April 15, 2010
Office of The Attorney General
– Paula T. Dow, Attorney General
Juvenile Justice Commission
– Veleria N. Lawson, Executive Director
Media Inquiries-
Sharon Lauchaire
609-292-2288
Citizen Inquiries-
609-292-4925
2009 JDAI Annual Report Released
– Collaboration Among Agencies Decreases Counties’ Detention of Non-Violent Juveniles –
TRENTON – The New Jersey Juvenile Justice Commission (JJC) has released the Juvenile Detention Alternatives Initiative (JDAI) Annual Data Report for 2009, which shows that the joint initiative of the JJC, New Jersey Judiciary, and numerous county agencies is safely reducing the unnecessary use of secure detention for New Jersey’s youth. The report documents annual trends in the use of county-operated juvenile detention centers. Currently, 12 counties are participating in JDAI in New Jersey including: Atlantic, Camden, Essex, Hudson, Monmouth, Bergen, Burlington, Mercer, Ocean, Union, Passaic and Somerset. The JDAI Annual Data Report presents information for the 11 New Jersey JDAI sites that were active throughout 2009.
“Due to the Juvenile Detention Alternatives Initiative, New Jersey continues to make great strides in reducing the unnecessary use of juvenile detention, while maintaining community safety,” said Veleria N. Lawson, the executive director of the Juvenile Justice Commission. “JDAI is a partnership. By working together, we will continue to examine and improve our juvenile justice system and expand the reach of JDAI.’’
Judge Glenn A. Grant, acting administrative director of the New Jersey Courts, said, “JDAI has been tremendously successful by keeping troubled youth out of detention facilities and in their communities, where they can receive the support and services necessary to help them avoid further trouble with the law.”
"New Jersey's 2009 annual report on its detention reform efforts underscores the very impressive results this state has achieved through the Juvenile Detention Alternatives Initiative. The inappropriate or unnecessary use of secure detention has been dramatically and safely reduced, saving taxpayer dollars and improving the odds that delinquent youth can be redirected to productive behavior," said Bart Lubow, the director of programs for high risk youth at the Annie E. Casey Foundation.
In April 2004, New Jersey was selected as an official replication site for the Annie E. Casey Foundation’s Juvenile Detention Alternatives Initiative and awarded $200,000 by the foundation. As the lead agency, the JJC worked in partnership with the Judiciary and other state and local agencies through the Council on Juvenile Justice System Improvement, which guides the statewide initiative. Each participating county also has a local county council that relies on collaboration, leadership, and data to make improvements in the county juvenile detention system.
Juvenile detention is a temporary placement of a youth accused of a delinquent act, while awaiting the final outcome of his or her case in court. The purpose of detention is to house youths who, by virtue of their alleged offenses or documented prior histories, pose a serious public safety or flight risk.
A primary goal of JDAI is to make sure that secure detention is used only to ensure that serious and chronic youthful offenders are detained, and that effective alternatives are available for other youth who can be safely supervised in the community while awaiting final court disposition. The initiative provides a framework of strategies that help reduce the inappropriate use of secure juvenile detention, while maintaining public safety and court appearance rates. A major focus of the work is reducing the disparate use of detention for minority youth.
In November 2008, New Jersey was named by the Casey Foundation as the first JDAI state model site. With this designation, New Jersey provides jurisdictions with an example of how to implement juvenile justice system reform successfully. Through funding from the Annie E. Casey Foundation, two states, Missouri and Minnesota, have sent delegations to New Jersey to learn about statewide JDAI implementation.
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