New Report Looks at the State of Health Care in the Juvenile Justice System

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Youth in the juvenile justice system are at high-risk for physical, mental and developmental health issues according to a new policy statement by the American Academy of Pediatrics’ Committee on Adolescence. Despite this, many youths don’t receive the level of health care they need, either in the system or when they get out. The report represents the first update in 10 years to the Health Care for Youth in the Juvenile Justice System. Nationwide 2.11 million* juveniles were arrested in 2008, according to the report. And while not all arrested youth are placed in some form of detention (either short- or long-term) the median stay in custody in 2006 was 65 days.

Through Her Eyes, Girls and Women in the Juvenile Justice System

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It was like a giant switchboard, the kind you see in 30s and 40s movies, a bevy of operators plugging in a crisscross of wires, taking calls, making connections, a cacophony of chatter. That image came to me recently as I walked into the lobby of the MassMutual Center in Springfield, Mass. The only difference was that the conversations filling the hall were about the same thing: girls and young women in the juvenile justice system. We were there — teachers, social workers, lawyers, mentors, youth workers, college students and professors — for the Through Her Eyes conference sponsored by the Center for Human Development, a regional social services agency. This annual gathering, now in its seventh year, came about when a number of professionals expressed concern over the increased number of at-risk young females in “the system,” and the need for “best practices” to help this growing population.

Georgia Governor to Establish Permanent Criminal Justice Reform Oversight Council

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Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal pledged to sign an executive order establishing a permanent Criminal Justice Reform Oversight Council to study the state’s criminal justice system. The move comes on the heels of a report by the Special Council on Criminal Justice Reform that makes recommendations to lawmakers about methods for reducing the high cost of incarceration for taxpayers. The report by the Special Council also recommends the new Oversight Council address juvenile justice reform. “Council members believe that a full examination of the state’s juvenile justice system should be undertaken to develop recommendations for reform,” the report says. Currently, lawmakers are debating a rewrite of the Georgia Juvenile Code, however it is unclear what role the new Oversight Council might play in the process.

One Couple Fights to Reunite Family Despite Immigration Status

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One family in Dalton, Ga. is fighting to be reunited after the mother and father were stripped of their parental rights. The juvenile court judge ruled that Ovidio and Domitina Mendez were unable to care adequately for their five children, all of whom have complicated medical needs, according to The Chattanooga Times Free Press. But advocates working on behalf of the Mendez family argue the parents’ inability to speak English and illegal immigration status were the deciding factors in the case. The five Mendez children, aged three through seven, are currently living with a foster family who is trying to adopt them.

Right on Crime and the Conservative Focus on Juvenile Justice

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For years, many people have considered juvenile justice reform a dyed-blue plank in the liberal platform. However, deep in the heart of the red state of Texas, one conservative organization has adopted the issue as a major policy concern heading into the 2012 election season. “The Texas Public Policy Foundation is a free-market, state-based think tank,” said Marc A. Levin, Director of the organization’s Center for Effective Justice. The Austin-based organization [texaspolicy.com], originally founded in 1989, implemented a criminal justice emphasis in 2005. In 2010, the organization began its Right On Crime campaign, which Levin considers “a national platform for reform.” Several prominent conservative politicians and analysts -- among them, Newt Gingrich, Jeb Bush and William J. Bennett -- have all signed onto the campaign’s statement of principles.

When Home for Thanksgiving is Nothing More Than a Dream for a Boy and his Mom

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I know a woman in Tennessee whose son was just sent to a youth detention center. He has had some problems with petty crime and drugs, and was sent to a treatment program for kids awhile back. He did not adapt very well to the program, and now he has been sent to this YDC for an indefinite period. He is 17 and the state can hold him until he is 21 if authorities decide he is not ready to be released. She is trying to figure out how she can go see him for Thanksgiving.

Razor wire fence borders the Metro Regional Youth Detention center in Atlanta, Ga. JJIE Staff, 2010. File photo.

Captain at YDC Suspended During Investigation Into Inmate’s Death

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A captain at the youth detention center in Augusta, Ga., has been suspended as part of an investigation into the death of a 19-year-old inmate Nov. 8, The Augusta Chronicle reported. Jade Holder died of blunt force trauma to the head after being beaten the previous day inside the YDC. Another inmate, 17-year-old Michael Jarod Everidge, was charged with Holder’s murder. Department of Juvenile Justice spokesperson Emily Gest told The Chronicle the captain was suspended with pay pending an investigation into possible misconduct.

High Turnover Rate at Georgia Department of Juvenile Justice is Typical of State Bureaucracries

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With new Georgia Department of Juvenile Justice (DJJ) Commissioner Gale Buckner settling into her post, attention has turned back to the tenure of her predecessor. Former Commissioner Amy Howell was appointed to the DJJ’s top job by Gov. Nathan Deal in January and moved to her new post at the Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities at Deal’s request on Nov. 7. At first glance it appears the DJJ lost a large number of employees in the last 10 months while Howell was commissioner. Between Jan.

Thoughts From a Lawmaker on Georgia’s Former DJJ Commissioner

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When I heard the news that Amy Howell was stepping down as commissioner of Georgia's Department of Juvenile Justice, my first reaction was sadness and dismay. Ms. Howell has been a great asset to the agency and resource to the General Assembly for many years. I have had the pleasure of working with Ms. Howell over many years in different roles. I first met her when she was a fellow with the Southern Juvenile Defender Center at Emory, researching policy initiatives to improve Georgia’s response to children who had started down the wrong path. I was delighted when she transitioned to the Department of Juvenile Justice, and became one of the primary representatives for the agency at the General Assembly.

Wrong ideas: Curfews and Incarceration

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Children are the future of any society. They are the product of human connection and are a true reflection of society’s investment in itself. Why, then, are some states in America embracing juvenile incarceration and curfews over humane and effective alternatives? Is America afraid of its youth population? Nationwide, juvenile crime rates have been dropping.