4 Troubled Teens Blog

Juvenile offenders who work with mediators and make amends to their victims cut their chances of reoffending in half, according to a study of the juvenile system in Bridgeport, Connecticut.

• Donna Decker Morris of the University of New Haven found that juvenile cases that enter mediation are typically minor offenses, such as vandalism, disturbing the peace, and other misdemeanors.
  
• All parties have to agree to participate in the mediation process. Teenage offenders make amends by apologizing, performing community service, and so forth.
  
• They discuss what happened, why it happened, and how to prevent future incidences.
  
• The Morris study found that victims were more satisfied when they were part of the process.

Morris said that young people can feel like they are victims of society who are being unfairly treated, but mediation forces them to accept responsibility for what they have done.

"A lot of young people feel like the system is against them," she said, "so they see no need to change their behaviors."

Labels: juvenile crime, recidivism, mediation

Posted By: Aspen/CRC 0 Comments

Johnson County, Kansas will be one of the testing grounds for a pilot program aimed at helping reduce recidivism rates among juvenile offenders. Called "Success Through Achieving Re-entry" or STAR, the program will focus on high-risk youth who have served six-months or more in a juvenile detention facility.

"A community re-entry officer from the department will work with the juveniles  male offenders ages 12 to 22  establishing a reintegration plan before they are released into the community... The program is a community effort. The reintegration plan will involve law enforcement, school resource officers, juvenile justice authorities, social workers and parents, guardians and other family members."

The county has set of goal of having 65 percent of juveniles complete the program successfully. Read more at TheOlatheNews.com.

Learn more about the difference between a Juvenile Delinquent and a Juvenile Offender and ways to help your child at AboutJuvenileDelinquents.com.

Labels: recidivism, delinquents, offenders

Posted By: Aspen Education Group 0 Comments