A Community Based Programs Essay

The Juvenile Justice System and Community-Based Programs

The juvenile justice system offers many different kinds of community-based programs. The victim services program, which offers assistance to victims of juvenile offenders, is one of the different categories of juvenile programs. To ensure that the victims receive improved services, it involves collaboration with victim- and witness-assistance organizations, probation departments, and the courts. Programs in this category are founded on the idea that the justice system is accountable to victims and as such has a responsibility to provide services and carry out initiatives that handle how the offense affects victims (The Texas Juvenile Justice Department, 2013).

Services Offered by Victim Services Programs

Services that are offered by the Victim services programs include:

• Offender status notification
• Yearly case review notification
• Notification of the hearing of parole
• Parole hearings accompaniments
• Collection and disbursement of restitution
• Help in preparing victims statement of impact
• Referrals for counseling, monetary assistance, civil recovery, and restrictive orders (California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitations, 2014)

Victim-Offender Mediation Programs

Victim-offender mediation programs fall in another category and involve processes that offer victims that are interested a chance to meet their juvenile offender in an environment that is safe and structured to engage in discussions that are mediated concerning the crime. A trained mediator often offers assistance so that the victim is enabled to tell the offender regarding the emotional, physical, as well as financial impact. Referrals of the offenders are made by the assistance agencies of victims and witness, the departments of probation, and the courts. The main services aim at supporting the victim’s healing process, allowing the offender to learn regarding the effects of the crime on the victim and being able to take direct accountability for their conduct, and providing a chance for both the victim and the offender to develop a plan that is mutually acceptable to address the crime’s harm. The Victim services types of programs and Victim-offender mediation programs have a common characteristic because they entail the victims of the juvenile offenders.

Home Detention Programs

The third type of juvenile program is the Home Detention program, which is an alternative to detention or youth’s non-secure placement. Parents are provided with a Community Youth Worker that assists them in offering sufficient monitoring and supervision of a juvenile. This kind of service aims at reducing the need for juveniles’ placement in detention or placements that are non-secure as they wait disposition by the court. In addition, the service helps the parent as well as the juvenile to resolve conflict that could have led to further behavior that is problematic. It also gives information to the court concerning the juvenile and family’s ability to maintain a supervised but safe plan to enable the juvenile to stay at home at the time of disposition by the court, which are also the main sources of referrals.

Life Skills Training Programs

Life skills training programs fall into another category of juvenile programs (The Texas Juvenile Justice Department, 2013). These programs are based on a curriculum, and they aim at preparing the juvenile offenders for transition back into society or the community by teaching them skills that will help them cope with daily life. The offenders are referred by the courts and other juvenile management agencies. The main goal of these programs is thus to address issues that relate to reintegration and dependence on activities of crime or substances in trying to cope with alternative choices of lifestyle. The offenders are enabled to effectively deal with specific problems by targeting the strengths of an individual, resources, and skills for coping.

Sex Offender Treatment Programs

A fifth category of Juvenile programs is Sex Offender Treatment. Programs that fall under this category have a distinctive role that stems from the rising prevalence of juveniles that are sexual offending. These programs employ different interventions to manage sex offenders with a general aim of reducing sexual, violent as well as non-violent reoffending of juveniles via different treatment modalities (Reitze & Carbonell, 2006). Offenders are referred by the courts, the probation departments, and other agencies that hold the sexual offenders. Home Detention program, Life skills training, and Sex Offender Treatment types of programs work directly with the juvenile offenders.

References

California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitations. (2014). Victim Services - Juvenile Program. Retrieved online on 30th October 2017 from http://www.cdcr.ca.gov/Victim_Services/victimintro.html

Reitzel, L. R., & Carbonell, J. L. (2006). The effectiveness of sexual offender treatment for juveniles as measured by recidivism: A meta-analysis. Sexual abuse: a journal of research and treatment, 18(4), 401-421.

The Texas Juvenile Justice Department. (2013). Community-Based Program Evaluation Series: Overview of Community-Based Juvenile Probation Programs.Retrieved online on 30th October 2017 from https://www.tjjd.texas.gov/statistics/CommunityBasedJuvenileProbationPrograms.pdf