Juvenile Delinquency Forum, February 7, 2008

The February 7, 2008 forum on Juvenile Delinquency was a success with major participants in the process attending. Information was shared and many issues established in order to proceed.

A meeting to begin working on a solution is set for March 6 at 6:30 pm.

Josh Paske, Decatur County Family Connections
Mr Paske opened the forum telling the attendees he was excited by the participation. He said that "We want to come up with a game plan to help the future of our young people." Mr Paske stated that with the participation from all the players there, the night could be a success.

Click a Link to View Video. Frank Green, Public Safety Chief Investigator (8 minute video) Larry Funderburke, Director of Public Safety (1 minute video) Wiley Griffin, Decatur County Sheriff (7 minute video) Daryl Long, Department of Juvenile Justice (6 minute video) Edwin "Chip" Perry, Juvenile Court Judge (12 minute video)

Jenny Bostick, Family Connections Regional Facilitator
Ms Bostick stated Decatur County is among the Georgia communities that is actually ready to sit down and talk about the Juvenile Delinquency problem. She said we want to address 3 things

• What can we really do about it.
• How are we going to create a system of care and a system of support in Decatur County utilizing all the partners interested in making it better.
• Develop an Action Plan.

Frank Green, Public Safety Chief Investigator
Investigator Green stated that Bainbridge Public Safety sees the most problem is with habitual offenders. He stated juveniles are repeatedly committing burglaries, thefts and robberies and they go to court and go right back out. They "go on probation, then they get probation on top of probation on top of probation." Green stated. "That's where the frustration comes from in law enforcement." He said the Juvenile Court has indicated this comes from Atlanta and the administrators there.

Investigator Green stated the juveniles know "We can't do anything to them. We process them and turn them over to their parents." This has been going on for several years, he told the group.

Investigator Green stated we are having gang problems now. He told the group that Investigators regularly find Bainbridge juveniles on My Space posing with cash, vehicles and guns and indicating they are with gangs. They have seen them posing with $10,000 in their mouth with a gun in hand.

Investigator Green told the group that last year he arrested a young juvenile, along with others, for breaking into a pawn shop and stealing about 20 guns. The juvenile went on probation. He stated that not even a month later they caught him breaking into cars and committing 2 more burglaries. "He's on the street today."

Larry Funderburke, Director of Public Safety
Director Funderburke stated "I been doing this for about 38 years now. The juveniles are the worse now than they have ever been since I have been in Decatur County Goergia." He stated that whoever started the point system needs to take these juveniles home with them.

Sheriff Wiley Griffin
Sheriff Griffin stated "We do have a juvenile problem but these juvenile's weren't born. Many are living in probably a bad household, been abused. He told the group the crimes committed are not drug crimes, but property crimes.

"Every juvenile knows," he stated "they don't have a problem until they get 17 years old."

He said "They are coming up with no parents, no one to teach them right or wrong, because the parents aren't home." He stated one of the solutions is education, and our teachers have their hands full. He said classes need to be cut down. With 30 students in a class, 10 will fall through the cracks.

Another solution is their CHAMPS program. He stated they talk with every 5th grader in the school system and he knows it makes a difference.

"We have a gang problem, you all know it and I know it. If we can get in there in the 7th and 8th grade and teach about gangs too, we're going to save some of them, and that's what we want to do." the Sheriff stated. We are trying to get a GREAT grant so we can include this program. http://www.great-online.org/

These programs cost money, a lot of money. The CHAMPS program costs $50,000 per year. There is not enough money to do more - politicians do not want to raise taxes so they can.

Another solution that could help is random drug testing in the schools. He would love to see employers require a drug test before a person can get a job. It would put that much more stigma on drugs.

Daryl Long, Department of Juvenile Justice
Mr Long stated that DJJ does recognize there is a problem in Decatur County. He said that he has been here almost 34 years and in the last 3 months he has seen some of the most serious crimes we have had. He noted the juvenile that crawled through his girlfriend's window and stabbed her several times leaving her for dead. "It doesn't get much worse than that" Mr Long stated.

Mr Long cited statistics from the DJJ web site, albeit from 2006, because 2007 is not available, for Decatur County, Thomas County and Colquitt County.
It showed we have a higher percentage of juveniles placed in detention.

He told the group "Children learn from what they see." They will mimic from what they see people do. They are just a mirror of our adult society. He stated kids here can get on the internet and talk directly to the head of a gang in Los Angeles.

Balanced and Restorative Justice training is planned in order to teach the coalition how to set up some programs that would involve a community board Mr Long told the group.

Mr Long made it clear funding is a severe problem. He stated his office only has one worker doing intake and court and one doing supervision. He also said Blakely can only hold 36 children for the SW corner of the State.

Juvenile Court Judge Edwin "Chip" Perry
Judge Perry stated this is a complex issue. "It disturbs me to hear folks say there is no consequences for juveniles and we just tap them on the hand. That is just not true." He stated for every juvenile found guilty there is a consequence.

Judge Perry stated the law requires us to seek to rehabilitate and restore those kids.

He stated that for many of the biggest troublemakers there is a revolving door. He stated they send them off for a few days, we start them on probation, we give them community service, they come back and we give them a few days detention, we give them a few more, we give them 60 days, we give them another 60 days, and they are still coming back. And that's all we can do until they reach designated felon status. Then they can be given from 1 to 5 years.

Judge Perry stated parents are responsible for their children. When asked, he stated under the law, there is nothing that can be done to the parents. To another question, Judge Perry stated that he could order parents to attend a program with their children but if there is no program, then it can't be done.

The Conclusion
Jenny Bostick stated it will take the committment of the community to sit down as was done tonight. She stated we have to talk it out and describe what a system of care in Decatur county will look like if we are really going to do something about this.

A meeting to begin working on a solution is set for March 6 at 6:30 pm.

Mental Health, Department of Labor, area ministers, families and youth will be invited and urged to attend the next meeting.