Center on Juvenile and Criminal Justice   CENTER ON JUVENILE AND CRIMINAL JUSTICE PRESS RELEASE
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Center on Juvenile and Criminal Justice, 54 Dore Street, San Francisco, CA 94103Tel: (415) 621-5661 | Fax: (415) 621-5466

For Immediate Release: October, 1997

The Pods of Elmore County: A Glimpse Into the Rhetoric Behind the Juvenile Crime Bill

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CONTACT: Daniel Macallair
E-mail: [dmacallair@cjcj.org]
Tel: (415) 621-5661 x310

New Study of Juvenile Crime in Rural Counties
Debunks Congressional Testimony of Local Officials

Counties in Alabama and Wyoming Examined-
Expanded Juvenile Incarceration With Adults found Unwarranted

Washington, D.C. - Violent crime by juveniles in rural areas is too low to warrant new laws mandating their incarceration with adults, a study released today by the Justice Policy Institute (JPI) shows. Researchers found that the two rural counties heavily publicized by proponents of the juvenile crime bill currently before the Senate-Natrona County, Wyoming and Elmore County, Alabama-had a handful of violent juvenile arrests in the last few years.

"Supporters of the juvenile crime bill argue that the rural counties are unfairly burdened by requirements that youth and adult offenders be separated," said Jason Ziedenberg, a researcher at JPI. "Contrary to the testimony of two high profile rural officials, we found the rate of violent juvenile crime in their counties to be very low. To claim these rural counties demonstrate the need for incarcerating juveniles with adults is extremely misleading."

The study entitled, "The Pods of Elmore County: A Glimpse into the Rhetoric behind the Juvenile Crime Bill," shows that Elmore and Tuscaloosa, Alabama-rural communities that experienced a relatively small amount of juvenile violence-have juvenile detention facilities nearby.

In defense of his Violent and Repeat Juvenile Offender Act of 1997, Senator Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) stated, "we think that we have to have some flexibility so that these smaller towns can handle these problems and not let the violent criminal go."

Law enforcement officials from Elmore and Tuscaloosa Counties, Alabama, and Natrona County, Wyoming testified before various Congressional committees over the past two years. Tuscaloosa Sheriff Edmund Sexton stated "For those hard core offenders, the local communities need to have the flexibility to detain them in the local county jail until a disposition of their case." Casper City Councilwoman Carol Crump stated, "Mr. Chairman, this solution addresses the problem of what to do with our violent juveniles on any given Saturday night."

Yet Natrona County experienced no juvenile murders, rapes or robberies in 1995, and a total of 6 violent juvenile offenses. A review of state data reveals that, in 1996, there were only 3 violent juvenile arrests in Elmore County. Overall, 98% of juveniles arrested in Elmore County last year were arrested for non-violent offenses. Additionally, the state of Alabama operates two separate juvenile detention facilities to which Elmore County officials have access within 15 miles of the county, and a third within 30 miles.

The researchers found local news articles that revealed Elmore County officials openly discussing the profit which they stand to make renting jail space to youths from out-of-county. Sheriff Franklin boasted to the Montgomery Advertiser that he would only need to average four juveniles a day to break even, and a county commissioner was quoted as saying "if we fill it up, it should be a source of revenue for the county." Elmore County officials plan to charge $50 per day for out-of-county prisoners.

"The truth about Elmore County is that the jail will likely house non-violent youths from other counties, where they can charge more than double the in-county rate," stated JPI director Vincent Schiraldi. "In other words, Sheriff Franklin's pods are a revenue source for Elmore County, not the needed solution to a burgeoning crime wave."

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