NEWELL—The Whatever It Takes Coalition (WIT) convened its monthly meeting on April 27, at Newell Christian Fellowship Community Hall. The coalition is a group of Butte County citizens united to do “whatever it takes” to help form cohesive partnerships within the community.
A free lunch offering of walking tacos with all the fixings was served. Cheesecake, cookies along with refreshments were also provided. As people were finishing up their lunch, Sabrina Harmon, director of WIT, led the Pledge of Allegiance.
During the monthly meetings, one area organization spends the lunch hour educating attendees about the services it offers. This month, Christine Allen and Verla Little with Northern Hills Diversion (NHD) were on hand to explain how they help youth in the area.
Northern Hills Diversion works with youth between the ages of 10 and 18 who have committed a criminal offense. There are four different programs offered through NHD: Teen Court, Juvenile Detention Alternatives Initiative, Diversion and Truancy. “Think of it like Teen Court: least serious offenses, then Diversion and then maybe Conditional Release,” explained Allen.
If a youth gets into trouble and goes through the Teen Court program and finishes it, they will then get the charges against them dropped—keeping a clean criminal record. “Teen Court is an opportunity for kids to get their record expunged to restore the injustice to the community through community action and community service, online classes, things that make them better citizens within our community,” explained Little. “Then we get the record expunged with local law enforcement agency, as well as the state’s community service.”
State statute only allows misdemeanor-level offenses in Teen Court, with more serious offenses like DUI not eligible.
The Diversion Program works with youth who commit felonies. The program operates in Lawrence County, Meade County and Butte County. “I get to work with JSC and Arise and these wonderful people back here for Conditional Release. Conditional Release—if your youth gets arrested and they get taken down to JSC, it can cost around $300 a day for them to be there, and that’s the family’s responsibility to pay,” said Little. “We started Conditional Release in Lawrence, Meade and Butte County. And often times the judge orders the youth to be on an ankle monitor—a GPS monitor that lets us know where they are at all times…but they are with me until they are adjudicated.” Moving youth out of detention centers saves the county and the families added expense. The first year of the program saved Lawrence County $300,000.
Five Teen Court volunteers held a mock trial to demonstrate how Teen Court operates. Teen Court is voluntary and open to youth ages 14 to 18. There are currently 15 teen volunteers total across the three counties served. “These teenagers volunteer twice a month, about three hours a night, and they will decide the sentence that the other kids are going to get,” explained Allen. “We can’t do Teen Court without teenagers—it is not for adults to run, it is for teenagers to do.”
There are few adults involved with the Teen Court process. Allen said, “Teen Court is run entirely by teens. The only two adults that are involved are the judge and the jury monitor. The judge’s job is obvious, right? The jury monitor’s job is just to make sure that it’s fair.”
Teenagers take on the roles of prosecuting attorney, defense attorney, court clerk, court bailiff and jurors, and they provide restorative justice. “The goal is to hold the respondent accountable by providing opportunities for her to understand the effect her actions have on others and to assist the offender in enhancing and developing skills that will make her a more productive and competent citizen,” explained Hunter Scott, who played the mock judge. “The ultimate purpose is to assist the offender in repairing harm caused by her actions.”
The next event for the WIT Coalition will be a candidate forum at the Newell City Hall on May 12 beginning at 6 p.m.
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