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Massachusetts Experience, According to Preliminary Reports of the Center for Criminal Justice of the Harvard Law School

NCJ Number
70777
Journal
ANNALES DE VAUCRESSON Issue: 16 Dated: (1979) Pages: 15-39
Author(s)
L E Ohlin; A D Miller; R B Coates
Date Published
1979
Length
24 pages
Annotation
A summary of five reports by Harvard Law School's Center for Criminal Justice on reform of Massachusetts juvenile corrections, on community-based corrections as an alternative to institutionalization, and on recidivism statistics is presented.
Abstract
The radical reform of the Massachusetts Youth Correctional System was undertaken by Mr. Miller, the new head of Youth Services. From 1969 on, Miller sought to humanize the treatment of juvenile delinquents by transforming existing institutions, then moving correctional efforts into the community. While stressing social defense, the approach intends to rehabilitate and to reintegrate juveniles, modifying their attitudes towards themselves and their environments. Evaluation of 13 programs, 11 of them residential, was done to determine whether they satisfy the objectives of the reform. According to the evaluation, the programs are well supervised, and juveniles particularly favor the structured residential programs. Reintegration has proved the most difficult objective to achieve, as structured programs take much of the staff time which might otherwise be devoted to developing outside relationships for residents. To match juveniles to programs, the known strong and weak points of the programs should be considered in placing each juvenile and a second placement should be made if necessary. Experiences of 372 juveniles entering the system between January 1973 and December 1974 are analyzed with regard to placement in detention and in programs. Character and extent of involvement in crime, but also social class and educational status affect detention decisions. Juveniles are the least satisfied with secure care programs (the most closed programs), while juveniles in foster care least expect to have further difficulties with the law. Paradoxically, juveniles placed in detention and in a noninstitutional treatment situation have a more positive view of themselves than those not detained and placed in an institutional treatment program. It is concluded that the first judicial measures make the most long-term impression on juvenile delinquents and are more important than the final placement of the individual. Recidivism rates are 60 percent for secure care, 27 percent for group homes, 19 percent for foster care, 23 percent for nonresidential programs, and 48 percent for no treatment. Elements most likely to affect recidivism are of residence placement in detention and placement in a closed facility. Community resistance to treatment programs can be reduced by giving the program facility a specific image, by limiting resident's outside connections to a small number of individuals, or by expanding interaction to the community at large, depending on the type and class of community involved. --in French.