FBI Probing Possible Civil Rights Violation of Teen

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The FBI is probing potential civil rights violations related to a video that shows Calhoun County, Ala., Sheriff Larry Amerson using manual force against a juvenile male. The FBI has launched a preliminary investigation to “gather facts” about whether Amerson’s actions, which were recorded by a surveillance camera, were a violation of the boy’s civil rights, an FBI spokesman told The Star Friday. The spokesman, Paul Daymond, said the FBI cannot disclose when the investigation began or what sparked it. “In general, what triggers a civil rights investigation, that could be a newspaper article, that could be a victim coming forward, it could be a number of things,” Daymond said. The video was first published by The Anniston Star after a source requesting anonymity gave it to the newspaper Wednesday.

Search for New Administrator at OJJDP

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The Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention may be close to hiring a new administrator. California Superior Court Judge Kurt Kumli has been named as a candidate, according to a report in Youth Today. Kumli worked for 17 years in the Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office, and spent 15 of those years focused on juvenile and child welfare issues. Governor Schwarzenegger appointed him to the bench in 2006. Kumli may not be well connected to the Obama administration, but Youth Today points out that he seems qualified considering his background in juvenile justice reform in California.

Child Abuse Prevention Month Begins with SafePath Kick-Off Event

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Cobb County, Ga.’s SafePath Children’s Advocacy Center wasted no time getting started on April’s Child Abuse Prevention Month activities, holding a kick-off event Friday morning.  Attended by a large crowd of parents, police officials, and politicians braving the cold spring weather, the event shone a light on the importance of preventing child abuse. The Walker School’s Lower School Chorus warmed up the crowd with a song before turning it over to a succession of speakers, including WSB-TV anchor Linda Stouffer and state Rep. Stacey Evans (D-Smyrna). SafePath Board President Ed Lee spoke first, reminding the audience that child abuse prevention is an “active process.”

It’s important to keep our eyes open and watch for signs of abuse, he said, a message that Rep. Evans reiterated. “We need to talk to our friends and colleagues about getting involved,” Rep. Evans said. Child abuse is often a self-perpetuating cycle, Evans said.  Thirty percent of abused children will grow up to abuse their own children, so it is even more important to stop the violence now.

Benjamin Chambers: What Works with Serious Juvenile Offenders – Pathways to Desistance Study

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Does the juvenile justice system really work? Reading comments from readers on news stories about youth in trouble, you'd think the juvenile justice sysem was a system designed to mollycoddle dangerous kids, turning them into super-predators. Nothing could be further from the truth. Among other reasons, we know this because of "Pathways to Desistance," a research study led by Edward P. Mulvey, Director of the Law and Psychiatry Program at Western Psychiatric Institute and Clinic at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. (Dr. Mulvey and Carol Schubert contributed a post to us on their findings in April 2010.)

The "Pathways to Desistance" research study is a unique study of what works in the juvenile justice system.

Probation Domination

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Probation was the most serious verdict in one-third of teen crime in the U.S. In 2007, 1.7 million delinquency cases were handled by courts with juvenile jurisdiction. This has increased 34% over the past three decades. Nearly 60% of the cases were ordered by the court while the remainder agreed to some form of voluntary probation. This is according to a report by the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention.

‘FAST’ Track To Juvenile Justice

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Who knew that an innovative initiative that is showing dramatic success in decreasing the number of children incarcerated in Clayton County was actually sparked by a “failure” in the system. So goes the story of how Juvenile Court Judge Steven Teske was inspired to create the Finding Alternatives for Safety and Treatment (FAST) panel, a program that statistics show is having a major impact in the county. 

Teske says the case of a young man now serving a life sentence for murder actually prompted the idea for to him to start the program. “The system had failed him on so many levels; by the time he’d gotten to the seventh grade he was reading on a first grade level and no one had ever intervened,” recalls Teske, of the teen who, after years of run-ins with the law, ultimately gunned down a security guard during a botched robbery. Several studies have linked lack of education to criminal behavior. Teske firmly believes that if school leaders and social service agencies had intervened earlier, he would have evaded the very gang life that ended up taking away his life and that of an innocent man.

Attorney General Holder Asked to Ban Juveniles from Adult Prisons

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The National Prison Rape Elimination Commission (NRPEC) is about to close a second 60-day public comment period on recommendations to Attorney General Eric Holder.  The Commission’s report addresses standards to prevent sexual abuse of prison inmates, including juveniles in both youth detention centers and adult prisons.  The Attorney General will make a final decision on the proposed standards. With the deadline for pubic comments fast approaching, the Campaign for Youth Justice is circulating a letter addressed to Attorney General Holder asking for additional signatures.  The letter calls on Holder to ban juveniles from adult prisons. “Adult facilities housing children and youth face a dangerous dilemma,” the letter said, “forced to choose between housing youth in the general adult population, where they are at substantial risk of both physical and sexual abuse, and housing youth in segregated settings which cause or exacerbate mental health problems.”

The Campaign for Youth Justice is trying to get 500 signatures by Friday morning.  You can read the letter here.

Karen Worthington: If you Want to Prevent Crime, Work to Prevent Child Abuse

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Downtown Atlanta workers may not see pinwheels in the parks this April. The brightly colored children’s toys have twirled in the wind for many Aprils, each representing one of the thousands of children who are abused in Georgia each year. Just two weeks before the start of Child Abuse Prevention Month, Prevent Child Abuse Georgia (PCAG), an affiliate of Prevent Child Abuse America, abruptly closed its doors. The closure of PCAG presents an opportunity for Georgia to redesign and revitalize our child abuse prevention work. Child abuse prevention activities, such as public awareness, home visitation programs, parent education and early identification of risk factors, are essential components of a safe, healthy, prosperous community.

Amid Debate, Abercrombie Reconsiders Selling Pushup Bras to 7-Year-Olds

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Abercrombie and Fitch, feeling the pressure after a barrage of complaints and criticisms, has rethought its effort to market push-up bikini tops to pre-pubescent girls.  The swimsuit in question was sold through Abercrombie Kids (referred to as “prep school for Abercrombie and Fitch” on their Facebook page), a brand that markets to kids aged 7 to 14. A week after blog Sociological Images -- written by sociology professor Lisa Wade -- highlighted what it called the “sexualization of young girls,” Abercrombie Kids posted this statement on its Facebook page:

“We've re-categorized the Ashley swimsuit as padded,” the statement said.  “We agree with those who say it is best ‘suited’ for girls age 12 and older.”

The bikini in question is no longer for sale on the Abercrombie Kids’ website. A surprisingly heated debate arose within the comments section of the Facebook post as consumers of pre-pubescent bikinis debated the semantic differences of the store’s bikini descriptions. In response to another commenter, a Facebook user identifying herself as Renee Johnson wrote, “I never said it was a push-up.

Marijuana Use Speeds Onset of Schizophrenia, Study Says

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For those at risk, marijuana use hastens the onset of schizophrenia, according to a new study.  Researchers found those with a genetic predisposition for psychosis would begin to experience symptoms an average of 2.7 years earlier if they smoked marijuana, and that can mean a greater disruption to their life. “We’ve known for many years that people who develop schizophrenia earlier have a number of poorer outcomes,” Michael Compton, co-author of the report, told the magazine  Miller-McCune. Schizophrenia typically begins between the ages of 18 and 28.  According to the researchers, developing symptoms earlier makes it harder for schizophrenics to succeed later in life because it impacts their ability to graduate high school or finish college. Even though the disease is genetic 80 to 85 percent of the time, many at risk have no family members who suffer from schizophrenia.