Earlier this summer, the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) ceased operation of its Department of Juvenile Justice (DJJ) — transferring out the remaining youth in its custody to the counties.
“Throughout this process, DJJ remained dedicated to its mission of providing trauma-informed services to youth, with the goal of transitioning each of them to a productive future in the community, and did so until its very last day,” DJJ Director Heather Bowlds said in a July news release. “Toward that end, DJJ committed to a one-to-one transfer of care in coordination with local partners to ensure continuity of care and a smooth transition.”
Prism reports that the closure was prompted by the passage of Senate Bill 823, which came as a result of the work of advocates who challenged horrible conditions behind the walls of the institutions for decades.
However, advocates are now concerned that since the DJJ was closed without what they believe to be sufficient investment into alternatives that address the root causes of youth incarceration, youth in the justice system will continue to be subject to the same harms.
“Getting rid of the state system is just the starting point,” Daniel Macallair of the Center on Juvenile and Criminal Justice (CJCJ) told KQED in a recent interview. “The next phase is reforming the county systems and instituting services programs and systems at the county level that are going to be more effective and not only won’t abuse kids and make them worse, but actually will put them on a path to a better life.”
According to a June report from CJCJ, community leaders from 17 counties across the state have reported significant drug use resulting in overdoses, little to no youth programming, an overreliance on punitive practices and massive understaffing issues at county-run facilities. That being said, counties have a financial incentive to keep youth in these facilities, receiving $225,000 per youth who would have been housed under DJJ.
But what if those funds were spent not on keeping youth incarcerated, but addressing the root causes that led them to the justice system and providing them with the support they need to not reoffend?
One program in Southern California’s Inland Empire region is doing what it can to keep Black and Brown youth out of the justice system.
“There is not enough of us men of color in front of our young boys and young men showing them what a young man should be like,” Keith Burkes, who oversees academic support and life skills for PAL Center and Charter Academy in San Bernardino County, told Black Voice News.
The Save Our Sons program focuses on critical thinking and conflict resolution while teaching the youth in the program the Three D’s: discipline, dedication and determination.
The program provides the boys with the skills they need to achieve their goals, including how to create resumes that get noticed, how to approach a job interview and how to stay away from negative influences that can derail their dreams.
“As men, we have to show them how to get through it, how to navigate, and how to de-escalate,” Dr. Dwaine Radden, the senior executive director and CEO of PAL Center and Charter Academy, told Black Voice News. “And that’s what the program is about, just trying to take a holistic approach and take these young men to that next level.”
A March report from The Sentencing Project found that community-based alternative and intervention programs, like Save Our Sons, can achieve the same or better outcomes at a far lower cost than incarceration. The Sentencing Project also found that changes to policy and practice regarding youth lawbreaking not only reduces youth incarceration, but also improves youth and public safety outcomes overall.
The organization ended its report with the following recommendations:
- Expand the use of diversion
- Invest in alternatives to incarceration
- Measure results
- Limit the use of pre-trial detention
- Prohibit incarceration for low-level offenses
- Create financial incentives to limit incarceration
- Use objective decision-making guidelines
- Limit lengths of stay
- Focus explicitly on race in efforts to reduce confinement
But implementing these recommendations takes investment of both time and money, an investment that the state of California has seemingly yet to make.
“As long as we lack the resources, this is always going to be a problem,” Jahzara Halliday told Prism. “And as long as they never get down to the root cause … and figure out what’s going on, they’re not gonna get anywhere.”
