Introduction and Background
In 1986, the City of Arlington and the Boys and Girls Club of Arlington established the Arlington Teen Court. It works in conjunction with the Arlington Municipal Court and is considered a specialized court for youth. The program was designed to prevent teens between the ages of 14 to 18, from developing a pattern of committing crimes. It aimed to reduce teen offenses, allow teens to be held accountable for their actions, and to educate teens on the justice system.
The City of Arlington Teen Court program offers first time teen-offenders who commit misdemeanors (class C) crimes an alternative to traditional juvenile courts. Some violations include driving over the speed limit, fighting in public, theft under $200.00 dollars, possession of drugs and/or alcohol, etc. The program is voluntary and it provides teen offenders the opportunity to avoid trial; thus preventing an arrest on his/her permanent record.
Stakeholders believe that teens who participate in the program will have the knowledge and skills to go on and live a productive life as a responsible adult, family member, citizen, and member of the community.
Primary clients and stakeholders involved in the program are: teens, parents, volunteers, schools the teen court coordinator Tamisha Fletcher, judges, Teen Court Advisory Board, City of Arlington officials, and the community service agencies who provide work for teens to complete community service hours. The program’s success depends on
fitness. Every duty that I performed at The Boys and Girls Club of America I
Another type of waiver that can take place is a waiver into teen court. 300 different jurisdictions are experimenting with this idea. Teen court is a helpful alternative to juvenile court. This court also helps keeps the labeling stigma of convict off of a juvenile offender. These courts typically handle juvenile offenders between the ages of ten and fifteen who are being charges with minor violations such as disorderly conduct, shoplifting, and other types of criminal mischief. Most of these juvenile offenders have no prior arrest record and have never done anything wrong before in their lives. These juveniles
Harrison, P., Maupin, J., & Mays, G. (2001). Teen court: An examination of processes and outcomes. Crime & Delinquency, 47(2),
I am writing from the Youth and Teen Unit of the City of Daly City Department of Library and Recreation Services. Every summer, there is an opportunity for teens in 8th - 12th grade (ages 13-18) to join our Volunteen Leadership Program (VLP). This program runs in conjunction with our Summer Youth Recreation Program (SYRP), which caters to children (ages 6-12), giving positive and exciting social diversions through recreation. Volunteens work side by side with our Recreators at a SYRP site, giving them opportunities to give back to their community and earn service credits for their school (if applicable). Furthermore, Volunteens learn life skills such as: team building, effective communication, leadership roles, and how to be a positive role model to the youth. Our aim is to prepare youth in our community to become future Recreators in our programs.
The city of Philadelphia can be proud of its current efforts in this regard. Some of the local partners for this initiative include: The Philadelphia Youth Network, Community College of Philadelphia, and the juvenile divisions of Philadelphia's Department of Human
Once a month, year round, I am a panelist on the Ashland County Teen Court.Teen Court is a system of restorative justice set up for and run by youth in the community. The program is offered as an alternative to juvenile court, and gives them an opportunity to take responsibility for their own actions with community based sanctions given by their peers. I applied for and became a member of the panel roughly three years ago, and since then have witnessed the immense impact it can have on the youth who participate. Many of the kids who attend teen court are first time offenders that have made a poor choice and with hopes of a second chance; a chance to start over. This put me and the other panelists in a position of great responsibility as we
Through the Youth Prorgam Quality tool, data management, campus staff coordination, site visits, and technical assistance, CASE is proactive managing the 21st CCLC grant. Prior to implementing programming, all site coordinators will attend a two-week orientation. The objective of the orientation
The evaluation of success for the purpose of justice is worth seeing the adolescent’s age to be no longer considered a juvenile. Has society dealt with the crime correctly or does the cost for said decision outweigh the punishment the juvenile deserves? Is this the right direction? The struggling issue the legal system is navigating through leads into a decision pointing the said juvenile in the right direction by guidance and education or destroying the juvenile by matching a harsher punishment to a particular crime. In order to make the appropriate decision, a list of “pros” and “cons” would be able to offer some assistance. The “pro” side for a juvenile court system is direction and guidance. This court system sees the lack of maturity and discretion of this youth. This should give cause of seeing the youth as “different” than an adult and should be held less blameworthy for the crime committed. This court’s main objective is to handle the youth through policed courses and correctional involvement for the purpose of rehabilitation. The court focuses on the “age” instead of the “crime.” Transferring to the adult courts, the purpose is to bring harsher sentences for the crime committed as well as the slim chance of “getting off” the hook by attending counseling or other step-process program. Adult courts also see the victims and their families need relief for the crime committed against them. Adult courts do offer the juvenile the majority
Community involvement provides an opportunity to let our youth experience social environments, while also feeling safe in those social environments (Richardson, 2014). Working together and staying strong as a community will maintain the message that is targeted towards our youth (Greenwood, 2005). It is a beneficial and valuable opportunity to work as a team and learn from one another, and this opportunity is what our communities need (“Prevention & Early Intervention,” 2016). Being able to bring community-based services to a family helps parents to be able to address the appropriate discipline for the behavior problems that they are encountering, as well as resolving any arguments or problems (“Youth Violence: A Report of the Surgeon General,” 2001). Being able to be a part of a community and working together works for families; it is a great approach that can build the support that is needed, as well as the strength necessary to keep our youth in our communities and out of prisons (Timberlake,
On completion of the program sessions identify the strengths of this program and look for Positive feedbacks about the supportive programs from parents and the young people involved,
Case management services were provided through a one on one meeting while in the community in the Fountain Valley location. Present at the meeting were WYP (Wraparound Youth Partner) Andy Ngo and the youth. WYP Ngo coordinated the youth to list some strength. The youth is motivated, caring, and happy. WYP Ngo smiled and nodded as the youth listed his strengths. WYP Ngo discussed with the youth about the youth’s grade and community service hours. The youth grade is improving and the youth has completed all his community service hours. WYP Ngo congratulated the youth for being outstanding in the completion of his community service hours. The youth is feeling more like a kid again. The youth is maintaining a prosocial activity by working on the
A court can attain records that give an idea of a juvenile’s level of crime, and can determine by the juvenile’s history whether certain treatments or programs will help in the rehabilitation process. Courts have the power
The very idea of teen courts emerged around fifty years ago. . In the 1940s, for example, teens in Mansfield, Ohio, served as judges and attorneys in a "Hi-Y" bicycle court, which heard cases involving minor traffic violations committed by bike-riding juveniles. The new idea of present day teen courts
As an intern I work with adolescents as a mentor and tutor, while under the direction of a probation officer. This experience has afforded me the opportunity to become a confidant to the youth that exhibit at-risk behaviors and tutor those who struggle in various school subjects. Working with a probation officer has involved sitting in on court hearings, assisting in the juvenile intake processes, administering pre-dispositional investigations and participating in school visits. Through this internship, I have accumulated significant knowledge about juvenile delinquency, how the juvenile justice system functions, and the services provided to troubled
“Crime Prevention is the anticipation, recognition, and appraisal of a crime risk, and the initiation of action to remove or reduce it. Crime Prevention is an active approach utilizing public awareness and preventive measures to reduce crime” (New York State Police,2015). Preventing crime is one of the biggest goals in the criminal justice system. It all starts at the lowest level which is preventing crime with juvenile delinquency. Juvenile Delinquency is one of the biggest problems that today’s criminal justice system faces. “In 1899, Cook County, Illinois, set up the country’s first juvenile court. Today, every state has a separate court system for juveniles” (Roberts,2015,p.1). Juveniles are treated differently than an adult when it comes to the courtroom. Children used to be