Journal of the Institute

Journal of the Institute

Of Justice

& International Studies

Number 4,

2004

ISSN 1538-7909

http://www.cmsu.edu/cjinst

Papers from:

The April 2004 Conference-

Impacting Juvenile Justice

&

The September 2004 Symposium-

Transition from Prison to Community Initiative
Copyright 2004,

Institute of Justice and International Studies

Department of Criminal Justice

Central Missouri State University

Warrensburg, MO 64093 USA

Journal of the Institute of Justice and International Studies
Issue Editors:

Fran Reddington, Criminal Justice Department, Central Missouri State University

Don Wallace, Criminal Justice Department, Central Missouri State University
Editorial Board:

James F. Anderson, Department of Sociology/Criminal Justice & Criminology, University of Missouri-Kansas City, USA

Fiona Brookman, Centre for Criminology, University of Glamorgan, Wales, UK.

Gerard De Jonge, Faculty of Law, University of Maastricht, Netherlands.

Tim John, Centre for Criminology, University of Glamorgan, Wales, UK.

Roddy Nilsson, University of Vaxjo, Sweden

Paul O’Mahony, Trinity College, Dublin, Ireland.

Harriet Pierpoint, Centre for Criminology, University of Glamorgan, Wales, UK.

Rick Sarre School of Commerce, University of South Australia, Australia.

Michael Vaughn, Department of Criminal Justice, Georgia State University, USA.

The Journal of the Institute of Justice and International Studies is published annually. Subscription rates within or outside the United States: $50.00 per year for institutions, $25.00 per year for individuals.
Journal articles are abstracted/indexed in HeinOnline and Westlaw.
The views expressed in this publication are those of the authors. They do not necessarily represent the opinions of the editors or publisher of the Journal of the Institute of Justice and International Studies. All rights reserved. No part of this journal may be reproduced, stored in a retrieved system or transmitted in any form or by any means without permission in writing from the Institute of Justice & International Studies.
For information about the Journal of the Institute of Justice and International Studies, write or call:

Director

Institute of Justice& International Studies

Department of Criminal Justice

Humphreys Building Room 300

Central Missouri State University

Warrensburg, MO 64093 USA

660-543-4950

Copyright 2004 by the Institute of Justice and International Studies

Department of Criminal Justice

Central Missouri State University

Printed by: University Copy Center, Printing Services,

Central Missouri State University

This issue is dedicated to George Lombardi upon his retirement.

Apart from all the responsibilities of his tenure

with the Missouri Department of Corrections,

he generously provided the energy and enthusiastic professionalism

that made the Institute a reality.

Contents
Preface ………………………………………………………………………………….. v

Introduction …………………………………………………………………………… vii

About the Authors …………………………………………………………………….. viii
Papers from the Impacting Juvenile Justice Conference:

Opening Address: Do No Harm

Judge Thomas J. Frawley………………………………………………………...1

Lessons from Juvenile Justice History in the United States

Douglas E. Abrams…………………………………………………………….....7

Youth Crime and Juvenile Justice in the Netherlands

Gerard de Jonge ……………………………………………………. ………....25

Impacting Juvenile Justice in Australia: The Experience of Family Group

Conferencing Rick Sarre……………………………………...…………….....38

The Missouri Division of Youth Services: In Their Own Words

Frances P. Reddington……………………………………………………..…...44

A Look at the Total Child in the Juvenile Justice System

Linda Bigby, Della Heidbrink Luaders, Linda Koehler,

and Ann Powell-Brown……………………………………………..….47

Racing with Reading: Addressing Literacy in Juvenile Detention Centers

Karen Foster, Naomi Williamson, and Dawna Lisa Buchannon….....................52

Disproportionate Minority Confinement

Sloan T. Letman and Katherine Leslie …………………………………….....…57

Impact of a Juvenile Correctional Facilities Sentencing Matrix

Delores E. Craig-Moreland and Katherine Haliburton………………...………73

The Violent Youth Offender and Juvenile Transfer to the Adult Criminal Court

Deborah L. Johnson, Debra E. Banister and Michelle L. Alm……….……....... 84

An Overview of the Relationship between Juvenile School Shootings, and the Media

Scott Chenault……………………………………………………………….....101

Assessing, Managing, and Treating Juvenile Sexual Offenders

Ayn Embar-Seddon and Allan D. Pass…………………………………….......112

The Relationship between a “Criminalgenic” Community and Continued Juvenile

Crime Rates

Bruce Wilson……………………………………………………………….......118

Papers from the Transition from Prison to Community Initiative Symposium:

Transition From Prison To Community Initiatives Symposium

Gary B. Kempker…………………………………………………….………...123

The Missouri Re-Entry Process

Tom Clements, Scott Johnston, Julie Rollins, and Mark Stringer…………......127

Is There A Correctional Role In Family Reunification?

Maureen Buell……………………………………………………………...…..134

Forces Of Separation Among Families Impacted By Incarceration

Anne Dannerbeck………………………………………………………...…….139

Prisoner Reentry And Intimate Partner Violence In The African American Community: The Case For Culturally Competent Interventions

William Oliver, Oliver J. Williams, Creasie Finney Hairston,

and Lori Crowder…………………………………………..……........147

PREFACE
Papers from: The April 2004 Conference Impacting Juvenile Justice
The first part of this issue contains the articles submitted from papers presented at the Impacting Juvenile Justice: The Intersection of Approaches Conference presented at Central Missouri State University in the spring of 2004. This conference represents one conference of a series of conferences presented by the Institute of Justice and International Studies, the Department of Criminal Justice and many other departments and groups from Central Missouri State University.

Why a conference about juvenile justice? Why an international perspective and why such an interdisciplinary approach to this topic? Perhaps this can best be explained by the words of Dietrich Bonhoeffer, “the test of the morality of a society is what it does for its children.” Especially it’s troubled children. Representatives of the Institute of Justice and International Studies, the Criminal Justice Department, the Department of Sociology and Social Work and Special Education collaborated to tackle this task.

The formal juvenile justice system in the United States was created in 1899. Most states have recently or will soon experience the centennial celebration of their first juvenile court. The juvenile justice system has never really been without major challenges during its first century. The 1960s reshaped American juvenile justice through Supreme Court decisions, and the past two decades have seen states experience massive juvenile justice changes mandated through legislative action. Juvenile justice does not exist in a societal vacuum nor does it exist only in the realm of the justice arena. Other social agencies – schools, mental health services, faith-based institutions, and the adult criminal justice system – to name only a few, are all involved in juvenile justice functions, policies and outcomes.

The effectiveness of the juvenile justice system has been called into question many times. Today, there is even a call for abolition of the juvenile justice system. The public still fears the coming of the “super predator” and the media seem captivated by juvenile crime that falls well outside of the realm of the normal dealings of the juvenile court, such as the recent trend of school shootings.

This conference focused on juvenile justice – the challenges of youth misbehavior and victimization in society – in fact, in many societies. The conference examined juvenile justice through interdisciplinary and international approaches. The conference brought together academics and professionals from across the world, the United States, and from all relevant areas to discuss these issues.

The articles that follow were some of the articles and workshops presented at this conference. The success of this conference can be contributed to the attendees, presenters, and coordinators. Central Missouri State University has wonderful resources to host such an academic encounter, and the faulty, staff and students from the Criminal Justice Department, Department of Sociology and Social Work and Special Education really stepped up to the plate for this symposium. Without their hard work, belief in the importance of this issue, and dedication to this conference, we would not have been able experience such a successful, thought provoking, and vital experience.

Frances P. Reddington, Ph.D.

Executive Director, Institute of Justice and International Studies

Facilitator, Impacting Juvenile Justice: The Intersection of Approaches 2004
Papers from: The September 2004 Symposium—Transition from Prison to Community Initiative
For the first time in living memory a Presidential State of the Union Address made specific reference to prisoners as a group of individuals needing assistance. George W. Bush on January 20 of 2004 so observed in his speech, and proposed a four-year, $300 million prisoner re-entry initiative to expand job training and placement services to provide transitional housing and to help newly released prisoners get mentoring.

For some time now, the National Institute of Corrections has recognized the continuing phenomenon across this country of the accelerating rate of prisoner release to make more room in overcrowded institutions. As a response the NIC developed the Transition from Prison to Community Initiative. The TPCI was created in 2001 with the assistance of 35 corrections practitioners and academics. These individuals working together created an approach that is a major system change requiring involvement from all parts of government that have an impact on the success of a prisoner’s release. This model calls upon members of the public, community and neighborhood organizations, and criminal justice and human service agencies to be stakeholders in the success of the prisoner transition process.

One of the two original jurisdictions to test the TPCI model is the Missouri Department of Corrections. In 2004, after careful planning, the department and other reentry stakeholders in the state are poised to implement some major changes in the release process and to implement many of its reentry strategies.

Currently this is an auspicious moment for corrections in the United States. In the fall of 2004 the National Institute of Corrections, the Missouri Department of Corrections, and Central Missouri State University hosted a national symposium on re-entry strategies and the necessary inter-agency cooperation. Several hundred individuals attended the Transition from Prison to Community Initiative Symposium, a three-day event, to hear invaluable presentations from experts in the field. Generous and essential financial support was provided by Keefe Supply Company and Correctional Medical Services.

The Institute of Justice & International Studies was fortunate to have worked with several industrious individuals in the planning and organization of this event. These persons include individuals from the Missouri Department of Corrections, George Lombardi, Vicki Myers, Tom Clements, Julie Rollins, and George Keiser from the National Institute of Corrections. This Symposium could not have been possible without the intensive labor provided by many individuals from the CMSU community. Many of the attendees extolled the excellent services provided by the CMSU Office for Facilities and Conference Services and the University Catering staff. This symposium tested the mettle of many generous students, who never fail to provide great enthusiasm and initiative. Specific mention should be made to the unfailing support of the Criminal Justice Department and specifically the department’s office professional, Barbara McNeel who demonstrated the always critical attention to detail during her labors which were indispensable to the success of the Symposium.
Donald H. Wallace, J.D., LL.M.

Facilitator, Transition from Prison to Community Initiative Symposium 2004

INTRODUCTION TO THIS ISSUE
The first section of this issue of the Journal of the Institute of Justice and International Studies is a collection of several of the Impacting Juvenile Justice Conference papers and presentations. The first article is a written account of the very insightful and thought provoking Keynote Address to the Conference. That keynote address was presented by Judge Thomas J. Crowley of the St. Louis City Juvenile Court. The second article by Douglas E. Abrams examines the history of the juvenile justice system and the lessons we should learn from this history. We next examine the juvenile justice systems of two countries, the Netherlands and Australia. Gerard de Jonge provides an over view of the juvenile justice system in the Netherlands, while Rick Sarre discusses the use of family group conferencing in Australia. Frances Reddington presents information about the Missouri Division of Youth Services.

The next two articles examine the relationship between the American juvenile justice system and the educational system. Linda Bigby, Della Heidbrink Luaders, Linda Koehler, and Ann Powell-Brown examine the child’s total needs as they come into the juvenile justice system. Karen Foster, Naomi Williamson, and Dawna Lisa Buchannon discuss how to positively impact literacy for those children who are confined in a juvenile detention center.

The three following articles address some very interesting relationships between the juvenile justice system, the legislature, public and the media. Sloan T. Letmen and Katherine Leslie present an overview of disproportionate minority confinement. Delores E. Craig-Moreland and Katherine Haliburton examine the outcomes when a state adopts a sentencing matrix into it’s juvenile justice system. Deborah L. Johnson, Debra E. Banister and Michelle L. Alm look at transferring youth into the adult system to face adult penalties for violent offenses. Scott Chenault examines the role of the media in juvenile justice by specifically addressing school shootings and media reaction.

This section of the journal closes with two articles that examine unique populations and challenges in juvenile justice. Ayn Embar-Seden and Allan D. Pass discuss risk prediction, assessment and treatment for juvenile sex offenders. And in our closing article, Bruce Wilson investigates the relationship between consistently high juvenile crime rates and the factors in a community that may contribute to continued high delinquency.

*****

Several of the presentations provided at the Transition from Prison to Community Initiative Symposium are included as papers in the second section of this issue. Gary B. Kempker, the Director of the Missouri Department of Corrections places the Transition from Prison to Community Initiative Symposium in historical perspective and discusses how it compares to initiatives undertaken in other areas of criminal justice. Tom Clements and his co-authors, Scott Johnston, Julie Rollins, and Mark Stringer, explain the lessons learned thus far with the efforts made in the Missouri re-entry process. They argue that the focus must always be not on merely building a collaborative team but a collaborative system is the real challenge.

Maureen Buell examines the challenges for correctional facilities to have integrated family programming, finding this to be a critical component for successful integration from prison to community. Anne Dannerbeck finds that major source of support for offenders re-entering society is their families and examines the factors that affect family relationships during the distinct periods leading up to, during, and after the time of incarceration. William Oliver and his colleagues, Oliver J. Williams, Creasie Finney Hairston, and Lori Crowder delineate the intersection of prisoner reentry and intimate partner violence in the African American community and the need for culturally competent interventions to address this important aspect of the transition from prison to the community.


About the Authors
DOUGLAS E. ABRAMS is a law professor at the University of Missouri-Columbia, where his courses include children and the law, family law and civil procedure. He holds a B.A. summa cum laude from Wesleyan University and a J.D. from Columbia University School of Law.  Mr. Abrams is co-author of Children and the Law -- Doctrine, Policy and Practice, a casebook that is required reading in more than 70 law schools. He is also co-author of Children and the Law in a Nutshell, a reference work widely used by practitioners and students.  His latest book is A Very Special Place in Life -- The History of Juvenile Justice in Missouri.  His op-ed articles appear frequently on the editorial pages of leading national newspapers.  He serves on the Missouri Bar Commission on Children and the Law, and he chairs the editorial board of the Journal of the Missouri Bar.  Mr. Abrams is a Fellow of the MU Center for Family Policy and Research. In 1994, he received the Meritorious Service to the Children of America Award, presented by the National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges to recognize his public service.  In 2000, he received a Spurgeon Smithson Award from the Missouri Bar Foundation for outstanding service to the cause of justice.   At the MU Law School, he has received the Professor-of-the-Year Award (voted by the students), the Administration of Justice Award, and the Distinguished Faculty Achievement Award.
MICHELLE L. ALM is currently a graduate student at the University of Missouri – Kansas City working towards a Masters degree in Sociology. She earned her bachelor degrees in sociology and psychology from Central Missouri State University in 2001. Her research interests include urban sociology and social problems as well as, research methods and research misconduct. She has presented several papers in these areas as well as juvenile transfer to the adult court system, runaway behavior, and partnerships between universities and urban neighborhoods. After graduation, Michelle plans to pursue a career in research or program evaluation.
DEBRA E. BANISTER is a Masters of Science in Criminology candidate, University of Missouri – Kansas City. She earned a Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice, West Texas A & M University, 1995. She has been a University of Missouri – Kansas City Law School administrative assistant since 1996. She actively aids in research, and the editing of a legal tax treatise (Aspen Pub.) and legal texts. Her areas of research interest are research methods, law and society. Her research examines neighborhoods, juveniles, and violence and disorder as central to broken windows theory. In addition to the presentation of this article at International Juvenile Justice Conference, Warrensburg, Missouri, March 2004, and the Midwest Sociological Society in Kansas City, Missouri, April 2004, and the American Society of Criminology, Nashville, Tennessee, November 2004, she has presented additional papers at annual meetings. She would like to thank Dr. Phil Olson for his comments and criticisms.
LINDA BIGBY is an associate professor in educational administration at central Missouri state university. Previously serving as the director of special services in the public schools, she has an extensive background in special education and educational leadership. One of the areas of responsibility she has had was the supervision of the educational program in a co-educational treatment facility operated by the family court. She has also worked for the Missouri department of elementary and secondary education, where she served as one of ten special education consultants for the state of Missouri.
Canadian – born, Dr. DAWNA LISA BUCHANAN has lived and worked in the United States for 25 years. An associate professor at Central Missouri State University, she teaches Children’s Literature, Language Arts and graduate courses in literacy education. She is a published novelist, and works as an advocate for multicultural awareness and issues that support the well being and success of children and young adults.
Currently MAUREEN BUELL is Corrections Program Specialist, National Institute of Corrections, Washington, DC. Prior to coming to NIC she served as Director of Women Offender and Family Services with the Vermont Department of Corrections to include early stage design of a women’s prison as well as implementation and oversight of the community-based residential program with wrap-around services for women offenders. Other past roles have included design and oversight of intensive community-based treatment/supervision programs, oversight of a community-based sex offender unit and Probation and Parole Officer. During the 1980's she participated in creation of a national model for supervision of sex offenders in the community utilizing a Relapse Prevention model. She co-authored Supervision of the Sex Offender, Safer Society Press, 1996. She earned a Bachelor’s in Social Work and Masters in Administration and Management.
SCOTT CHENAULT is currently employed as an instructor in Justice Systems at Truman State University in Kirksville, MO.  He holds both B.S. and M.S. degrees in criminal justice from Central Missouri State University, and currently teaches primarily in the field of Corrections.  Scott’s research interests also lie in the areas of Corrections, with a focus on the relationship between education and job performance.
TOM CLEMENTS has over 25 years of experience with the Missouri Department of Corrections. Mr. Clements began his career as a probation & Parole office in St. Louis. He has served as a Unit Supervisor, Regional Administrator, and Chief State Supervisor for the Division of Probation and Parole. Since 19999, he has served as Assistant Director for the Division of Adult Institutions. In his current position, Mr. Clements is responsible for the operations of seven of the state’s adult correctional institutions. Mr. Clements earned his Masters in Public Administration degree from the University of Missouri-Columbia.
LORI CROWDER is the Director of the Institute on Prisoners and Families, a policy and research center at the University of Illinois’ Jane Addams College of Social Work in Chicago. Prior to her work at the Institute on Prisoners and Families she directed the Safe Return Initiative at the Vera Institute of Justice in New York in which she coordinated technical assistance related to prisoner reentry and intimate partner violence in communities throughout the United States. Additionally, she has worked in settlement houses in New York and served as adjunct social work professor at the City University of New York. Crowder received her M.S.W. from the School of Social Work at Columbia University.