Researcher Finds More Effective, Lower Cost Solution For Juvenile Justice Treatment

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New research finds that using a method of therapy involving family and community is more effective and costs the juvenile justice system significantly less than traditional methods that focus only on the individual. Charles Borduin, a University of Missouri professor who pioneered multi-systemic therapy (MST), used a cost-benefit analysis of 176 juvenile offenders to determine that the method is 10 times cheaper than therapy that focused exclusively on the offender, according to ScienceDaily. "Most current treatments are based on the idea that the problem lies entirely within the child," Borduin said. "If you look at the scientific literature, it's not about the individual kid -- it's about family problems, low household warmth, high levels of conflict, abuse, neglect, involvement with the wrong group of kids, school problems, and so on.”

Although MST has high costs upfront, Borduin said that using MST on one juvenile offender resulted in savings of $75,110 to $199,374 over a 14-year period.

Police Bust “Largest Online Pedophile Network in the World”

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Police busted a major online pedophile network, making 184 arrests and rescuing 230 children worldwide, according to The New York Post.  Led by Europol, the three-year investigation known as Operation Rescue made arrests in more than a dozen countries, including the United States, Canada and Australia. The network was centered on a website, since taken down, called boylover.net hosted on a server in The Netherlands.  The site was used as a meeting place for adults interested in sex with young boys. "I can confirm that this is one of the most successful police operations in recent years in what is probably the largest online pedophile network in the world," Europol director Rob Wainwright said. Police have identified more than 600 suspects and expect to make more arrests in the future.

Jamal Hutchinson is Holding to Holder’s Words

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Last June, I had the privilege of being elected to the board of directors of a non-profit in Nashville known as All The King’s Men www.AKMNashville.org. The mission of AKM is pretty straightforward: We strive to reduce the disproportionate minority contact and confinement amongst the young male population across the United States with the Juvenile Court System. Over the past 10 years, I have been blessed with opportunities to serve as a youth advocate, youth program specialist and as an educator to at-risk youth socially and academically. These have been rewarding experiences. But I have also seen some disturbing issues over the past decade, including the number of young lives adversely impacted by the juvenile courts, failing schools and failing neighborhoods, as well as the lack of financial support for programs to serve the youth.

Parents Are Teen’s Best Tool for Preventing Binge Drinking, Study Says

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Parental attention is the best way to prevent teen binge drinking, according to a thesis from the Karolinska Institutet in Sweden.  But, boys and girls differ in what form of attention works best, says the thesis’ author, Anna-Karin Danielsson.  Girls need close, loving relationships with their parents while boys usually require parents who keep tabs on where they are and who they are with. Danielsson studied 1,200 kids ranging in age from 13 to 19, according to Science Daily.  Kids showing warning signs of risky behavior were less likely to engage in binge drinking after their parents intervened.

Allison Ashe, Executive Director of Covenant House Georgia, and state Sen. Renee Unterman

Allison Ashe, Renee Unterman: House Needs to Pass Runaway Bill Now

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Allison Ashe, Executive Director of Covenant House Georgia, and state Sen. Renee Unterman tell us what’s wrong with the current law on runaways and why the House needs to pass an updated version, H.B. 185, the Runaway Youth Safety Act, now. Four months after her 15th birthday Natalie ran away from home, fleeing the sexual advances of her mother’s new boyfriend.  A few days later, local law enforcement picked her up and returned her to her mother. The Division of Family and Children’s Services came to investigate. Upon finding no actual physical abuse, the mother and daughter were left to sort out a very complicated situation alone. Natalie ran again, and this time, fearing another visit from the state, her mother did not call for help.

Georgia Juvenile Programs Will Lose Big if U.S. House Budget Passes

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Georgia will lose $27 million for Head Start, a comprehensive early childhood development program for at-risk children, if the proposed U.S. House budget bill is signed into law, according to a new report by the Georgia Budget and Policy Institute.  The cut represents 3,900 seats in the program. The 878,000 low-income kids enrolled in Education for the Disadvantaged programs across Georgia will also lose big.  Those programs will face a $40 million reduction in federal funds. Some programs will lose federal funds altogether.  YouthBuild, a program that gives construction jobs and education to disadvantaged teens is zeroed out in the proposed bill.

Illinois to Cut All Alcohol and Drug Treatment Spending – Will Other States Follow?

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Blogger Benjamin Chambers brings up the subject of debilitating state budget cuts, pointing out the depressing news that the state of Illinois plans to zero-out its budget for alcohol and drug prevention and treatment programs and asks, just how bad can it get? As of March 15, the state of Illinois is cutting its $54 million budget for alcohol and drug treatment and prevention services to zero (full disclosure: I wrote the news summary linked to here). That's right: zero. According to providers, that means many of them will shut down. What's left, without state money?

Eric Holder on Juvenile Justice

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U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder said this week the Department of Justice would put a priority on improving the nation’s juvenile justice system. In a speech to the National Association of Counties Legislative Conference, Holder said the Department would place an emphasis on forming community partnerships and using evidence-based research in dealing with the issue. The attorney general also told the conference that it was time to answer some difficult questions concerning crime and race and the treatment of children. “Why,” Holder asked, “is it that, although African-American youth make up 16 percent of the overall youth population, they make up more than half of the juvenile population arrested for committing a violent crime? Why is it that abused and neglected children are 11 times more likely than their non-abused and non-neglected peers to be arrested for criminal behavior?

Got A (Unused) Ticket to The Yelawolf Concert?

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JJIE.org has been told that all did not go well at the Yelawolf concert at the Freight Depot, a music venue, near Underground Atlanta over the weekend. Loads of people who bought tickets (for about $15 a piece) could not get into the concert venue because security closed the doors before reaching capacity. Promoter D.J. Adam Golden, an up and coming Atlanta-based music promoter, takes full responsibility and is asking ticket holders to get in touch with him on Twitter or Facebook to get their money back before the end of today, Tuesday March 8. “The cops had to shut it down because of a lack of security and that was my fault,” said Golden. “I was in charge of staffing and everything else.