HomeMy WebLinkAboutMINUTES - 06251996 - SD4 To: BOARD OF SUPERVISORS _ �E L Contra
.....:.......of
FROM:
Mark DeSaulnier _ Costa
_. •Z
County
DATE: June 25 1996
.......i°o f.
SUBJECT: Approval of a Juvenile Community Service Program
SPECIFIC REOUEST(S)OR RECOMMENDATION(S)&BACKGROUND AND JUSTIFICATION
RECOMMENDATION:
The Board of Supervisors approve a plan for the Probation Department's Juvenile
Community Service Program to provide the cities of Contra Costa County with a
juvenile weekend work program at no cost to the County.
BACKGROUND:
The Juvenile Community Service Program is offered to juveniles arrested and
referred to the Probation Department as an alternative to court apprearance and
formal "charges" and as an alternative for the Juvenile Court when determining an
appropriate disposition. The program is not mandated by law but provides a
valuable service to both the community and to the 1 ,000 juveniles held
accountable for delinquencies each year. Minors offered this opportunity are
assigned to work in crews of seven to nine to perform labor for the community at
parks, schools, and municipality sites under the supervision of Probation
Department employees. The agencies and jurisdictions benefitting from the work
are assessed a "user fee" via contract.
The Probation Department arranges the worksite schedule and provides liaison with
the site managers, transportation to work sites, and any tools and safety
equipment needed to perform the work. Juveniles are assessed a $25
administrative fee to help cover some of these expenses.
An example of how the Program would work is the proposed plan for the City of
Walnut Creek to divert local youth committing minor crimes away from the formal
juvenile justice system by providing its police department
(�with
' greater alternative
CONTINUED ON ATTACHMENT: YES SIGNATURE: Nka D
RECOMMENDATION OF COUNTY ADMINISTRATOR RECOMMENDATION OF BOARD COMMITTEE
APPROVE OTHER
SIGNATURE(S):
ACTION OF BOARD ON APPROVED AS RECOMMENDED
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VOTE OF SUPERVISORS
I HEREBY CERTIFY THAT THIS IS A TRUE
UNANIMOUS(ABSENT ) AND CORRECT COPY OF AN ACTION TAKEN
AYES: NOES: AND ENTERED ON THE MINUTES OF THE BOARD
ABSENT: ABSTAIN: OF SUPERVIS S ON THE DATE SHOWN.
ATTESTED
Contact: PHIL ATCHELOR,CLERK OF THE BOARD OF
cc: SUPE VI RS AND COUNTY ADMINISTRATOR
BY DEPUTY
dispositions as provided for under Section 626 of the Welfare and Institutions
Code. This plan may include contracting with the Probation Department for a
specially designated city work crew. The City currently has few disposition
options for first-time or less-serious offenders, which often results in merely "a
slap on the wrist" or, at the opposite extreme, a formal citation and may
unnecessarily drain limited Probation Department resources.
The advantages of a community-based juvenile work program, administered by the
Probation Department and paid for by the cities, are many fold:
1 . Time delay between arrest and sanction would be reduced considerably,
allowing for swifter justice.
2. Penetration into the justice system would be reduced. The Juvenile
Community Service Program would "kick in" earlier on the continuum of
care.
3. Juveniles would serve their community work sentence in the jurisdiction
from which they were referred, and the city would be the sole recipient of
work performed.
4. Probation intakes would be reduced commensurate with fewer formal police
citations issued.
cc: County Administrator
County Probation Officer
Juvenile Community Service Program
Board of Supervisors