RICHMOND —
Kentucky was used as an example last week of how Congress should reform the nation’s juvenile justice system.
Hasan Davis of Berea, one of the state’s two deputy commissioners of juvenile justice, told the House of Representative’s education and labor committee about the Kentucky’s success in meeting the needs of vulnerable youth while increasing public safety.
Davis, a native of Atlanta who came to Kentucky after a stint in the military to attend Berea College, was appointed by Gov. Steve Beshear as deputy juvenile justice commissioner with responsibility for state-run residential facilities, including detention centers, group homes and youth development centers. He is a graduate of the University of Kentucky College of Law.
The Bluegrass state has not always been a model for juvenile justice, Davis told the panel chaired by Rep. George Miller, D-Calif. As recently as 2006, the state was in danger of failing out of compliance with the federal Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Act (JJDPA). Kentucky courts too often were making exceptions to the rule designed to prevent juvenile status offenders from being incarcerated. Status offenses are those such as truancy, running away from home and violating curfew that would not be illegal if the subject was 18 or older.
The state previously had been out of compliance by housing juvenile offenders in adult facilities, even if in separate sections.
In both instances, Kentucky was faced with a choice, Davis said, “forsake the JJDPA and the protections it provides youth or challenge itself to do better.”
The state chose to comply and has reaped the rewards, he said.
A routine 2007 audit showed that more than 2,000 juvenile status offenders had been jailed for status offenses after judges across the state issued exceptions. That makes Kentucky one of only three states to issue more than 1,000 such orders. In more than 25 states that year, only 250 exceptions were issued.
Most juvenile status offenses, Davis said, can be traced “problems at home and school, and to unmet trauma and mental health needs of young people.”
Locked detention not only cannot resolve such issues, he told the Congressional panel; incarceration often compounds the underlying problems and adds to overcrowded facilities, Davis said.
Nationwide, more than 70 percent of detained youth are held in overcrowded facilities. Also, girls and youth of color are more likely to be detained than are white male juveniles, according to statistics he cited.
In 2003, Kentucky allotted a portion of its JJDPA Title II grant to launch a detention alternatives coordinator program. DACs are similar to probation officers in the criminal justice system. After a successful test run, the state’s juvenile justice department funded the DAC program.
Today, Kentucky provides an array of alternatives to locked detention through the DACs associated with each of the state’s nine regional detention centers for juveniles. The nine regional centers were set up after Kentucky ended incarceration of juveniles in county jails, so no county would be more than an hour away.
The detention alternative coordinators work with the Administrative Office of the Courts to educate judges about the program, Davis told the committee.
(Judges in the 25th District that includes Madison and Clark counties were quick to embrace the program and have helped to educate other judges across the state, Davis told the Richmond Register.)
To illustrate the success of alternatives to detention, Davis told the story of a girl named Vicky.
She was a habitual runaway being treated for oppositional defiant disorder, who would climb out of her bedroom window at night and walk away from school. She was picked up by a DAC who asked a judge to place her under electronic monitoring rather than in a locked facility.
Vicky then was ordered into treatment and began taking medication. Her school attendance became more steady, and her grades improved. Today, she is enrolled at Eastern Kentucky University and is living drug free, Davis said.
Since 2002, however, federal appropriations to states in support of the JJDPA’s priorities have fallen by more than 50 percent, Davis said. He challenged Congress to restore funding for the resources that can “meet the critical needs for children involved with the courts.”
Bill Robinson can be reached at brobinson@ richmondregister.com or at 624-6622.
Local News
Related Photos
-
Hasan Davis, Kentucky’s deputy juvenile justice commissioner for residential facilities, testifies before Congress last week, urging renewal and funding of the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act.
Berea man testifies before Congress for juvenile justice
Kentucky held up as good example at D.C. hearing
- Local News
-
-
Woman fends off burglar with knife
A Berea woman used a kitchen knife to fend off an alleged burglar early Wednesday morning, and police say they were able to catch the man in the act.
Officers responded to a call in the 1000 block of Scaffold Cane Road about a man trying to break into a home, according to a release from BPD Public Information Officer Jake Reed. -
Pets of the Week from the Madison County Animal Shelter
The Madison County Animal Shelter is located at 1386 Richmond Road in Berea. Shelter hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday and 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday. Animals available for adoption can be seen from noon to close Monday through Saturday. The adoption fee for cats and kittens is $10. Puppies and grown dogs may be adopted for $25. Adoptions include a free veterinary exam, a first series of vaccinations, a discount on spaying and neutering, free licensing and de-worming. Call the shelter at 986-9625.
-
A big sister’s reflection on life, love and changes
Yesterday was my Little Sister’s graduation. This one, though, was especially important to me.
-
Veterans will conduct Memorial Day programs
Although Memorial Day weekend may be a time of picnics and barbecue for many, some will be observing the day’s original meaning.
-
EKU Arts Center attendance tops 50,000 mark
The Center for the Arts at Eastern Kentucky University has played host during its inaugural season to more than 50,500 guests from more than 30 states and abroad, according to data released by EKU.
-
Man charged with rape, kidnapping
The Madison County Sheriff’s Office arrested an Irvine man early Wednesday morning on charges of rape, kidnapping and assault.
Sheriff’s deputies responded to a call at 3:30 a.m. in the area of Panola and Knob Lick, according to sheriff’s office spokesperson Willard Reardon. -
Summer break, here we come
Students and faculty at B. Michael Caudill Middle School participated in field day activities Wednesday. Today is Madison County Schools’ last day before summer break begins.
-
City to require pawn brokers, resellers to obtain, report records
The Richmond City Commission heard first readings of two ordinances Tuesday that are designed to thwart criminals’ ability to sell stolen items.
The ordinances will require pawn brokers, consignment stores, junk/scrap metal dealers and other similar businesses to obtain the identities of their customers and keep records of items acquired. -
County to settle on retirement back pay for two deputies
A settlement has been made in the case of two Madison County sheriff’s deputies seeking back hazardous duty retirement pay after being fired in 2010 by former Sheriff Nelson O’Donnell.
-
Grand jury indicts men in double-murder
Two men accused of killing a Richmond couple for money and then hiding their bodies in graves along Tates Creek Road were indicted Wednesday on capital charges by a Madison grand jury.
Matthew Denholm, 27, and Daniel Keene, 26, were both indicted on two counts each of murder, kidnapping and abuse of a corpse charges. They also were each indicted on tampering with physical evidence and first-degree burglary charges.
The indictments were returned around 2 p.m. and read by Judge Jean C. Logue. Commonwealth’s Attorney David Smith said he expected Denholm and Keene would be arraigned in Madison Circuit Court in mid-June. - More Local News Headlines
-
Police: Gunman Has Hostages in Realty Office
Fugitive Penguin Caught, Returned to Aquarium
50 Years Later, Underground Fire Still Burning
Light Show Transforms Sydney Opera House
Raw Video: Unruly Passenger Restrained in Miami
Raw Video: Robber Uses Drive-thru Window
Raw Video: Dragon Arrives at Space Station
Calif.'s Coronado Named Nation's Best Beach
CEO Salaries Become Sore Issue in Labor Disputes
Raw Video: Fight Erupts in Ukrainian Parliament
Texan Ranchers Remain Wary of Drought
Raw Video: Soldiers Plant Flags at Arlington
Police: Man Arrested in Etan Patz Disappearance
NYC Protests: the Revolution Will Be Scripted
Chicago U.S. Attorney Fitzgerald Resigns
Neighbors of Etan Patz's Suspect: It's Shocking
Gulf Fishermen Reel From Seafood Troubles
Stuntman Makes Skydive Without Parachute in UK
Raw Video: Bride Who Faked Cancer Released
Raw Video: Passed Out Man Robbed
