Corrections Today articles from June 1997

Corrections Today archives from June 1997

Kids are kids, not adults.(Editorial)
June 1, 1997... First, this editorial, and all others written in this space, are my personal and professional opinions. My beliefs are mine and mine alone. They are grounded in my faith, my parents, my education, my wife and kids, and by learning from you and...

Changing times for juvenile corrections.
June 1, 1997... "The times they are a 'changin'" could well be the mantra of virtually any practitioner in juvenile corrections and detention today. Those of us who have been in the field for years realize that we are facing some new and unprecedented...

Of disproportionate minority confinement. (juvenile minorities)
June 1, 1997... Although Congress in 1988 amended the 1974 Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act (JJDP Act) to address the disproportionate incarceration of minorities, the situation has worsened. Between 1985 and 1994, the number of delinquency cases...

Housing juveniles in adult facilities: a common-sense approach.
June 1, 1997... This country does not have enough juvenile detention facilities to house its violent juvenile offenders. In 1991, more than 120,000 juveniles were arrested in the United States for violent crime, but only 48,000 secure beds were available to...

Juveniles in adult prisons: a very bad idea.
June 1, 1997... Although certain juveniles require extensive and secure incarceration, the incarceration of juveniles in adult prisons is wrong for both children and society. There are significant differences between adults and children (persons under 18 years...

Dedicated to the cause. (Irvin Holston III)
June 1, 1997... Irvin Holston says people have called him "Rocky" for as long as he can remember, but he has no idea of, his nickname s origin. He isn't named after Bullwinkle's best friend and Natasha's foil, nor is he paying tribute to the Italian Stallion,...

CT gets exlusive interview with Miss America 1997. (Corrections Today journal; Tara Dawn Holland)(Interview)
June 1, 1997... Editor's Note: Miss America, Tara Dawn Holland, recently delivered an address on literacy in the United States at the Correctional Education Association's 1997 Leadership Forum held in Baltimore, Md., March 17. CT caught up with her earlier that...

No winners. (insights on the correctional system)
June 1, 1997... Loss of Correctional Officer Prompts Sergeant to Re-examine System I remember a crisp, clear fall day when the county fair was in town. I gathered my belongings and prepared to leave work for the evening. Waiting for the elevator, I met up with...

Experience the magical allure of Central Florida's crown jewel.
June 1, 1997... Her downtown area hugs the shores of Lake Eola. Nearby attractions like Disney World and Universal Studios Florida beckon thousands of visitors each year. Sultry tropical air and a glowing sun set the atmosphere for each day in Orlando, Fla.,...

Great opportunities for professional development. (the 127th Congress of Correction, Orlando, Florida)
June 1, 1997... When the delegates to the 127th Congress of Correction gather in Orlando, Fla., Aug. 10-14, they will be able to choose from about 75 workshops, numerous intensive training sessions and two day-long training programs. This Congress program will...

Wayward youth, super predator: an evolutionary tale of juvenile delinquency from the 1950s to the present.(The New Breed of Juvenile Offender)
June 1, 1997... A little human touch can go a long way toward improving the behavior of troubled youth. Or so believes Carl Oliver, the retired superintendent of a juvenile detention center just outside Washington, D.C. Oliver tells the story of one youth...

Supervising youthful offenders: juveniles sentenced to adult facilities present supervisory, staffing challenges.(The New Breed of Juvenile Offender)
June 1, 1997... Nowhere is our society's confusion over when an adolescent becomes an adult more apparent than in our treatment of youths who break the law, especially serious, violent juvenile offenders. Historically, Western culture has been troubled by what...

Saving youths from themselves: does your juvenile facility pass the suicide prevention test?(The New Breed of Juvenile Offender)
June 1, 1997... In November 1992, Jamal, a small 14-year-old boy from Washington, D.C., was admitted to a large East Coast juvenile detention facility. He had come from a highly dysfunctional family, had severe emotional problems, and had thought of suicide many...

Communities in crisis: effective juvenile justice programs involve all sectors of community.(The New Breed of Juvenile Offender)
June 1, 1997... Beginning this evening, the new security team at the 100-year-old Methodist church down the street will escort people to and from their cars between services and will patrol the neighborhood to ward off car thefts and muggings. In the alley,...

Our collective responsibility: programs across the country reach out to hardened adolescents.(The New Breed of Juvenile Offender)
June 1, 1997... The sound-bitten term "super predator" was coined just after I'd spent more than a year interviewing incarcerated teenagers for a book on juvenile crime and violence. I thought about Becky, 17, calmly munching on her institutional corn dog dinner...

Perceptions of crowding and minority overrepresentation: pilot study reveals accredited facilities more attuned to problems.(The New Breed of Juvenile Offender)
June 1, 1997... Today's popular media has been quick to report frightening statistics, projections and anecdotes about juvenile crime during a time when economic hardships are growing and governments are restricting social program spending. One area frequently...

Promising programs; Missouri implements broad range of programs to meet juveniles' needs.(The New Breed of Juvenile Offender)
June 1, 1997... Missouri's Division of Youth Services (DYS) began with a large rural training school system. Two facilities - the Boonville Training School for Boys and the Chillicothe Training School for Girls - housed 800 juveniles. But in the early 1980s, the...

Performance-based standards; development of standards will enable facilities to measure progress.(The New Breed of Juvenile Offender)
June 1, 1997... If God had written the Sixth Commandment as a correctional standard, it would have read: "Thou shalt have a policy prohibiting killing." Instead, He saw the need to focus the message on a desired outcome (a performance-based standard), and so the...

Interviewing for solutions: a strength-based method for juvenile justice. (part 2)
June 1, 1997... Editor's Note: The first article in this series appeared in the April 1997 issue of Corrections Today and focused on the philosophy behind the strength-based practice model of juvenile rehabilitation. This second article will detail the use of...

Trends in state juvenile justice legislation - 1996. (part 2)
June 1, 1997... Juvenile justice legislation was a hot topic during 1996. Among the highlights were changes in the following areas: * improving dispositional planning for young offenders; * expanding options available to courts; * prescribing policy...

Recognizing potential law enforcement executives. (part 3)(includes related article on effective law enforcement executive)
June 1, 1997... Jim Lundy, an internationally recognized expert in the identification, training and development of effective managers, has written a book titled Lead, Follow or Get Out of the Way. Given the increasing complexity of our nation's correctional...

Enterprising offenders; Texas' Project Re-Enterprise unites business, corrections communities.
June 1, 1997... In July 1985, David Lee Holland robbed the Jefferson Savings and Loan in Beaumont, Texas. With a .45 caliber handgun, Holland also robbed longtime Jefferson employee Helen Henry of her life, and Henry's five-year-old daughter of a mother....

Miracles happen everyday - even in prison. (contains related article on Make-A-Wish Foundation of America)
June 1, 1997... We often don't take the time to notice the acts of charity and kindness that take place within our nation's correctional facilities. However, inmates at the low to minimum security Federal Correctional Institution in Danbury, Conn. recently...

Reflections on times past. (women officers in correctional institutions)(includes related article on women working in corrections)
June 1, 1997... Editor's Note: The following is an edited version of a speech delivered by former ACA president, Perry Johnson, at the 1996 National Conference for Women in Corrections and Juvenile Justice in Grand Rapids, Mich. The path ahead is never the...

State responses to serious and violent juvenile crimes.
June 1, 1997... Prompted by public concern over the increased incidence of violent juvenile crime, state legislators nationwide have responded with new and far-reaching proposals to alter the authority and practice of the juvenile and criminal justice systems....

Juvenile justice in the spotlight.
June 1, 1997... Juvenile justice has emerged as one of the key issues facing the 105th Congress. President Clinton, along with Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott (R-Miss.) and House Speaker Newt Gingrich (R-Ga.), have placed the issue in the list of top five...

Probation and police collaboration: promoting public safety.
June 1, 1997... Seeking ways to improve efficiency, effectiveness and economy in the provision of community safety services, probation and police executives are turning to partnerships that stress information-sharing and joint supervision projects. Most of these...

NIC update. (National Institute of Corrections' activities)
June 1, 1997... March 1997 marked the second-year anniversary of the establishment of the Office of Correctional Job Training and Placement (OCJTP) as part of the National Institute of Corrections (NIC). OCJTP was created through the Violent Crime Control and...