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DJJ Wants Shorter Jail Time For Juvenile Offenders
September 6, 2011
The Department of Juvenile Justice could likely make procedure changes that would allow it to reduce the average length of time youths are locked up in detention by a week on average and save the state more than $4.6 million and reduce beds by 120, according to a new report by a Senate committee.
The agency could make bigger reductions in the average length of stay if lawmakers were willing to change the law to give the agency the ability to release kids who have completed requirements of their program without first getting approval from a judge, notes the interim report, released Thursday by the Senate Criminal Justice Committee.
The committee looked at outside reports by Florida TaxWatch the Southern Poverty Law Center, which said earlier this year that Florida keeps juvenile offenders locked up longer than other states with no corresponding benefit – and in fact may actually increase the chances that kids will commit crimes again by keeping them long after they should have been released.
The committee was charged with trying to reconcile the outside recommendations with opinions about their feasibility for implementation inside the agency and found general agreement in DJJ that the length of stay for many juveniles should be reduced.
“The DJJ supports the Florida TaxWatch/(Southern Poverty Law Center) recommendations to modify the length of stay, especially based upon current research indicating that longer stays in juvenile facilities do not appear to reduce offending and for low-risk offenders, institutional placement increases recidivism,” the report said. “In addition, longer lengths of stay produce little or no marginal benefit and there is no marginal gain from residential placement in terms of averting future offending.”
While the DJJ is proposing that lawmakers remove the requirement that a judge sign off on the department’s release of juveniles who have completed their required program, the committee staff didn’t make any recommendations to lawmakers on the question. Interim reports, however, often form the basis for committee legislation.
By The News Service of Florida
Comments
9 Responses to “DJJ Wants Shorter Jail Time For Juvenile Offenders”
Well Ms. Alice I don’t know if you have ever had a family member Sexually molested or not, but when someone does that kind of thing that should have known better deserves more than two weeks in Jail reguardless to wether they are under age or not. Not every kid who is in DJJ offends again. That is a single persons problem. Some turn out to be outstanding Citizens!!!! Maybe you dont understand plain language.
Can no one read? Or simply not understand plain language? Keeping kids locked up longer INCREASES the chance they will be in legal trouble again. Therefore, it makes sense to decrease their time in lock up.
Some here are apparently advocating for beatings or torture as a way to improve kids. I don’t care to comment on that philosophy, but point out we are talking about time in lockup in relation to future criminal acts.
Are you SERIOUS who knows…..I know a boy whom will be 18 this year that did bad things to a child for 6 months … He did two weeks in DJJ and three years probation…. I dont even think so. They need to be harsher on these kids. It is like they get a slap on the hand and told not to do it ever again and then released. And then you wonder what is wrong with our Society Today!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I find the SPLC to be an interesting group, with an interesting agenda.
I was at DJJ today watching kids practice for Teen court. These kids may stop their crimes if we held them to harsher punishment. First time offenders get off too easy. In my opinion, maybe if we were a little hard on them, they would not want to come back.
I deal with kids every day at work. I see DJJ repeatedly coddle kids who have committed serious offenses. Some they refuse to take even after beating up his/her parents. These kids have told me over and over that DJJ is a joke so they do not fear arrest. People like animals are conditioned to react. Bad experiences dictate that they do not repeat the action. We have taken corporal punishment out of schools , softened punishment for crimes and allowed the youth of this country to run free. I have met parents that believe you spare the rod you spoil the child and those children are a credit to the parents. DJJ is only worried about saving money no the future of these children. They will eventually be inmates in our prisons which will cost us more as tax payers. I guess some would say I;m antiquated but it’s how I see things.
@pm simmons
Your going to take a beating and now so will I, but that being said I agree
with you completely. If they aren’t learning a lesson at home they end up
being our responsibility and then we need to keep them till they figure out
IT JUST AIN’T FUN AND THEY DON’T WANT TO DO IT AGAIN……
@DJJ
If they aren’t learning to not re-offend then you aren’t punishing them hard
enough. Make them sick and scared to death to re-offend and watch how
many you get back then.
How stupid would kids be if they don’t learn in school, so their teachers just
let them go home? Does that make sense to you, it’s the same thing.
I agree with the DJJ, that we should never have sentenced these poor children to time in such an institution. These kids need to be at home in the love of their family, not in jail where they just rot and waste their precious youthful years.
Are you joking? DJJ needs to be harder on theses kids. If not they will be in jail for the rest of there life….kids today have no respect for there elders, cussing up a storm when they get caught doing something “they” said they did not do….Parents lost control of their kids when they could call and say their parents are beating them….and then the parent gets in trouble, kid goes somewhere else for a while….My two children are grown and yes will tell you right quick if you do wrong you might as well get ready…I only had to punish my children a few times…I dared my children to call DJJ, cause it would be at least 20 minutes before they got there and I would make darn sure they got there butt whipped. Some parents need to step up and take care of their children and DJJ needs to harder on kids, cause if not they are going to end up in gray skull. My kids know how to respect other people and if they want something, they worked to get it…not holding a gun to rob someone….I’m very proud of my kids…..and now I will soon be a grandmother.