PRE SENTED B Y ROBERT RO SENBLOOM

RET I R ED DEPUTY C OMMI S S I ONER D J J AND A T TORNEY A T L AW

AS SOC I A T I ON O F C OUNTY

Georgia Juvenile Justice Trends and Legislative Update

A S SOC I A T I ON O F C OUNTY C OMMI S S I ONERS O F G EORG I A

L EG I S L A T I VE L EADERSH I P C ONFERENCE

O C TOBER 3 , 2 0 1 1

Brief History of Juvenile Justice

� First Juvenile Court established in 1899

� Georgia has had current juvenile code since 1976

� State of Georgia and DJJ sued by U.S. D.O.J. in 1998

� Discussions begin on need for juvenile code rewrite � Discussions begin on need for juvenile code rewrite in 2006

� Bill introduced for Code Rewrite in

You Know the Type

� Looking for Trouble

� Start Young Then Watch Out !

� They just keep on � They just keep on coming! (Pop. Projections)

� Everyone knows a troubled kid.

JUST FRIENDS OR CRIMINAL ASSOCIATES ?

Beliefs

� Children can change their behavior when provided the appropriate environment, incentives, and resources.

� Families are the most powerful influence in a child’s life. life.

� Partnerships with parents, local communities, other government agencies, and private citizens create opportunities and conditions necessary for young juvenile offenders to mature into healthy, self-sufficient adults.

Accountability

Balanced and Restorative Justice …

� Is not a program.

� Is a mission or philosophical framework.

� Is a different way of responding to crime in communities and criminal justice systems.

Negative or No Growth

Up to 5% Growth

5% to 10% Growth

Over 10% Growth

Georgia DJJ At-Risk Population growthFY2007 – FY2011

Juvenile Intake and Probation Services

Independent County

DJJ Shares Services

Baldwin

Banks

Barrow

Bartow

Bibb

Burke

Butts

Catoosa

Cha

ttoog

a

Cherokee

Clarke

Columbia

Dad

e

Dawson

Elbert

Fannin

Fayette

Forsyth

Franklin

Gilmer

Greene

Hab

ersh

amHancock

Haralson

Hart

Heard

Jackson

Jasper

Jefferson

JenkinsJohnson

JonesLamar

Lincoln

Lumpkin

Madison

McDuffie

Mer

iwet

her

Monroe

Morgan

Murray

Oconee

Ogl

etho

rpe

Paulding

Pickens

Pike

Polk

Putnam

Rabun

Richmond

Roc

kdal

e

Screven

Stephens

Taliaferro

Towns

UnionWalker

Warren

Washington

White

Wilkes

Wilkinson

Carroll

Douglas

Henry

Newton

Upson

Walton

Cla

yto

n

Cobb

Coweta

Crawford

De Kalb

Floyd

Fulton

Gordon

Gwinnett

Hall

Spalding

Troup

Whi

tfiel

d

Gla

scock

Appling

Atkinson

Bacon

Baker

Ben Hill

Berrien

Bleckley

Brantley

Brooks

Bryan

Bulloch

Calhoun

Camden

Candler

Charlton

Chattahoochee

Clay

Clinch

Coffee

Colquitt Cook

Crisp

Decatur

DodgeDooly

Early

Echols

Effingham

Emanuel

Evans

Grady

Harris

Irwin

Jeff

Dav

is

Johnson

La

nie

r

Laurens

LeeLiberty

Long

Lowndes

MaconMarion

McI

ntos

h

MillerMitchell

Mon

tgom

ery

Mus

coge

e

Pierce

Pulaski

Quitman

Randolph

Schley

Screven

Sem

inol

e

Stewart

Sumter

Talbot

Tattnall

Taylor

Telfair

Terrell

Thomas

Tift

Toom

bs

Treutlen

Turner

Twiggs

Ware

Wayne

Web

ster

Wheeler

Wilcox

Worth

Houston

Chatham

Crawford

Dougherty

Glynn

Peach

What is the Juvenile Code?

� O.C.G.A. Title 15, Chapter 11

� Applies to young people who violate the law or are victims of abuse or neglect.

� Establishes jurisdiction, and sets the rules and � Establishes jurisdiction, and sets the rules and procedures of the juvenile court.

Legal Definitions

� Delinquent child means a child who has committed a crime and is in need of treatment and rehabilitation.

� Delinquent child does not have a criminal record.

� Unruly child or status offender is a child who habitually and without justification is truant, habitually and without justification is truant, disobedient, ungovernable or commits an offense only applicable to children ( curfew violation, smoking, etc.)

The Proposed New Juvenile Code

� The Child Protection and Public Safety Act

� Senate Bill 127 and HB 641

� Senator Hambrick sponsoring in the Senate

� Representative Willard sponsoring in the House� Representative Willard sponsoring in the House

� Supported by Governor Deal and Speaker Ralston

� Vote is expected this legislative session

Why re-write the juvenile code?

� Poor outcomes for children in Georgia: school achievement, graduation rates, pregnancy, employment, and violent deaths compared to youth across the nation.

� Outcomes for those entering the juvenile justice system due to delinquency or deprivation can be even worse.delinquency or deprivation can be even worse.

� Judges and lawyers who use the current code every day describe it as “difficult to use, lacking in clarity, and outdated.”

� The code does not reflect research-based best practices.

Major Issues in the Proposed Juvenile Code

� New approach for status offenders (CHINS)

� Reorganization of Code

How to handle competency issues� How to handle competency issues

� Right to an attorney and costs

� Involvement of Prosecuting Attorney on each case.

� Costs

Issues for Georgia and Counties

� Philosophy

� Impact of Budget Cuts

� Costs to the County and the State

� What can we afford vs. what we want

� Juvenile court’s responsibilities and DJJ � Juvenile court’s responsibilities and DJJ

� What is the potential impact of a new juvenile code

� How to impact juvenile delinquency

� Social and Family issues and the impact

� Use of secure detention

Regional Youth Detention Center Locations (RYDC)Detention Population Issues

Banks

Barrow

Bartow

Butts

Catoosa

Cha

ttoog

a

Cherokee

Clarke

Columbia

Dad

e

Dawson

Elbert

Fannin

Fayette

Forsyth

Franklin

Gilmer

Greene

Hab

ersh

am

Hancock

Haralson

Hart

Heard

Jackson

Jasper

Lincoln

Lumpkin

Madison

McDuffie

Morgan

Murray

Oconee

Ogl

etho

rpe

Paulding

Pickens

Polk

Putnam

Rabun

Richmond

Roc

kdal

e

Stephens

Taliaferro

Towns

UnionWalker

Warren

White

Wilkes

Carroll

Douglas

Henry

Newton

Walton

Cla

yto

n

Cobb

Coweta

DeKalb-2

Floyd

Fulton

Gordon

Gwinnett

Hall

Spalding

Whi

tfiel

d

Gla

scoc

k

� 20 centers

� Serve over 17,000/yr.

� Diverse population

Managing Population

Appling

Atkinson

Bacon

Baker

Baldwin

Ben Hill

Berrien

Bibb

Bleckley

Brantley

Brooks

Bryan

Bulloch

Burke

Calhoun

Camden

Candler

Charlton

Chattahoochee

Clay

Clinch

Coffee

Colquitt Cook

Crisp

Decatur

DodgeDooly

Early

Echols

Effingham

Emanuel

Evans

Grady

Harris

Irwin

Jeff

Dav

is

Jefferson

JenkinsJohnson

JonesLamar

La

nie

r

Laurens

LeeLiberty

Long

Lowndes

MaconMarion

McI

ntos

h

Mer

iwet

her

MillerMitchell

Monroe

Montg

om

ery

Mus

coge

e

Pierce

Pike

Pulaski

Quitman

Randolph

Schley

Screven

Sem

inol

e

Stewart

Sumter

Talbot

Tattnall

Taylor

Telfair

Terrell

Thomas

Tift

Toom

bs

Treutlen

Turner

Twiggs

Ware

Washington

Wayne

Web

ster

Wheeler

Wilcox

Wilkinson

Worth

Houston

Upson

Chatham

Crawford

Dougherty

Glynn

Peach

Troup

Gla

scoc

k

� Managing Population

� Alternatives

Secure Detention Population

� Detention

� Superior Court Cases

� Pre-adjudicated

� STP

� Awaiting Placement

� Competency Status

� Probation Violators

National Initiatives

� Use of assessment instruments

� Less reliance of secure facilitiesfacilities

� Positive Youth Programs

� Restorative Justice

� Community Service Learning

� Evidence Based

CAN’T DEPEND ON LUCK BUT KEEP YOUR FINGERS CROSSED!