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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMINUTES - 10152002 - PR.3 PR.3 THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS OF CONTRA COSTA COUNTY, CALIFORNIA. Adopted this Order on October 15, 2002 by the following vote: AYES: Supervisors Uilkema, Gerber, DeSaulnier, Glover and Gioia NOES: None ABSENT: None ABSTAIN: None SUBJECT: Annual Report From The Juvenile Justice/Delinquency Prevention Commission IT IS BY TIME BOARD ORDERED that the annual report from the Juvenile Justice/Delinquency Prevention Commission for Fiscal Year 2001/2002 is ACCEPTED.. T hereby certify that this is a true and correct copy of an action taken and entered on the minutes of the Board of Supervisors on the date shown. Attested:October 15,2002 John Sweeten,Clerk of the Board of Supervisors and County Administrator B _. Deputy Clerk CONTRA COSTA COUNTY JUVENILE JUSTICE COMMISSION AND DELINQUENCY PREVENTION COMMISSION 50 DOUGLAS DRIVE,SUITE 201 MARTINEZ,CALWORNIA 94553-8500 i a Phone:(925)313-4186 1 SEP 23 ) September 16, 2002 To: California State Board of Corrections Honorable Garrett Grant,Presiding Superior Court Judge, Contra Costa County Honorable Lois Haight, Presiding Juvenile Court Judge, Contra Costa County Chairperson John Gioia and Members, Contra Costa County Board of Supervisors County Probation Officer Steven L. Bautista, Contra Costa County Mr. John Cullen,Director of Employment&Human Services Department, Contra Costa County Aku--It�� 4-� From: Marianne Jamesi, Chairperson, Juvenile Justice/Delinquency Prevention Commission, Contra Costa County Subject: Annual Report for Fiscal Year 2001-2002 The Commission. The Juvenile Justice Commission is charged with the duty to inquire into the administration of juvenile court law in the county, and to make annual inspections of institutions, jails or lockups that house or confine any minors for more than six hours. It is concerned with policy matters and makes recommendations to the Juvenile Court and other relevant agencies and makes annual reports to the Court, the Probation Department, the Board of Supervisors and the California Board of Corrections. The Delinquency Prevention Commission has the responsibility to participate in and coordinate activities to prevent juvenile delinquency, emphasizing the need for family and community awareness and involvement. In Contra Costa County the Juvenile Justice Commission and the Delinquency Prevention Commission are combined into a single commission that meets at 5:30 on the third Monday evening of each month. The Juvenile Justice Commission is required by state law, and members are appointed by the Presiding Judge of the Superior Court with the concurrence of the Juvenile Court Judge. The Delinquency Prevention Commission was created by the County Board of Supervisors, and members of the Juvenile Justice Commission automatically serve on both Commissions. Membership. Commission Bylaws require that two positions of the 15 member board be designated for youth between the ages of 14 and 21 and that appointments be made from all geographic areas and represent the ethnic diversity of the County. Every effort is made to ensure that the Commission reflects this diversity. All sections of the county, East, West, Central and South are represented with members chosen from 10 of Contra Costa's 19 cities: Concord 3 Oakley 1 San Ramon 1 Danville 1 Pinole 2 Walnut Creek 1 Lafayette 1 Pittsburg 2 Martinez 1 Richmond 2 The two youth members come from Concord High School and from Liberty Union High School in Oakley. Both are outstanding students who participate in a variety of extra curricular activities, and both have made substantial contributions to the Commission. Retpular Meetings. Monthly meetings include regular reports from representatives of the Court, the Probation Department, Employment and Human Services, Children's Mental Health, and such other agencies as requested from time to time by Commission members. Recent examples of outside reports were presentations by Colonel Commandant Michael J. Nevin, Director of the Turning Point Academy and by Hunter Holding regarding the Deer Hill Ranch Ropes Course. The Turning Point Academy is a program for first offenders who commit firearms crimes on school campuses or at school sponsored events off campus. It is designed to provide mental health treatment,job skills and vocational training. However, the program which is intended for 160 young men had served only eleven students at the time of our January 2002 meeting. The Commission authorized a letter to the Governor and appropriate Assembly members regarding the under-utilization of the Academy and recommended expanding the criteria for admission. The Deer Hill Ranch Ropes Course is a team building and high ropes program providing youth and adults the opportunity to learn through doing. In the 2001-2002 fiscal year, two meetings were devoted to specific issues aimed at increasing the competence of the Commission. In October, we had a "Strategic Planning Session," led by two outside facilitators, with a focus on identifying goals and strategies for reaching those goals. The June 2002 meeting was devoted to questions and discussions with Juvenile Judges, Lois Haight and William Kohn, regarding the role of commissioners, the relationship of the commissioners to the court and various issues pertinent to "at risk"juveniles As a part of Delinquency Prevention, Commissioner Neil Stratton has regularly met with the Violence Prevention Coalition and reported back to the group. Dr. Richard Adler, Chairman of the Homeless and Runaway Youth Assessment Committee provided the membership with continuous reports on the shelters for youth, one for 18-20 year olds, and one for youngsters 14- 17. Both shelters, located in north Richmond, are now open. Members of the Commission serve on one or more committees. The Executive Committee is made up of the Chair, the two Vice-Chairs and the Membership Chairperson. Other committees include the following: Membership, Budget, Inspections, Awards, Bylaws and Homeless and 2002 Annual Report, Page 2 Runaway Youth Assessment. A Training Committee to assist new members and old members in fulfilling their role as Commissioners has just been formed. Inspections. The Welfare and Institutions Code requires that the Commission annually inspect (1) all publicly administered institutions in the county and (2) any jail or lockup within the county that has held any minor for more than six hours during the last calendar year. In the 2001-2002 Fiscal Year, the following County facilities were inspected: Juvenile Hall, Orin Allen Youth Rehabilitation Facility, Chris Adams Girls Center, and Summit Center. Police Departments that were inspected included Antioch, Brentwood, Concord, Martinez, Moraga, Pinole, Pittsburg, Pleasant Hill, Richmond and San Pablo. Teams also visited Court facilities: the Juvenile Hall Court, the West County Court, Judge Haight's Court and Judge Maddock's Court. The law allows the Juvenile Justice Commission to inquire into the operation of any group home that serves wards or dependent children, and at the suggestion of Judge Haight, several group homes were inspected: Ansari House, Crestview House, Drake House, La Cheim Browning, La Cheim Treatment Center, Lynnbrook House, Ohlson House and Seneca Center Oak Grove Community Treatment Facility. A proposed format for inspections includes suggestions and recommendations from the Board of Corrections, but each commission is given great leeway in determining the form and content of their reports. Copies of inspection reports are made available to the Court, to the County Probation Officer and to the California Board of Corrections. Activities. In July, Commissioners Richard Adler, Orin Allen, Marianne Jameson, Leanne Schlegel and Essie Williams visited Calli House, the shelter for youth 14-17. Commissioner Chris Adams makes regular visits to the girls residing in the Chris Adams Center. In April, Youth Commissioner Victoria Zahn participated in Liberty Union High School's program, "Every 15 Minutes", a depiction of the tragic outcomes of a drunk driving accident. Commissioners Adler, Jameson, Stratton and Williams attended the event. Youth Commissioner J. C. Collins was chosen to carry the Olympic torch during one part of its movement through Contra Costa County. Awards Prop-ram. The 15"' Annual Awards Program was held May 11, 2002 at the Lindsay Wildlife Museum in Walnut Creek. Residents of the Orin Allen Youth Rehabilitation Facility made the event a memorable success. The boys designed, made and set up the table decorations, cooked and served the food and provided entertainment. All of the honorees and attendees were most impressed. We presented a record number of awards to outstanding programs and individuals as follows: Outstanding Service Contribution by a Juvenile Probation Officer Carol Nixon,Martinez Donna Price, Probation Counselor,Pittsburg Chuck Waterman,Martinez 2002 Annual Report, Page 3 • Outstanding Service Contribution by a County Juvenile Facility Employee Carl Ackerley, Juvenile Hall Frank Aquila, O. A. Y. R. F. • Outstanding Service Contribution by,a Law Enforcement Officer Officer Ron Carmichael, Richmond PD Officer Maurice Jennings, Concord PD Officer Larry Lewis, Richmond PD • Outstanding Service/Contribution by a Community Volunteer Patricia Bell, Pittsburg Sandra Graham, Walnut Creek • Outstanding Service/Contribution by a Non Law Enforcement Officer Philip Crawford, CCC Court Administration • Model Program of Excellence Read to Live Program(OAYRF) SMILE (Student Mentors Integrating Learning with the Environment), Lindsay Wildlife Museum Teen-Age Program (TAP) • Outstanding Service Contribution by a Facility/Institution Program Tony Amjadi, Family Support Program, Jewish Family& Children Services • Outstanding_Service/Contribution by a Business or Organization CASA of Contra Costa County • Juvenile Offender Success Story Andre Conner(Richmond) Joshua Springs Christian School, Yucca Valley, CA Marcus Gomez (Bay Point)Knoxville College, TN James Kendrick(Richmond)Knoxville College,TN Budget. The Commission is supported by funds provided by the Probation Department. Our biggest support is through the secretarial services, assistance and outstanding advice given by Darlene Smith, Executive Secretary, who keeps everything running on an even feel. Probation has also provided moneys for our awards programs and other aid such as food, decorations and entertainment prepared and served by the young men at OAYRF. As mentioned above, this was a great success. The Commission's Budget Committee continues to seek outside funds to supplement those provided by the County. Juvenile Hall. Work is progressing on the additions to Juvenile Hall. While there are some dislocations during the construction process, adaptations have been made, and programs continue with few disruptions. Completion is slated for Fall 2003. 2002 Annual Report, Page 4 Meld of Dreams Ground breaking for the baseball field at the Orin Allen Youth Rehabilitation Facility is scheduled for Thursday, September 26, 2002. It is anticipated that the first ball games will take place Spring 2003. Special thanks are given to the Juvenile Hall Auxiliary and to Orin Allen for their efforts in the fund raising drive that made the Field possible. Conclusion. Members of the current Commission are interested in being active in the community, in making the public aware of the needs of youth, in finding ways to help keep children out of trouble and in examining the special needs of homeless and other at-risk youth. We are especially fortunate in having a strong, positive relationship with Judges Haight and Folin and with the County Probation Officer and his staff. We will continue to be a voice for the young people of this County. Annual Report-02.doc 2002 Annual Report, Wage 5