Blog Jan 20, 2012
AB 12: more placement options for juvenile courts
Gov. Brown’s proposal to phase-out DJF entirely starting with no new commitments as of January 1, 2013, has many California counties worried about what to do with their most high risk youth, especially the few counties whose juvenile facilities are nearing capacity. The perceived lack of alternatives has many counties’ prosecutors thinking their only option will be to directly transfer this population to adult court. However, there are in fact many local options for handling youth that would…
Jan 18, 2012
Santa Cruz County tries more juveniles as adults
Santa Cruz County tries more juveniles as adults The Imperfect Parent, January 18, 2012
Blog Jan 17, 2012
Developing Leaders [guest video blog]
CJCJ’s guest video blog by Will Roy, discusses challenges to re-entry from the state’s youth correctional facilities and what he thinks should be the way forward for juvenile justice in California. Will Roy is currently a psychology student at the City College of San Francisco. He was made a ward of the California Youth Authority (now the Division of Juvenile Facilities) in 1997, as a first time offender at the age of 15, and remained a ward until 2003. During his six year CYA…
Education versus incarceration: CSU budget runs dry while corrections funding soars Golden Gate Xpress, January 16, 2012
Jan 15, 2012
Gov. Jerry Brown plans $1 billion in prison cuts
Gov. Jerry Brown plans $1 billion in prison cuts San Francisco Chronicle, January 15, 2012
State spends 8 times more than counties to jail juvenile offenders Manteca Bulletin, January 13, 2012
Since 2007, San Bernardino County’s Probation Department has made strategic, bold changes in order to align their systems with modern and effective best practices for the rehabilitation and reentry of youth offenders. Prior to 2007, San Bernardino had a history of state-dependency for their youthful offender population and was the subject of a lawsuit for facility conditions and practices. Over the last four years, the county has demonstrated admirable leadership and innovation in utilizing…
Blog Jan 11, 2012
Why taxpayers should care about juvenile justice
Last week Governor Brown proposed, for the second time, the closure of California’s state youth correctional facilities, the Division of Juvenile Facilities (DJF). In fact, this week CJCJ released a report including five policy recommendations for full juvenile justice realignment. CJCJ has been advocating for a 21st century approach to juvenile justice for years. CJCJ is not alone is this recommendation, the Legislative Analyst’s Office, Little Hoover Commission, and the Ella Baker Center…
A new report from the Center on Juvenile and Criminal Justice (CJCJ) entitled Juvenile Justice Realignment in 2012 provides support for Governor Brown’s realignment proposal and offers five policy recommendations that include a three-year process that allows counties time to design new services and infrastructure. At the end of three years, the state will no longer manage youth correctional institutions and the resources that used to sustain these facilities will be transferred to the…
Blog Jan 11, 2012
Counties’ responses to the budget triggers
While it costs approximately $193,111 per ward annually to house youth in California’s state youth correctional system (Division of Juvenile Facilities: DJF), under the budget triggers (implemented Jan 1, 2012) counties would pick up approx. 65% of that tab ($125,000 per youth), while the rest continues to be paid for by California taxpayers. Counties like Monterey, Stanislaus, Tulare, and Kings have voiced concerns that they would not be able to pay for the 20+ youth they each have in DJF…
Behind Governor’s Plan to Close State’s Juvenile Justice System Bay Citizen, January 10, 2012
Gov. Brown proposes shutting juvenile prison system (again) KALW News, January 9, 2012