Printer-Friendly Version (November/December 2006) Six Sites Meet for Comprehensive Anti-Gang Initiative Conference
"To have enduring success against gangs, we must address the personal, family, and community factors that cause young people to choose gangs over better, more productive alternatives. The more success we have in this area, the fewer people we'll have to prosecute for violent activity down the road." —Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales
On November 8–9, 2006, teams from communities participating in the Department of Justice's Six Site Comprehensive Anti-Gang Initiative gathered in Dallas, TX, to exchange information and build on local efforts to combat gangs using a combination of prevention, law enforcement, and prisoner reentry strategies. Conference participants included over 100 professionals from law enforcement, schools, community-based organizations, faith-based organizations, universities, and State and local government. OJJDP Deputy Administrator Gregory Harris addressed participants, emphasizing the strong support that this Administration has shown for gang prevention, including the President's Helping America's Youth initiative. He noted that the Department's Anti-Gang Initiative is based on the understanding that multiple anti-gang strategies must be coordinated through Federal, State, and local partnerships to have the best chance for lasting success. Over the 2-day conference, representatives from the six sites shared their experiences with these partnerships, providing valuable information on both their strengths and difficulties. Last March, Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales announced the six sites that were selected by DOJ to receive $2.5 million in grants to implement a comprehensive anti-gang strategy: Los Angeles, CA; Tampa, FL; Cleveland, OH; Dallas-Fort Worth, TX; Milwaukee, WI; and the "222 Corridor" that stretches from Easton to Lancaster, PA, near Philadelphia. United States Attorneys in each site work with State, local, and community partners to coordinate and implement the anti-gang strategies of prevention, prosecution, and prisoner reentry. Within the Office of Justice Programs, OJJDP provides funding and leadership for the prevention component of this initiative and the Bureau of Justice Assistance provides funding and leadership for the enforcement and reentry components.
For more information on gangs and strategies for responding to them, go to OJJDP's National Youth Gang Center Web site at www.iir.com/nygc/. First Lady Visits Youth Court
About 13 youth court members and 20 adults attended the Colonie event. After watching the mock trial, Mrs. Bush asked the students about what brought them to the youth court and what they had learned there. She then commented: "It's a great way to try to help youth who have made a mistake that's not that big, but would be big on their records." For additional information, visit the following Web sites:
The Colonie Youth Court was featured in the July 18, 2005, issue of Time Magazine ("Jury of Their Peers"). This article was based in part on "A White House Visitor Makes a Full Afternoon" by Tim O'Brien, Times Union, October 5, 2006. Deputy Assistant Attorney General Daley Addresses "Bringing Our Missing Children Home Safely" Conference"You are the bedrock of our nation's efforts to protect children. I appreciate your work to mobilize our resources in the cause of child safety." These were the welcoming words of Cybele K. Daley, Deputy Assistant Attorney General, Office of Justice Programs, at the "Bringing Our Missing Children Home Safely" Conference held in Appleton, WI, October 19–21, 2006. More than 150 representatives from State clearinghouses for missing persons and nonprofit organizations nationwide attended the conference, which was cosponsored by OJJDP, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, and Fox Valley Technical College Criminal Justice Division. Conference attendees learned about enhancing investigative skills and working collaboratively on missing children's cases. Workshops topics included Understanding the Evolving Dynamics of Victim Rights Within the Criminal Justice System; Exploitation of Children Through Prostitution; AMBER Alert Update; Internet Crimes Against Children: An Overview of the Task Force Program; Managing Missing Children Cases; and the Association of Missing and Exploited Children's Organizations (AMECO) and State Clearinghouses: Working Together To Protect Our Children. In her keynote speech, Deputy Assistant Attorney General Daley addressed a number of steps OJP and OJJDP have taken to date, including the following:
In closing, the Deputy Assistant Attorney General said, "We need your help in these efforts to protect our young people from sexual predators, just as we rely on you to find missing and abducted children. We look to you for help in educating families on ways to stay safe, both on our neighborhood streets and in the avenues of cyberspace." Videoconference To Highlight Prevention Strategies and Interventions for Juvenile StatusOffenders: Register Now! Status offenses are nondelinquent/noncriminal offenses that are considered illegal only for juveniles (e.g., truancy, running away, possessing alcohol, curfew violations, being "ungovernable"). In 2004, 18 percent of all juvenile arrests involved status offenses. Research has clearly linked status offending behavior with later delinquency. This national videoconference is intended to raise awareness about status offending and to highlight legislative reforms, policies, programs, and practices that have shown promise in effectively intervening with status offenders and their families to reduce further offending and steer these youth toward a positive future. The target audience for the videoconference includes policymakers, judges, attorneys, law enforcement, juvenile justice, child welfare, social services, other youth-serving agencies, and parents and youth. The videoconference will be available for online viewing from desktop computers and group viewing at satellite downlink sites. For additional information and to register, visit www.trc.eku.edu/jj/conference.asp?confid=33. Department of Justice Grants Support Enforcement of Underage Drinking Laws
Earlier in 2006, EUDL awarded more than $17 million in block grants to 50 States and the District of Columbia to support enforcement of State and local underage drinking laws. The EUDL program focuses on four programmatic elements:
EUDL funds support a wide range of activities. Many States focus on enforcement, emphasizing compliance checks of retail alcohol outlets. Other enforcement activities include crackdowns on false identification, programs to deter older youth or adults from providing alcohol to minors, "party patrols" to prevent drinking at large gatherings, "cops in shops" to keep minors from purchasing alcohol, and youth-focused campaigns to enforce impaired driving laws. Many States also use EUDL funds to implement or strengthen laws and policies that can reduce underage drinking (e.g., keg registration ordinances that prohibit sale or rental of beer kegs for use by minors). EUDL funds are also used for public education activities that seek to promote community awareness of underage drinking and to change norms regarding it. More information on the EUDL Program is available through the OJJDP Web site. Nation Observes Domestic Violence Awareness Month
In recognition of Domestic Violence Awareness Month, OJJDP Administrator J. Robert Flores offered the following commentary on how domestic violence affects children and on OJJDP's Safe Start Initiative: This October, we mark Domestic Violence Awareness Month and remember that domestic violence hurts hundreds of thousands of Americans each year. In addition to recognizing the need to hold offenders accountable to provide safety and security for victims, OJJDP is concerned about the impact of domestic violence on children who are exposed to violence in their own homes. The consequences of this exposure can be profound: "In the short term, exposure to violence can result in the total upheaval of a child's life. In the long-term, many children exposed to violence experience difficulties at school, at work, and in relationships; have physical and mental health problems; and may be at risk of being revictimized throughout their lives. Additionally, these children are at greater risk of becoming offenders themselves." (Safe From the Start, OJJDP, November 2000, page xi.)
The effects of domestic violence go far beyond the hurt caused by the physical, emotional, and sexual abuse of the victim. Exposure to violence can have short- and long-term effects on children's ability to feel secure, grow, and learn—whether they are the primary victim of the violence or a witness to the violence. OJJDP is committed to improving services for these children. Children need to feel physically and emotionally safe in their homes, schools, and communities. Communities and professionals—including, families, teachers, police officers, judges, pediatricians, mental health professionals, child protection workers, domestic violence advocates, and many others—all have a responsibility to help. OJJDP is committed to working with partners at all levels to develop an effective community response to support families in protecting their children from harmful exposure to violence. Information on addressing domestic violence is available through the Office of Violence Against Women's resource page. Information on OJJDP's Safe Start Initiative is available through the OJJDP Web site. International Conference Focuses on Children's Advocacy Centers
One thousand representatives from 80 countries attended the 16th International Congress on Child Abuse and Neglect, held in York, England, September 3–6, 2006. Organized by the International Society for Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect (ISPCAN) in collaboration with the British Association for the Study and Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect, the conference was titled "Protecting Children in a Changing World: Getting It Right." OJJDP Administrator J. Robert Flores spoke on "Eliminating Child Abuse and Neglect: the U.S. Model," and OJJDP sponsored an information and publication booth at the conference. Several OJJDP grantees made presentations at the conference. In the session "Children's Advocacy Centers, Changing the System for Children," Nancy Chandler, Executive Director of the National Children's Alliance, spoke about the components of the CAC model and how the structure and function of the national-regional-state-local collaboration have fostered CAC growth and flexibility, ensuring that children receive the services to which they are entitled. Anne Lynn, Project Director, Northeast Regional Children's Advocacy Center, spoke on "Effective Strategies for Development of Multidisciplinary Child Abuse Intervention Teams and Children's Advocacy Centers in Urban Environments." Ms. Lynn explained that the concept of "team" takes on new meanings in cities where large public agencies and multiple medical and mental health treatment organizations intervene in cases of child abuse. Her workshop focused on enhancing team identity, developing interagency commitments and agreements, conflict resolution, and strategies for organizational development in complex urban environments. In addition, Dr. Rich Kaplan, Associate Medical Director, Midwest Children's Resource Center and Midwest Regional Children's Advocacy Center, discussed "Medical Care Guidelines for Child Victims of Abuse." Dr. Kaplan described the National Medical Training Academy (MTA), which provides indepth, small group training on the medical evaluation of child sexual abuse victims. Since its inception, MTA has trained 360 child sexual abuse medical providers. Children's Advocacy Centers have seen rapid growth internationally. CACs are currently in development in Canada, Poland, Iceland, and Sweden. As this movement progresses, the National Children's Alliance (NCA) and Regional Children's Advocacy Center programs in the United States, both funded by OJJDP, will play a pivotal role. More information on the conference, including abstracts of these and many other presentations, can be found at www.ispcan.org. New Publications All OJJDP publications may be viewed and downloaded at ojjdp.ncjrs.gov/publications. Print publications may also be ordered from the Juvenile Justice Clearinghouse (order online at puborder.ncjrs.gov or call 800–851–3420). Now Available Lessons Learned From Safe Kids/Safe Streets. Summarizes the experiences of five sites in implementing Safe Kids/Safe Streets projects, which seek to break the cycle of early child maltreatment and subsequent behavioral problems. (November 2006, NCJ 213682)
Coming Soon A Family Resource Guide on International Parental Kidnapping, 2nd Edition. Comprehensive update of a guide presenting practical, detailed information on how to prevent an international parental kidnapping, stop an abduction in process, locate and recover an abducted child, and bring an abductor to justice. (November 2006, NCJ 215476) Juvenile Court Statistics 2001-2002. Profiles more than 1.6 million delinquency cases handled by courts with juvenile jurisdictions in 2002 and describes trends since 1985. Includes State- and county-level data for both 2000 and 2001.New Online Information Sharing Guidelines A new online Report from OJJDP, Guidelines for Juvenile Information Sharing (November 2006, NCJ 215786), suggests a course of action for State and local efforts to improve information sharing among key agencies involved with at-risk youth and juvenile offenders. Drawing on the experience and expertise of leaders from youth-serving agencies and information technology initiatives throughout the country, the guidelines integrate the three critical components of juvenile information sharing—collaboration, confidentiality, and technology—into an effective developmental framework.Juvenile Court Statistics Three new online Fact Sheets highlight selected statistics from the National Juvenile Court Data Archive:
Faith-Based and Community Initiatives Web Page OJJDP's Web site includes a Faith-Based and Community Initiatives page, reflecting the Office's commitment to ensuring a level playing field for all organizations that serve America's youth. The page provides information on outreach activities, programs, and publications. NCJRS Web Site Enhancements The National Criminal Justice Reference Service Web site (www.ncjrs.gov) offers access to more than 185,000 publications and other resources on a wide range of justice-related topics. A recent redesign of the site incorporated a number of new elements and modified search tools to make it easier to find information. New features include searchable questions and answers, an expanded list of search topics, and links to government agencies and organizations. Manual for Introducing Juvenile Offenders to Community Service Giving Back: Introducing Community Service Learning, developed by the Constitutional Rights Foundation through an OJJDP grant, provides skill-building strategies and materials to give juvenile offenders a sense of community. Giving Back is a useful resource for youth courts and other juvenile justice agencies seeking to apply school-based learning methods to court-mandated community service. The manual is available on the CRF Web site at In the Pipeline: Girls Study Group Series FBI data for 1991 to 2000 suggest that arrests of girls have increased more (or decreased less) than arrests of boys for most types of offenses. However, questions remain about whether these trends reflect an actual increase in girls' delinquency or changes in societal responses to girls' behavior. To answer these questions, OJJDP convened the Girls Study Group. The Group's purpose is to establish a theoretical and empirical foundation to guide the development, testing, and dissemination of strategies to reduce or prevent girls' involvement in delinquency and violence. OJJDP is planning a series of Girls Study Group Bulletins to present the Group's findings. The series will examine issues such as patterns of offending among adolescents and how they differ for girls and boys; risk and protective factors associated with delinquency, including gender differences; and the causes and correlates' of girls' delinquency. News From the Coordinating Council on Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention The Coordinating Council on Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention is an independent body within the executive branch of the Federal Government. The Council's primary functions are to coordinate Federal juvenile delinquency prevention programs, Federal programs and activities that detain or care for unaccompanied juveniles, and Federal programs relating to missing and exploited children. The last Council meeting was held November 30, 2006, at the Stamp Student Union, University of Maryland. Council members heard and discussed a presentation on the National Maternal and Child Health Center on Child Death Review. After the public meeting, Council members and agency staff attended a 2-day planning session designed to identify priority outcomes for the next 12 to 24 months, the sets of activities that the Council intends to undertake in fulfillment of those outcomes, and associated measures of performance. The next Council meeting is scheduled for Friday, March 2, 2007. For meeting summaries, information about the Council's mission, and links to related resources, visit the Council's Web site at juvenilecouncil.gov. The Coordinating Council on Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention is chaired by the Attorney General and includes the Administrator of OJJDP (vice chairperson); the Secretaries of Labor, Education, Health and Human Services, and Housing and Urban Development; the Assistant Secretary of Homeland Security; the Director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy; and the Chief Executive Officer of the Corporation for National and Community Service. Eight expert practitioners appointed by the President, the Senate Majority Leader, and the Speaker of the House of Representatives also serve as Council members. News From the Federal Advisory Committee on Juvenile Justice The Federal Advisory Committee on Juvenile Justice is a consultative body established by the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act of 2002 and supported by OJJDP. Composed of representatives nominated by the Governors, the Committee advises the President and Congress on matters related to juvenile justice, evaluates the progress and accomplishments of juvenile justice activities and projects, and advises the OJJDP Administrator on the work of OJJDP. The Advisory Committee's most recent meeting was held on October 23–24, 2006, in Columbia, SC. The Committee reviewed and discussed the drafts of the 2006 Reports to the President and Congress and to the OJJDP Administrator. The drafts were approved with agreed-to comments for final editing and are now in production.The next meeting is scheduled for spring 2007. Meeting summaries and other information about the Advisory Committee are available on the Committee's Web site. OJJDP Staff News In Memory of Donn Davis OJJDP staff members were saddened to learn of the death of their colleague, Donn Thomas Davis, on December 15, 2006. Donn joined OJJDP in 1999. During his tenure, he served as a supervisor, providing direction and guidance to staff on grant programs. His leadership in the Drug-Free Communities Support Program helped communities build coalitions to address youth substance abuse. His management expertise supported OJJDP's congressional earmarks; for many of these grantees, he was the first person they met in their relationship with the Office. Before coming to OJJDP, Donn Davis spent 31 years with the Maryland Department of Juvenile Services where he held various positions, including regional administrator for Prince George's County and parts of Southern Maryland. He worked with the Prince George's Board of Education to start a program to place probation officers in schools. He also volunteered as a mentor coach at the Silver Spring, MD, Boys and Girls Club. Donn believed deeply in his life's work—the care and nurture of children. His passion for the welfare of our nation's children and his unwavering positive spirit will be Donn's enduring legacy. We at OJJDP will miss him as much for his spirit as for his contributions to the juvenile justice community. |
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An upcoming OJJDP videoconference will focus on promising approaches to reducing juvenile status offenders' risk of more serious offending. "Addressing the Needs of Juvenile Status Offenders and Their Families," scheduled for Thursday, January 18, 2007, from 2 to 4 p.m. ET, is sponsored in partnership with the American Bar Association's Commission on At-Risk Youth, the Department of Health and Human Services' Family and Youth Services Bureau, and Eastern Kentucky University.
OJJDP, through its 
Use of Computers in the Sexual Exploitation of Children, Second Edition. Describes the behavioral characteristics of sexual predators who target children, offers best practices for investigations involving computer evidence, and sets forth the legal principles governing the search and seizure of computer systems. Print copy only. (December 2006, NCJ 214167)