July 31, 2008

County seeks nominations for Juvenile Justice Systems Collaborative

Santa Clara County is seeking nominations for the newly established Juvenile Justice Systems Collaborative (JJSC), a new community council created to continue the work accomplished by the county’s Juvenile Detention Reform.

In the best interest of minors in the local juvenile system, members of the collaborative will ensure the deployment of evidence-based practices in the county’s Juvenile Justice System and create more effective opportunities for prevention and rehabilitation.

Based on its organizational structure, eight of the collaborative’s 25 positions are currently open for nominations and application by Santa Clara County residents. The positions currently open to the public for nominations and application by Santa Clara County residents are: 1) Parent Advocate; 2) Faith–Based Organization Representative; 3) Superintendent of a School District; 4) Victim Advocate; 5) Youth Advocacy Organization; 6) Youth Advocate; 7) Youth or Youth Representa-tive; and 8) Youth Service Provider Representative.

Anyone interested in serving as a member must fill out an application form. Once assigned, the membership spans the duration of the Collaborative, until it expires on June 30, 2011. Applicants must submit completed applications to the County of Santa Clara Executive’s Office, 70 West Hedding St., 11th Floor, San Jose, CA 95110. Attention: Kathy Maniaci. Applications must be received by 5 p.m. on Aug. 4, 2008.

On the Juvenile Justice Systems Collaborative (JJSC)
The County of Santa Clara Juvenile Justice Systems Collaborative (JJSC) is a community council focusing on collaboration among the Juvenile Courts, Probation, District Attorney, the Public Defender, local governments, law enforcement, schools and community based service providers. Comprised of 25 members, the collaborative will be dedicated to preventing youth from penetrating the juvenile justice system, continuously improving processes within the system; and ensuring the deployment of evidence-based practices to more effectively rehabilitate youth. The collaborative is chaired by the County Executive and supported by the Clerk of the Board of Supervisors.

Background
Established in 2002, the county’s Juvenile Detention Reform teams has progressed in the past six years. The work groups successfully implemented countywide the Police Booking Protocol and created the Detention Risk Assessment Instrument (Detention RAI). These changes have decreased the total number of referrals to Juvenile Hall and the detention of the youth referred.