effective Assistance of Counsel
► Respondents were asked about laws and policies pertaining to juvenile legal representation – Does a juvenile have the right to waive counsel? – If so, are there age restrictions on waiver? – What is the process for appointing counsel?
A Youth’s Right to Effective Assistance of Counsel
Juvenile Right to Waive Counsel Process for Appointing Counsel
Prior to Detention 15.2% Prior to Petition 9.1%
No 47.37%
Yes 52.63%
Prior to Hearing 75.8%
Recommendations to the President and Congress
► Increase or restore previous levels of funding
► Increase research on effective programs and best practices for the different areas ► Reconsider zero-tolerance and get-tough policies
► Provide more alternative programs for juveniles
► Revisit punitive juvenile legislation ► Increase focus on fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD) and drug-related crimes
Recommendations to the OJJDP Administrator
► Increase funding and support of research studies specific to juveniles ► Reconsider zero-tolerance and get-tough policies
► Increase funds for Native American juvenile justice ► Increase focus on truancy and the use of prescription drugs among the juvenile population ► Provide assistance with evaluation ► Help implement evidence-based models
Categories of Assistance OJJDP Could Offer States/Territories
► Dissemination of research findings (conferences, bulletins, toolkits, etc.) ► Conducting new research ► Developing evidence-based programs ► Developing assessment tools
► Providing training and technical assistance with evaluation ► Developing model policies and regulations
Primary Issues by Population Density
► Analysis was conducted to ascertain whether primary juvenile justice issues were affected by population density
► Results indicated that: – DMC was the primary issue in urban areas, and – Mental health treatment and assessment was the primary issue in rural areas
Primary Issue by Population Density
State Population Density Issues Ranked: Primary Mainly Urban Mainly Rural Total
Lack of Prevention Services Disproportionate Minority Contact Juvenile Justice Data Collection System Substance Abuse Gender-Specific Services Mental Health Detention Reform Coordination of Services Data Analysis Deinstitutionalization of Status Offenders Funding Concerns Community-Based Programs vs. Secure Treatment Juvenile’s Right to Effective Counsel Zero Tolerance/School Disciplinary Problems Waiver/Transfer The Adam Walsh Act Sight and Sound Separation TOTAL
0 10 0 0 0 0 2 1 2 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 1 19
2 3 1 1 1 6 1 0 0 2 0 3 0 1 0 1 1 23
2 13 1 1 1 6 3 1 2 2 1 3 1 1 1 1 2 42
Primary Juvenile Justice Issue and Tribal Youth Density
► The primary juvenile justice issue was compared among areas with low, medium, and high tribal youth population density. Results indicated that: – Where tribal youth population is highest, the primary concern is delinquency prevention – Where tribal youth density is medium, the primary concern is mental health treatment and assessment, and – Where tribal youth density is low, the primary concerns are DMC and detention reform
Primary Juvenile Justice Issue by Tribal Youth Population Density
Lack of Prevention Services Disproportionate Minority Contact
2 9 1 1 1 1 2 1 1 1 1 1 2 1 1 1 1 1 2
0 1 2 3 None 4 Low 5 Medium 6 7 High 8 9
Juvenile Justice Data Collection System Substance Abuse Gender-Specific Services Mental Health Detention Reform Coordination of Services Data Analysis Deinstitutionalization of Status Offenders Funding Concerns Community-Based Programs v. Secure Treatment Juvenile's Right to Effective Counsel Zero Tolerance/School Disciplinary Problems Waiver/Transfer The Adam Walsh Act Infrastructure and Evaluation Sight and Sound Separation
4 1 1
0
1
Discussion
► How was the online process? ► How was the timing of the survey? ► Were there particular challenges to responding to the ARI this year? ► Did the questions elicit the desired responses?
► How should the draft report be revised?
► How could the process be improved?