SEPTEMBER 2014
CJJ Announcements 
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The 40th Anniversary of the JJDPA

September 7 marked the 40th Anniversary of the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act (JJDPA). To commemorate the event, CJJ, in conjunction with other members of the Act4JJ Campaign, hosted an exhibit in the Senate Rotunda from September 8-12. The event featured the work of photographer Richard Ross. Ross spent nearly five years traveling the country and documenting the conditions of confinement young people face in juvenile detention facilities. His work was included in his acclaimed book Juvenile In Justice, and is also featured on his website http://www.juvenile-in-justice.com/. A series of blogs have also been published by CJJ and Act4JJ to commemorate the anniversary and Richard Ross penned an op-ed for the Hill entitled "We Still Have a Juvenile Incarceration Problem."

 


Photo Credit: Richard Ross

Webinar: Civil Citations in Juvenile Justice: An Alternative to Punitive Sanctions

Are you looking for a non-punitive approach to serving low-risk youth in the juvenile justice system? Are you interested in learning how to reduce costs and keep young people out of the juvenile justice system? Please join the State Training and Technical Assistance Center (STTAC) for a webinar on "Civil Citations in Juvenile Justice: An Alternative to Punitive Sanctions" on September 22 at 3:00pm ET. Register here!

 


This webinar will describe the Florida Department of Juvenile Justice civil citation initiative. This webinar will also explain the research behind Florida's civil citation initiative. Participants will learn how implementation barriers can be overcome so that a civil citation initiative increases public safety, improves youth outcomes, and reduces costs. Participants will walk away with a better understanding of how a civil citation model plan could be replicated in other jurisdictions. Presenters include:

 

Webinar: Ending Detention of Non-Delinquent Youth in Rural Communities

Are you a juvenile justice leader in a rural community? Are you interested in detention alternatives and how juvenile justice systems overcome challenges in rural communities? Please join the State Training and Technical Assistance Center (STTAC) for a webinar on "Ending Detention of Non-Delinquent Youth in Rural Communities" on September 24 at 3:00pm ET. Register here!  

 

This webinar will discuss the unique challenges that juvenile justice systems face in rural communities. It will also explain how some rural communities are working together to find creative ways to reduce the number of youth who are placed in secure confinement for status offenses. Participants will learn how technology, early intervention, and collaborative services can be used to overcome these unique challenges. Presenters include:


SAG Virtual Visits

CJJ now offers "Virtual SAG Visits" in effort to better serve our members. During virtual visits, CJJ staff can provide: updates on national policy and legislative developments; reports on the latest trends from the field; and training and technical assistance on strategic planning, strategy implementation, best practices in juvenile justice, and federal and state government relations. These visits also provide CJJ an opportunity to learn more about your successes and challenges; thus, enabling us to better meet your needs. If you are interested in having CJJ staff visit your SAG's meeting, please submit your requests to litt@juvjustice.org.

 

Congratulations to Ken Schatz

CJJ wishes to congratulate CJJ Government Relations Committee Chair Ken Schatz, who was recently appointed by Vermont's Governor to serve as Commissioner of the state's Department of Children Families. In this new role, he will be responsible for overseeing Vermont's child welfare and juvenile justice systems. Mr. Schatz has been a valued member of the CJJ family. His tireless commitment to CJJ has been highly valued both by CJJ's Executive Board and staff. We wish him luck and know that he will continue to be a valuable asset to the juvenile justice field. 

 

Models for Change: New Resources on Juvenile Defenders

The National Juvenile Defender Center just released "Juvenile Defense Attorneys and Family Engagement: Same Team, Different Roles," which provides an explanation of the roles family members and defenders play in a child's case; emphasizes the importance of both sides understanding the other's role; maps out the benefits of collaboration between defense attorneys and young clients' families; and outlines the opportunities for family and attorney collaboration throughout the duration of a child's delinquency case. 

 




NJDC also published "What Juvenile Defenders Should Know about the DSM-5." The brief intends to support juvenile defense advocacy by providing an overview of some of the most recent revisions in the latest version of the DSM (a classification manual for mental health professionals with itemized criteria for diagnosing disorders), as well as recommendations and implications for juvenile defense practice.

 

Models for Change: New Blog Series on Status Offenses

The Status Offense Reform Center at the Vera Institute of Justice has created a blog series entitled "Status Offense Reform from a Different Lens," which explores the ways in which the work of the four Models for Change Resource Centers intersects and overlaps. This series features the perspectives of experts from each of the resource centers, who discuss topics such as mental health issues, indigent defense, and dual status youth.

 




SOS Project: Using Restorative Practices in Response to Status Offense Behaviors

The Status Offense Reform Center also held a webinar on August 27 on "Using Restorative Practices in Response to Status Offense Behaviors." Presenters discussed the value of talking circles as a community-focused diversion option for youth, how to implement restorative practices in schools, and how to create sustainable relationships with the courts and law enforcement officials. You can access the PowerPoint presentation from the webinar here.

 

SOS Project: National Child Welfare, Juvenile, and Family Law Conference Presentation

Lisa Pilnik, CJJ's Deputy Executive Director spoke at the 37th National Child Welfare, Juvenile, and Family Law Conference hosted by the National Association of Counsel for Children in Denver, CO on August 20.  She and co-presenter Amy Halbrook, Director of the Northern Kentucky University Chase Children's Law Center Clinic, gave a workshop titled "Truants, Runaways and Other Status Offenders: Case and System Advocacy," which discussed courtroom strategies for representing youth who commit status offenses, advocacy strategies for improving court and system responses to these youth, as well as CJJ's many resources on status offenses.  CJJ staff will also be speaking on status offenses at state-wide conferences in Washington and Nebraska in October.

 

NJJN News: Kentucky Bill Overhauls Youth Justice System With Focus On Keeping Youth Out Of Lockup

This spring, Kentucky passed a bill that makes sweeping reforms to the state's youth justice system. S.B. 200 contains a panoply of changes, the majority of which focus on reducing the use of confinement for young people. Among the reforms made by S.B. 200 is the creation of Family Accountability, Intervention, and Response (FAIR) teams, whose goal is to work with youth and family to uncover and address the roots of behavioral issues, particularly when it comes to status offenses. Other changes seek to improve the collection of data about system-involved youth, require the use of evidence-based assessment tools, and set concrete limits to the amount of time young people can be held in lockup. Learn more about the passage of Kentucky's S.B. 200 in the full interview with Tara Grieshop-Goodwin of Kentucky Youth Advocates.

 

NJJN Member Spotlight: Children's Policy And Law Initiative Of Indiana Pushes Reform On School Discipline, Status Offenses

NJJN member the Children's Policy and Law Initiative of Indiana (CPLI) has been hard at work this year. CPLI Board Chair JauNae Hanger recently spoke about the organization's work to reform Indiana's direct file and school discipline statutes, as well as policy changes that would reform how the state approaches youth who commit status offenses. Read the full interview with JauNae Hanger.

 

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