KYA - Youth Incarceration on the Decline: Kentucky Still Confining Too Many Youth for Behaviors that Aren’t a Risk to Public Safety

The national rate of locking up young people in trouble with the law dropped by more than 40 percent over a 15-year period, with no decreases in public safety, according to a new report released by the Annie E. Casey Foundation today.

The KIDS COUNT Data Snapshot indicates that the number of young people in correctional facilities in the United States on a single day fell to 70,792 in 2010, from a high of 107,637 in 1995. The report also shows that the overwhelming majority of confined youth in the United States are charged with offenses that do not put public safety at risk, such as running away or violating probation. In 2010, only one of every four confined youth across the nation was locked up due to a violent offense (homicide, aggravated assault, robbery or sexual assault).

Kentucky’s trend of locking kids up is also going down, mirroring the national trend.  In 1997, Kentucky had 1,080 youth in confinement (at a rate of 235 per 100,000 youth ages 10-17) compared with 852 youth in confinement (at a rate of 186 per 100,000 youth ages 10-17) in 2010. The decline over this time period represents a 21 percent decrease in Kentucky’s rate. In 2010, Kentucky had the 18th lowest rate in the nation of locking kids up.

While Kentucky’s downward trend shows a move toward being smarter, and not just tougher, on crime, there is still vast room for improvement. An analysis by Kentucky Youth Advocates of data from the Kentucky Department of Juvenile Justice and Louisville Metro Youth Detention Services shows that only 3.8 percent of youth that were locked up during 2007-2011 were confined for violent offenses. This means that only a very minor number of confined youth pose a threat of harm to community safety.

For behaviors such as truancy and running away, which would not be considered crimes if the youth were adults, evidence-based programs can effectively address the underlying causes of behavior. Many states have implemented “Children in Need of Services” models, which recognize that there are family dynamics involved in youth misbehavior, such as running away, and work to address what is really causing that behavior. These models are more effective than confinement for minor offenses and are also less expensive.

Kentucky leaders have stepped up in addressing the juvenile justice system in the past couple of years. In 2012, the legislature created a Unified Juvenile Code Taskforce, Co-Chaired by Senator Katie Stine and Representative John Tilley, which has begun to identify ways to improve the juvenile justice system long-term. Senator Whitney Westerfield has filed a resolution (SCR 35) to reauthorize the task force so it can continue developing solutions to improve Kentucky’s juvenile justice system.

You can find the snapshot and data on youth in confinement in the KIDS COUNT Data Center.

ABA Journal - Fifty years after Gideon, lawyers still struggle to provide counsel to the indigent

Click here for complete article

A year ago, addressing the American Bar Association’s National Summit on Indigent Defense, U.S. Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr. said that across the country, “public defender offices and other indigent defense providers are underfunded and understaffed. Too often, when legal representation is available to the poor, it’s rendered less effective by insufficient resources, overwhelming caseloads and inadequate oversight.”

In short, Holder said, “the basic rights guaranteed under Gideon have yet to be fully realized.”

Daniel T. Goyette, the chief public defender for Jefferson County in Kentucky, and a member of the ABA’s Standing Committee on Legal Aid and Indigent Defendants, says that “despite some genuine efforts and notable advances, the criminal justice system and, more pointedly, the leadership of our executive, legislative and judicial branches of government—both state and federal —have largely failed to carry out the constitutional mandate of the Gideon decision.”

He adds: “Sadly, it has not been a priority, and we are constantly taking one step forward and two steps back.”

KY COA Feb 1 - Gamble- Second-Degree Trafficking and PFO

Gary Gamble, Sr. v. Commonwealth- COA, rendered 2/1/13, not to be published - The Court reversed and remanded when it found that the new second-degree trafficking statute (KRS 218A.1413(2)), which classifies second-degree trafficking as a Class D felony with a maximum sentence of three years, prohibits sentence enhancement under the PFO statute.  

Steven Buck of the Appeals Branch represented Mr. Gamble on appeal, and Michael Bass  and Steven Goble used novel motion practice to preserve the issue for appeal in circuit court.

Contributed by Molly Mattingly

 

New Publication - National Juvenile Defense Standards

NJDC has just released the National Juvenile Defense Standards.  The Standards represent a comprehensive understanding of the role and duties of the juvenile defender in the 21st century juvenile court system, and seek to strengthen and guide the ethical and professional performance of the juvenile defense attorney. The Standards present a national approach to systematizing zealous, competent and diligent defense practice in juvenile court and set out a framework for representation that is anchored in the law, science, and professional codes of responsibility.
Click here to request additional support or a hard copy of the Standards.  

Must Watch Short Video - 'True Believers in Justice'

NY Times Op-Doc VIdeo and Op-Ed - True Belivers in Justice

A new documentary "Gideon's Army" about three young public defenders and the Southern Public Defender Training Center (now called "Gideon's Promise) premiered last week at the Sundance Film Festival last week. 

The above link takes you to an excellent short video about one of the public defenders and an editorial by the filmmaker, Dawn Porter.

I was horrified by what I learned about the criminal justice system. Innocent people, in prison for months or years, sometimes plead guilty to get out of jail; onerous sentences are too often given for minor crimes; people can lose civil rights, like the right to vote, as a result of criminal convictions. In America, a felony conviction can be a lifelong sentence because of this multitude of collateral consequences.

I also saw what a difference it made to have lawyers like Travis fighting hard for poor people’s rights. I saw him tell clients and their families that they were facing long sentences, outrageous bail terms or prison. But I saw him deliver even the worst news with compassion, and I saw him fight for every client. He’s inspired me to judge less and listen more, to try to put myself in the position of people who face a terribly structured system that often provides justice to neither the victim nor the accused. Thanks to Travis and the other young lawyers I met on this journey, I can proudly say I’m a “true believer” in their cause.

 

Listen to Advocate Blog posts on Itunes

You can now subscribe to an ITunes podcast download here to get an audio version of blog posts.   The audio is generated through a computer service called podcastomatic. 

New Free Online Toolkit Aims to Inform Lawyers Who Work With Traumatized Youth

Research shows that most young people entering the juvenile or adult justice system have been exposed to violence and other traumatic events, and often they have experienced trauma multiple times. Research also shows that the greater the degree of exposure, the more likely the child will suffer physically, socially and emotionally, says Howard Davidson, director of the American Bar Association Center on Children and the Law.

These factors led to the creation of a free toolkit, available online and intended for use by the justice system. The toolkit, titled “Identifying Polyvictimization and Trauma Among Court-Involved Children and Youth: A Checklist and Resource Guide for Attorneys and Other Court-Appointed Advocates,” is designed to make legal representation of children in delinquency, dependency (abuse/neglect) and other cases more focused on addressing the victimization a child client has experienced, and on how that client has been affected by multiple traumas, Davidson says.

Lawyers can use the toolkit’s checklist to identify and better understand what violence and other distress their child clients have experienced, he says. The checklist provides a vehicle to help lawyers determine whether the youth they represent has one of more than 20 adverse symptoms that may indicate their client is suffering from severe traumatic stress.

“If their client has traumatic stress, there is a flowchart to help the lawyer understand what trauma-informed referrals and services the child may need,” Davidson says.

Accompanying the toolkit is the issue brief “Victimization and Trauma Experienced by Children and Youth: Implications for Legal Advocates.” Among the topics the document covers are: understanding the symptoms of traumatic stress; the role of legal advocates, judges and court staff; screening instruments for identifying past trauma and exposure to violence; descriptions of relevant state and local initiatives; and considerations related to developing a trauma-informed legal practice.

The tools stand to benefit lawyers and their child clients, Davidson explains. “Many children and youth in the child welfare and juvenile justice systems have experienced or witnessed violence or other traumatic events and suffered the fear of ongoing exposure to harm,” he says. “Trauma-informed care and evidence-based mental health treatments are a crucial part of recovery. These tools were developed to increase awareness of these issues among the legal profession, especially court-appointed lawyers for children in juvenile and family courts.”

Davidson encouraged development of the documents and facilitated support for them through the Safe Start Center, a program funded by the Department of Justice. The final products represent a partnership between the ABA, Safe Start, Child and Family Policy Associates and the Chadwick Center for Children and Families.

“I hope that these documents will be widely disseminated and utilized, so that we will truly have trauma-informed legal advocacy for vulnerable children and youth across the country,” Davidson says.

Source ABA Now