In this issue:
- No Violence Alliance (NoVA) celebrates its 10th anniversary
- CJCJ co-sponsored bills clear key Senate policy committees
- Youth corrections report high recidivism despite surging costs
Service partners and the San Francisco Sheriff’s Department celebrate 10 years of providing reentry services and intensive case management.
“Some people count success by how much money they have. This group counts success by how many lives they’ve made a difference in,” says Gerald Miller, CJCJ’s Director of Community-Based Services.
CJCJ has been operating the No Violence Alliance (NoVA) collaborative in partnership with the San Francisco Sheriff’s Department and community service providers since 2006. At the celebration in San Francisco’s Potrero Hill neighborhood, Sheriff Vicki Hennessy appreciated former Sheriff Michael Hennessey for collaborating with community-based organizations to create the program a decade ago. In her speech, Sheriff Hennessy stated the program has helped more than 2,300 clients, only 18 percent of whom have been reincarcerated.
“NoVA is very successful in creating a seamless reentry transition plan,” says Miller. “Clients are surrounded by services, as well as intensive case management. The ultimate goal is that our clients never return to custody.”
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CJCJ co-sponsored bills clear key Senate policy committeesThis year, CJCJ is co-sponsoring two bills in the California State Legislature: Senate Bill (SB) 190 and Senate Bill (SB) 439.
In April, CJCJ’s two co-sponsored bills cleared California’s first legislative hurdle: the Senate policy committees. This early success makes clear that decision makers in Sacramento are receptive to juvenile justice reforms that remove barriers to family, community, and social services, which provide young people with the support they need to thrive.
SB 190 will eliminate juvenile administrative fees charged to families of justice-involved youth. In many counties, families are charged fees associated with legal representation, detention, or probation. The costs quickly add up to thousands of dollars, further penalizing vulnerable families and restricting resources that could otherwise be used for rehabilitative purposes, such as education.
SB 439 will establish that 12 is the minimum age of juvenile delinquency court jurisdiction. Currently, California has no minimum age, meaning that children of any age can be prosecuted in the juvenile system. Data indicate that children under 12 are referred to the juvenile justice system for relatively minor offenses, such as curfew violations, petty theft and schoolyard fights. The needs of children who come into contact with the justice system are better served in the context of family and community.
SB 190 cleared both the Senate Public Safety and the Human Services committees and now is being held in the Appropriations Committee, which will determine the costs of implementation. SB 439 is headed to the Senate floor for a vote before moving to the Assembly policy committees.
Learn more and get involved »Donate to support CJCJ’s legislative efforts »
Youth corrections report high recidivism despite surging costsCJCJ’s new fact sheet finds that the costs of confining youth in California’s state youth correctional system are expected to climb to $271,318 per youth.
CJCJ’s new fact sheet examines California’s state youth correctional system, the Division of Juvenile Justice (DJJ). DJJ’s per capita costs have increased each year since FY 2011-12. Despite rising spending per youth, the most recent three-year recidivism report reveals persistently high rates of re-arrest, reconviction, and returns to state custody, suggesting serious deficiencies in DJJ’s rehabilitative programming.
DJJ cost per youth, actual (FY 2008 – 09 — 2015 – 16) and expected (FY 2016 – 17)
The estimated FY 2016 – 17 cost of $271,318 per youth reflects the state’s longer trend of spending approximately a quarter of a million dollars annually for each youth at DJJ. Counties only reimburse the state for a small share of DJJ costs (an estimated 9 percent) for youth who are adjudicated in juvenile court. The state pays the full costs for youth prosecuted as adults.
Moreover, three-year recidivism rates for youth released from DJJ are high and reported inconsistently. In early 2017, DJJ released a report showing 74.2 percent of youth were re-arrested, 53.8 percent were reconvicted of new offenses, and 37.3 percent had returned to state custody within three years of release from DJJ.
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