AJI JUVENILE/YOUTH CORRECTIONAL INSTITUTIONS & PROGRAMS WEB PAGE OUTLINE
ADVOCATING BEST PRACTICES FOR JUVENILES IN DETENTION IN CALIFORNIA
The American Justice Institute – 50 years CONDUCTING and SUPPORTING correctional research and policy analysis
The American Justice Institute (AJI) was created in 1958 under the leadership of, Richard McGhee, the renowned California prison Director and de-facto leader of the California correctional system. He served as President of AJI from 1959 to 1981 and chairman of the AJI board from 1981 until his death in 1984.
MISSION OF THE AMERICAN JUSTICE INSTITUTE
AJI’s mission is to conduct innovative research to help develop rational decision-making leading toward a more evenhanded, efficient and effective juvenile and criminal justice system, and to increase the knowledge of research findings, especially among criminal justice decision makers.
Over the last 50 years AJI projects have been focused on:
1. The promotion of objectivity as the basis for improving public policy decisions, with emphasis on criminal justice.
2. The advancement of knowledge and understanding of deviant social behavior and its amelioration.
3. The improvement of governmental institutions designed to promote and maintain order and safety in a free society.
4. The education and training of professional personnel dedicated to the ideals of justice under law.
AJI has a long history of conducting, sponsoring and supporting correctional policy analysis and research. There is a shortage of such support available for juvenile institutions and programs. This is probably due to the fact that adult correctional agencies and programs simply demand more attention because of the size of the adult correctional system. There are over 750,000 adult offenders in the California correctional system[1] [2] compared to 83,000 juveniles in the correctional system.[3]
Total crime and arrest rates have declined dramatically during the past 15 years. Juvenile arrest rates have declined from 4173/100,000 population in 1974 to 1447 in 2006. Despite declining numbers, Juvenile and Youthful offenders continue to present serious challenges for the correctional system. Very young offenders (generally age 12 to 16 years), with some exceptions, require programming and treatment that cannot be readily provided either by state or most county level facilities. Programming and treatment for this group is expensive and best provided in small, expensive facility programs.
The composition and type of Juvenile offenders in county and State juvenile facilities and programs has also changed dramatically during the past decade. They are far more violent, sophisticated and gang oriented than prior populations. Juvenile offenders involved in gangs present a major and growing problem that requires both specialized State and County level programming. Unfortunately, institutional programs and facilities have failed to change adequately to accommodate the different population. There is a pressing need for technical assistance and information to assist county and State institutions and programs in dealing with the changed circumstances. AJI will focus its attention and resources on assisting agencies in making the transition from dealing with a less sophisticated and less criminally oriented juvenile population to dealing with an increasing criminally sophisticated, gang oriented juvenile population.
There has been a trend away from commitments of young offenders to the Division of Juvenile Justice (DJJ) to greater reliance on county and private correctional facilities and programs. There have been many calls to shut down DJJ facilities altogether. The State has signed a consent decree, agreeing to remedy serious on-going problems in the DJJ facilities and programs and has developed a Remedial Plan to deal with the problems. Five national experts conducted a review of the Safety and Welfare Remedial Plan and recently released their recommendations. These recommendations include steps to reduce violence and fear in the institutions and create the capacity for change.
They noted in their report that “… this is not a system that needs tinkering around the edges, this is a system that is broken almost everywhere you look.
Juvenile Correctional Institutions
The juvenile portion of the California Correctional System has changed dramatically during the recent decades. As noted by the Little Hoover Commission report, Juvenile Justice Reform, “The youth offender population in state facilities has fallen 80 percent to less than 2,000 from more than 10,000 youth in 1996 as a result of policy changes, an overall decline in youth crime rates as well as a growing body of evidence that revealed that state facilities were overly violent and not adequately providing legally required educational and rehabilitative services.”
Commitments of juveniles to DJJ facilities have continued to decline, totaling only 621 in 2006. In 1996, there were over 10,000 youth in DJJ institutions and 3,927 in county juvenile camps. In 2006, there were about 4,000 youth in county camps and 2,600 in state youth facilities.
There are about 230,000 juvenile arrests annually (65,000 felony arrests, 131,000 misdemeanor arrests and 36,500 status offense arrests). Although there is a widespread held perception that juvenile crime has increased, in reality, it has declined steadily for the past 35 years. Juvenile felony arrest rates declined by about 37% between 1996 and 2006 and misdemeanor rates by 28%. Juvenile arrests for status offenses declined by about 20% during this period. At one time, juvenile arrests for status offenses constituted by far the largest juvenile arrest category. Compared to past decades, Juvenile arrest rates for status offenses have declined from over 7,500/100,000 population in 1969 to 810 in 2006.
Juvenile offenders convicted of serious crimes usually are placed in Division of Juvenile Facilities (DJF)[4] which is responsible for housing, supervision, and rehabilitation of individuals committed to their custody.
The American Justice Institute (AJI) Board includes nationally recognized experts who have provided leadership in dealing with a wide range of California Correctional System issues and problems since the 1960s. There are now numerous sources of correctional expertise, both at the national and state level. The AJI board has decided to focus future technical assistance and advice to an underserved area of corrections, county institutions providing programming for 14-17 year old offenders. Juvenile and Youthful offenders have always presented many challenges for the correctional system. Very young offenders (generally age 12 to 16 years), with some exceptions, require programming and treatment that cannot be readily provided by state and most county level facilities. Programming and treatment for this group is expensive and best provided either in a community program or in small, expensive facility programs.
We believe it is possible to make a difference in the lives of minors who are at the point of either opting out of the correctional process or graduating to county jail and eventually state prison. AJI will focus on dealing with issues and problems in county probation institutions serving juvenile (age 14-17 year old) offenders.
The priority issues AJI will address are:
Ø Overcrowding population management , especially for large counties
Ø Housing, programming, and after-care for mentally ill, violent offenders, those being remanded to adult court
Ø Inadequate/inefficient/poorly designed programs
Ø Lack of community involvement (especially families and schools)
Ø Major law suits – at present 12 large counties targeted
Ø Resource deficits
Ø Lack of evaluation and/or research of programs
Ø Lack of bench marking – discovering best practices
Ø Developing alternatives to institutionalization
AJI will take the following actions to deal with these issues:
Ø Experts at Board meetings for discussion
Ø AJI committees assigned to specific areas for follow up
Ø Visits occasionally to targeted counties
Ø Regular meetings with CSA field reps
Ø Review work of county Juvenile Justice Commissions
Ø Solicit grants to address deficiencies such as evaluation
Ø Arrange meetings with counties to review findings progress
Ø Solicit partnerships with CCPCA, CPOA, and others with mutual interests
AJI History
The American Justice Institute (AJI) was created in 1958 under the leadership of, Richard McGhee, the renowned California prison Director and de-facto leader of the California correctional system. (Bob Dickover will obtain AJI historical information.)
American Justice Institute Board of Directors:
Robert Doran – President – is a research consultant and instructor in criminal justice. He is a former Deputy Director of the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation and has worked extensively in the area of private corrections.
Robert Dickover – Treasurer – has worked in research in both mental health and corrections in California and is a former Chief of Research for the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation.
Elaine Duxbury – is a former Chief of Research for the Division of Juvenile Justice, California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. She is a former President of the Western Society of Criminology and the Association for Criminal Justice Research (California).
Richard McKone – Secretary – is a former supervising parole agent and was the Chief Planner of the California Council on Criminal Justice and a long range planner for the Division of Juvenile Justice, California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation.
W. J. (Jim) Estelle, Jr. – has an extensive background in institutional and parole work in the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, was Warden at Montana State Prison; served as Director of Texas Department of Corrections and as General Manager of the California Prison Industry Authority.
Shirley Melnicoe – was the Executive Director of the Northern California Service League which works with offenders and ex-offenders. She was formerly with the National Council on Crime and Delinquency and with the National Institute of Justice in Washington, D.C.
Ed Veit – was the Deputy Director, Parole & Community Services Division, California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation and is a Former Executive Officer of the California Board of Corrections.
Robert E. Keldgord, a Consulting Criminologist, retired as Chief Probation Officer, Sacramento County, CA and Tucson, AZ. He formerly served as CA Director for the National Council on Crime and Delinquency and as Program Director for the CA State Board of Corrections. He is a former captain in the Military Police, and for many years served on the criminal justice faculties of CA State Univ. - Sacramento, University of Arizona, and Chapman University.
Allen Breed – was the Director, California Youth Authority and Chairman of the Youthful Offender Parole Board; Retired Director of the National Institute of Corrections; Twenty-five years experience as a Special Master for Federal & State Courts on Juvenile and Corrections Litigation issues.
Matt Powers –
Jerry Dimagio – was a Parole Administrator, Parole & Community Services Division, California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation
Robert L. Smith was the Chief of Planning, Assistant Chief of Research, and Deputy Director for Delinquency Prevention with the California Youth Authority, and the Assistant Director for the National Institute of Corrections in Washington, D.C. In retirement he was a private consultant for the Administration of Criminal and Juvenile Justice, Visiting Expert for the United Nations Asian Far eastern Institute in Fuchu, Japan, and Leader for six professional visits of Criminal Justice Experts to China from 1979-1990, and one to the Soviet Union in 1989. He was a Fulbright Scholar in 1962, and Winston Churchill Fellow in 1969 studying alternative correctional systems in Great Britain, and Europe.
Major Projects Completed:
International Survey of Corrections – Ford Foundation
Correctional Decision Information Project – NIMH
Model Community Correctional Program – Ford Foundation
Project STAR – California Department of Correction & Office of Criminal Justice Education & Training
Planning and Research in Innovative Methods (PRIME) – Ford Foundation
Santa Clara Methadone Treatment and Rehab Project – Santa Clara County
Matching Inmates’ Aptitudes & Skills (Project MIDAS) – California Department of Corrections
Youth Center Research Project – NIMH
Risk and Rehabilitation Project – Vocational Rehabilitation Administration
New Careers Development Project – NIMH
Juvenile Drug Offender Project – Rosenberg Foundation Grant
Preston Typology Study – NIMH
Technical Assistance Project – National Institute of Corrections
Development of a Sequential I-Level Classification System – California Council on Criminal Justice
Measurement and Analysis of Jail Populations – National Institute of Justice
Santa Clara C J Pilot Program – National Institute of Justice
Juvenile Justice Assessment Center – Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention
Jail Overcrowding – Office of Justice Programs
California Views on Sanctions – California Department of Corrections
Policing Native Populations – an International Study
Project PRIDE, The Development of an Automated Program Evaluation System – San Francisco Juvenile Probation Department
Study of the Specific Deterrence Impact of California’s Three Strikes Legislation
A listing/description of current AJI projects/activities.
The California Juvenile Justice System:
For a general description of the California Juvenile Justice System open California Legislative Analysist web pages at
http://www.lao.ca.gov/2007/cj_primer/cj_primer_013107.aspx#chapter5
and How Does California's Juvenile Justice System Work? And
http://www.lao.ca.gov/1995/050195_juv_crime/kkpart5.aspx
PRISON REFORM – REBUILDING CORRECTIONSSource: The California Coalition on Corrections
http://rebuildcorrections.lincal.com/
For the full Little Hoover Commission Report: Juvenile Justice Reform, open: http://www.lhc.ca.gov/lhcdir/192/report192.pdf
WEB SITE HIT COUNTER to be inserted.
ADVOCATING BEST PRACTICES FOR JUVENILES IN DETENTION IN CALIFORNIA
The American Justice Institute – 50 years CONDUCTING and SUPPORTING correctional research and policy analysis
The American Justice Institute (AJI) was created in 1958 under the leadership of, Richard McGhee, the renowned California prison Director and de-facto leader of the California correctional system. He served as President of AJI from 1959 to 1981 and chairman of the AJI board from 1981 until his death in 1984.
MISSION OF THE AMERICAN JUSTICE INSTITUTE
AJI’s mission is to conduct innovative research to help develop rational decision-making leading toward a more evenhanded, efficient and effective juvenile and criminal justice system, and to increase the knowledge of research findings, especially among criminal justice decision makers.
Over the last 50 years AJI projects have been focused on:
1. The promotion of objectivity as the basis for improving public policy decisions, with emphasis on criminal justice.
2. The advancement of knowledge and understanding of deviant social behavior and its amelioration.
3. The improvement of governmental institutions designed to promote and maintain order and safety in a free society.
4. The education and training of professional personnel dedicated to the ideals of justice under law.
AJI has a long history of conducting, sponsoring and supporting correctional policy analysis and research. There is a shortage of such support available for juvenile institutions and programs. This is probably due to the fact that adult correctional agencies and programs simply demand more attention because of the size of the adult correctional system. There are over 750,000 adult offenders in the California correctional system[1] [2] compared to 83,000 juveniles in the correctional system.[3]
Total crime and arrest rates have declined dramatically during the past 15 years. Juvenile arrest rates have declined from 4173/100,000 population in 1974 to 1447 in 2006. Despite declining numbers, Juvenile and Youthful offenders continue to present serious challenges for the correctional system. Very young offenders (generally age 12 to 16 years), with some exceptions, require programming and treatment that cannot be readily provided either by state or most county level facilities. Programming and treatment for this group is expensive and best provided in small, expensive facility programs.
The composition and type of Juvenile offenders in county and State juvenile facilities and programs has also changed dramatically during the past decade. They are far more violent, sophisticated and gang oriented than prior populations. Juvenile offenders involved in gangs present a major and growing problem that requires both specialized State and County level programming. Unfortunately, institutional programs and facilities have failed to change adequately to accommodate the different population. There is a pressing need for technical assistance and information to assist county and State institutions and programs in dealing with the changed circumstances. AJI will focus its attention and resources on assisting agencies in making the transition from dealing with a less sophisticated and less criminally oriented juvenile population to dealing with an increasing criminally sophisticated, gang oriented juvenile population.
There has been a trend away from commitments of young offenders to the Division of Juvenile Justice (DJJ) to greater reliance on county and private correctional facilities and programs. There have been many calls to shut down DJJ facilities altogether. The State has signed a consent decree, agreeing to remedy serious on-going problems in the DJJ facilities and programs and has developed a Remedial Plan to deal with the problems. Five national experts conducted a review of the Safety and Welfare Remedial Plan and recently released their recommendations. These recommendations include steps to reduce violence and fear in the institutions and create the capacity for change.
They noted in their report that “… this is not a system that needs tinkering around the edges, this is a system that is broken almost everywhere you look.
Juvenile Correctional Institutions
The juvenile portion of the California Correctional System has changed dramatically during the recent decades. As noted by the Little Hoover Commission report, Juvenile Justice Reform, “The youth offender population in state facilities has fallen 80 percent to less than 2,000 from more than 10,000 youth in 1996 as a result of policy changes, an overall decline in youth crime rates as well as a growing body of evidence that revealed that state facilities were overly violent and not adequately providing legally required educational and rehabilitative services.”
Commitments of juveniles to DJJ facilities have continued to decline, totaling only 621 in 2006. In 1996, there were over 10,000 youth in DJJ institutions and 3,927 in county juvenile camps. In 2006, there were about 4,000 youth in county camps and 2,600 in state youth facilities.
There are about 230,000 juvenile arrests annually (65,000 felony arrests, 131,000 misdemeanor arrests and 36,500 status offense arrests). Although there is a widespread held perception that juvenile crime has increased, in reality, it has declined steadily for the past 35 years. Juvenile felony arrest rates declined by about 37% between 1996 and 2006 and misdemeanor rates by 28%. Juvenile arrests for status offenses declined by about 20% during this period. At one time, juvenile arrests for status offenses constituted by far the largest juvenile arrest category. Compared to past decades, Juvenile arrest rates for status offenses have declined from over 7,500/100,000 population in 1969 to 810 in 2006.
Juvenile offenders convicted of serious crimes usually are placed in Division of Juvenile Facilities (DJF)[4] which is responsible for housing, supervision, and rehabilitation of individuals committed to their custody.
The American Justice Institute (AJI) Board includes nationally recognized experts who have provided leadership in dealing with a wide range of California Correctional System issues and problems since the 1960s. There are now numerous sources of correctional expertise, both at the national and state level. The AJI board has decided to focus future technical assistance and advice to an underserved area of corrections, county institutions providing programming for 14-17 year old offenders. Juvenile and Youthful offenders have always presented many challenges for the correctional system. Very young offenders (generally age 12 to 16 years), with some exceptions, require programming and treatment that cannot be readily provided by state and most county level facilities. Programming and treatment for this group is expensive and best provided either in a community program or in small, expensive facility programs.
We believe it is possible to make a difference in the lives of minors who are at the point of either opting out of the correctional process or graduating to county jail and eventually state prison. AJI will focus on dealing with issues and problems in county probation institutions serving juvenile (age 14-17 year old) offenders.
The priority issues AJI will address are:
Ø Overcrowding population management , especially for large counties
Ø Housing, programming, and after-care for mentally ill, violent offenders, those being remanded to adult court
Ø Inadequate/inefficient/poorly designed programs
Ø Lack of community involvement (especially families and schools)
Ø Major law suits – at present 12 large counties targeted
Ø Resource deficits
Ø Lack of evaluation and/or research of programs
Ø Lack of bench marking – discovering best practices
Ø Developing alternatives to institutionalization
AJI will take the following actions to deal with these issues:
Ø Experts at Board meetings for discussion
Ø AJI committees assigned to specific areas for follow up
Ø Visits occasionally to targeted counties
Ø Regular meetings with CSA field reps
Ø Review work of county Juvenile Justice Commissions
Ø Solicit grants to address deficiencies such as evaluation
Ø Arrange meetings with counties to review findings progress
Ø Solicit partnerships with CCPCA, CPOA, and others with mutual interests
AJI History
The American Justice Institute (AJI) was created in 1958 under the leadership of, Richard McGhee, the renowned California prison Director and de-facto leader of the California correctional system. (Bob Dickover will obtain AJI historical information.)
American Justice Institute Board of Directors:
Robert Doran – President – is a research consultant and instructor in criminal justice. He is a former Deputy Director of the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation and has worked extensively in the area of private corrections.
Robert Dickover – Treasurer – has worked in research in both mental health and corrections in California and is a former Chief of Research for the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation.
Elaine Duxbury – is a former Chief of Research for the Division of Juvenile Justice, California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. She is a former President of the Western Society of Criminology and the Association for Criminal Justice Research (California).
Richard McKone – Secretary – is a former supervising parole agent and was the Chief Planner of the California Council on Criminal Justice and a long range planner for the Division of Juvenile Justice, California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation.
W. J. (Jim) Estelle, Jr. – has an extensive background in institutional and parole work in the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, was Warden at Montana State Prison; served as Director of Texas Department of Corrections and as General Manager of the California Prison Industry Authority.
Shirley Melnicoe – was the Executive Director of the Northern California Service League which works with offenders and ex-offenders. She was formerly with the National Council on Crime and Delinquency and with the National Institute of Justice in Washington, D.C.
Ed Veit – was the Deputy Director, Parole & Community Services Division, California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation and is a Former Executive Officer of the California Board of Corrections.
Robert E. Keldgord, a Consulting Criminologist, retired as Chief Probation Officer, Sacramento County, CA and Tucson, AZ. He formerly served as CA Director for the National Council on Crime and Delinquency and as Program Director for the CA State Board of Corrections. He is a former captain in the Military Police, and for many years served on the criminal justice faculties of CA State Univ. - Sacramento, University of Arizona, and Chapman University.
Allen Breed – was the Director, California Youth Authority and Chairman of the Youthful Offender Parole Board; Retired Director of the National Institute of Corrections; Twenty-five years experience as a Special Master for Federal & State Courts on Juvenile and Corrections Litigation issues.
Matt Powers –
Jerry Dimagio – was a Parole Administrator, Parole & Community Services Division, California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation
Robert L. Smith was the Chief of Planning, Assistant Chief of Research, and Deputy Director for Delinquency Prevention with the California Youth Authority, and the Assistant Director for the National Institute of Corrections in Washington, D.C. In retirement he was a private consultant for the Administration of Criminal and Juvenile Justice, Visiting Expert for the United Nations Asian Far eastern Institute in Fuchu, Japan, and Leader for six professional visits of Criminal Justice Experts to China from 1979-1990, and one to the Soviet Union in 1989. He was a Fulbright Scholar in 1962, and Winston Churchill Fellow in 1969 studying alternative correctional systems in Great Britain, and Europe.
Major Projects Completed:
International Survey of Corrections – Ford Foundation
Correctional Decision Information Project – NIMH
Model Community Correctional Program – Ford Foundation
Project STAR – California Department of Correction & Office of Criminal Justice Education & Training
Planning and Research in Innovative Methods (PRIME) – Ford Foundation
Santa Clara Methadone Treatment and Rehab Project – Santa Clara County
Matching Inmates’ Aptitudes & Skills (Project MIDAS) – California Department of Corrections
Youth Center Research Project – NIMH
Risk and Rehabilitation Project – Vocational Rehabilitation Administration
New Careers Development Project – NIMH
Juvenile Drug Offender Project – Rosenberg Foundation Grant
Preston Typology Study – NIMH
Technical Assistance Project – National Institute of Corrections
Development of a Sequential I-Level Classification System – California Council on Criminal Justice
Measurement and Analysis of Jail Populations – National Institute of Justice
Santa Clara C J Pilot Program – National Institute of Justice
Juvenile Justice Assessment Center – Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention
Jail Overcrowding – Office of Justice Programs
California Views on Sanctions – California Department of Corrections
Policing Native Populations – an International Study
Project PRIDE, The Development of an Automated Program Evaluation System – San Francisco Juvenile Probation Department
Study of the Specific Deterrence Impact of California’s Three Strikes Legislation
A listing/description of current AJI projects/activities.
The California Juvenile Justice System:
For a general description of the California Juvenile Justice System open California Legislative Analysist web pages at
http://www.lao.ca.gov/2007/cj_primer/cj_primer_013107.aspx#chapter5
and How Does California's Juvenile Justice System Work? And
http://www.lao.ca.gov/1995/050195_juv_crime/kkpart5.aspx
PRISON REFORM – REBUILDING CORRECTIONSSource: The California Coalition on Corrections
http://rebuildcorrections.lincal.com/
For the full Little Hoover Commission Report: Juvenile Justice Reform, open: http://www.lhc.ca.gov/lhcdir/192/report192.pdf
WEB SITE HIT COUNTER to be inserted.
[1] About 370,000 probationers and 150,000 parolees.
[2] About 167,000 inmates in prison and 83,500 in county jails.
[3] About 66,500 under community supervision and 17,000 in various facilities.
[4] The statutory name for the agency often referred to as the Division of Juvenile Justice.
