WYOMING
Supervised probation program works for juveniles
Some came into the courtroom texting or chatting and laughing with friends. A few came with parents. Others slipped in quietly alone, with their heads down. None of the teenagers seemed particularly happy to be there, but all of them knew why they were in Judge Steven Brown’s circuit courtroom in the Townsend Justice Center at 3:30 p.m. on a Thursday afternoon. The minors 18 and younger had done something to land them in Intensive Supervised Probation (ISP).
Natrona County has a “single point of entry” system for juveniles. All citations for minors are reviewed weekly. First-time offenders are placed in a Youth Diversion program, which provides education, counseling, drug and alcohol assessment, school attendance and supervised probation. For those who successfully complete the program, no charges are ever filed.
With the continuum of care model that the Natrona County District Attorney’s office supervises in collaboration with the Natrona County School District, second time or more serious offenders, or those who don’t comply with the Youth Diversion program, could be placed in ISP for a higher level of supervision through circuit court.
The decision of which road a juvenile will take is made by a committee that meets each Wednesday to share information on his or her previous contacts with the juvenile justice system; personal information from the Youth Diversion program, school district and others; school status; and the type of offense.
ISP has four rules: school attendance, counseling, meeting probation requirements and not breaking the law. The program is modeled after adult drug court and it works, according to assistant district attorney Brian Christensen. When the program was suspended when grant funding for three probation officers ran out in April 2007, 35 of the 18 youth in the program dropped out of school within three weeks.
Hiring two probation officers that are school district employees put ISP back on track in the summer of 2008. Two other probation officers work with the county’s probation program through the state Department of Corrections and Department of Family Services. This May, 18-20 former dropouts who have been under ISP supervision will graduate from high school. “You can tell these kids they’ve got to do stuff, but what’s the end-all and be-all is that they need a little push toward education,” Christensen said.
The goal of ISP is that tie to education, a point Brown made to each of the young people who had their probation revoked for failure to attend school. “You give me excuses but you haven’t done one thing for me for this program,” he told a 17-year-old who hadn’t been to school since March 1. “You’re one of my smart kids who could go to college,” he told another, who will be spending weekends in the Juvenile Detention Center until she starts to attend school regularly.
For those who follow the rules of ISP, Brown had individual handshakes, congratulations for good grades and more encouragement to come back the next week doing even better. “I want to buy you a graduation present,” he said.
Carol Crump
4 April 2010
