Understanding Juvenile Reentry as More than a Public Safety Issue

November 1, 2011National Forum on Youth Violence PreventionThomas MurphyOffice of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency PreventionOffice of Justice ProgramsU.S. Department of Justice

Reentry Defined• Prepare out-of-home youth for reentry into specific

families and communities• Establish the necessary arrangements & linkages with

full range of public & private sector and individuals in the community that can address known risk & protective factors

• Ensure the delivery of prescribed services and supervision in the community

As this definition implies, both the residential facility and the community have a critical role to play in reentry.

OJJDP’s Investment in Juvenile Reentry (Aftercare)

• Intensive Aftercare Program• Serious and Violent Offender Reentry Program• Juvenile Reentry and Family Strengthening• Tribal Detention Green Reentry Initiative• Second Chance Act• Multiple inter-agency projects with Department of

Labor Youth Demonstration Initiative Civic Justice Corps

Strategies for Improving Youth Reentry – Intensive Aftercare Program

• Evidence-based, research-driven treatment modalities• Structural characteristics and features for reentry

delivery of services (Reentry Continuum)• Personnel/leadership/training issues• Case management framework (elements for informed

decision making, continuity and consistency)• Requirement for multi-agency/systems collaboration

Intensive Aftercare Program (IAP)

• Placement Phase – facility placement (confinement and pre-release planning)

• Transitional Phase – transitional placement & transition to community aftercare (point of reentry)

• Family & Community-Based Phase – community aftercare & off community aftercare (normalization) (balance of supervision, treatment & services)

Program Design FeaturesPlacement Transition Community Follow-up

1. Pre-release planning 1. Testing & probing of reentry prior to placement in community

1. Engagement of family & pro-social network

2. Involvement of outside agencies & individuals in institutions

2. Structured step-down process using residential placement or intensive day care treatment

2. Provision of multi-modal treatment services

3. Targeted community activities during confinement

3. Discrete case management services

4. Use of graduated sanctions & incentives5. Provision of surveillance and supervision beyond ordinary work hours6. Reduced caseload size & increased frequency contact7. Multi-stage decompression process

The Decompression Processin Reentry

Structured Transition

Phase

Point of Community

Reentry

Decreasing Emphasis on Formal Mechanisms

of Social Control by Juvenile Justice

Increasing Emphasis on Informal Mechanisms

of Social Control by the Community

Termination of Formal Aftercare

Status

Community Involvement*

*When community is referenced, it includes a network of community supports and most importantly, family.

Risk and Protective Factors: Seven Domains• Housing – family and other• Peer groups and friends• Mental, behavioral, and physical health• Substance abuse• Education• Workforce• Leisure time, recreation

Evidence-Based Building Blocks

• Continuity of Care• Cognitive-Behavioral Approach• Staffing, training, and quality assurance• Overarching case management

Continuity of Care Components – each linked together in practice

1. Continuity of Control

2. Continuity in Range of Services

3. Continuity in Service & Program Content

4. Continuity of Social Environment

5. Continuity of Attachment

Cognitive-Behavioral Approach and Skill Building• Seeks to develop pro-social patterns of reasoning by

maintaining focus on:

Managing anger and handling conflict pro-sociallyAssuming personal responsibilityTaking an empathetic perspectiveSolving problems & setting goalsAcquiring life skills

Leadership and Training

• A key dimension of promising practices• Need to develop qualified trained staff who have the

leadership and support at the highest levels of the organization

• Cross-training among disciplines is useful• Direct service staff should work in teams

Five Components of Overarching Case Management – Bridging Residential and Reentry Services• Assessment and Classification

• Individual Case Planning

• Surveillance/Service Mix

• Incentives and Consequences (Graduated Responses)

• Brokerage and Linkages

Five Guiding Principles

• Progressively increased responsibility and freedom in the community

• Facilitating youth-community interaction• Working with both the offender and targeted

community support systems• Developing new resources where needed• Monitoring & testing youth & community

Obstacles to Case Management

• Inadequate funding• Institution based resources• Large case loads/Low staffing• Established work hours and habits• Poor supervision standards• Insufficient attention to pre-release issues• Distance• Organizational rigidity• Crisis-driven management

What do we Know about Juvenile Reentry

• Psychological development is critical to understanding the reentry process for adolescents.

• Must look at prior criminal involvement & lifestyles, education, mental health, and continuity & change in social relationships.

• Employment, family structure are just as relevant

Federal Funding Opportunities for Reentry

• Designated State Agencies & the Juvenile Justice Specialist

• Title II – B – 35 program areas• Juvenile Accountability Block Grant – 17 purpose areas• Second Chance Act – demonstration, planning, and

mentoring (OJJDP), Reentry Courts, & Co-occurring Disorders

• Discretionary Funding – Green Reentry Initiative with Tribes

Second Chance Act

• FY 2011 - $83 million total (17% decrease from FY 2010)• OJJDP awarded over $11 million in FY 2011 – Funded

32 new and continuation projects• Planning, Demonstration and Mentoring• BJA has additional solicitations for adult and juvenile

focused reentry activities• Strong support to appropriate some level of funding in

2012

Working Groups

• Federal Interagency Reentry Council• Staffing Working Group to Council• Juvenile Justice Sub-Committee to Council• Working Group of the Coordinating Council (sunset)• OJP Reentry Working Group• Reentry Core team in OJJDP

Resources

• www.ojjdp.gov/mpg• www.crimesolutions.gov• www.findyouthinfo.gov• www.nc4yc.org• www.nationalreentryresourcecenter.org

THOMAS MURPHYGRANTS PROGRAM SPECIALIST/SECOND CHANCE ACT

JUVENILE LEAD202-353-8734

THOMAS.MURPHY@USDOJ.GOVWWW.OJJDP.GOV

Thank You!