Report Calls for Changes in NY Juvenile Justice System
NEW YORK — The state’s juvenile justice system is expensive, ineffective and in need of fundamental reform, according to a report released by a statewide nonprofit group.
Approximately 50,000 juveniles are arrested in New York each year with the state spending about $150,000 per year detaining each juvenile offender, according to Fight Crime: Invest in Kids New York, an anti-crime coalition of sheriffs, police chiefs, district attorneys and crime victims.
The report outlines a comprehensive set of reforms designed to overhaul the state’s juvenile justice system and its orientation, while reducing costs and recidivism.
New York operates 44 juvenile facilities, including more than 30 residential centers designed to house about 1,200 youth offenders. The system is failing the majority of juvenile offenders, who would be better served through a noncustodial approach focused on community-based rehabilitation programs, according to the report.
The most problematic juvenile offenders are not receiving the programs necessary to address anti-social behavior and substance-abuse problems. Three out of four offenders go on to re-offend within 3 years of release and more than 40 percent of those re-offenders are arrested for a violent felony, according to the report.
The state recently embarked on a set of initiatives, including expanding educational programs and mental-health services, to increase rehabilitation and lower recidivism, officials say. Up to 40 percent of repeat offenses can be eliminated by fully implementing the types of initiatives recently introduced, according to the Fight Crime report.
The recommendations include refocusing on high-risk violent juveniles, improving facility and program design, increasing staffing levels and enhancing training. The report also calls for more specialized treatment programs for offenders with mental health problems.
Medium-security offenders should be diverted to foster-care homes rather than state detention facilities, while family therapy and similar programs would be employed with younger offenders. The state should also provide alternative pretrial detention facilities to ensure that first-time and minor offenders are separated from more serious and habitual offenders, according to the report.
A carrot-and-stick approach that combines enhanced intervention, supervision, support and programming with graduated penalties is recommended for dealing with the most dangerous or high-risk juvenile offenders.
The report also calls for expanded substance abuse and behavioral programming for juveniles serving custodial and noncustodial sentences, and for continuity of support services and programming after release.
About one-third of the 50,000 juveniles arrested by police are detained in state facilities as they await trial, while approximately 2,500 receive custodial sentences, according to the report.
The report recommends a comprehensive effort to collect arrest and detention data for juveniles and adults to develop better programming within the justice system.
