TRENTON
- The State of New Jersey has been selected
by The Annie E. Casey Foundation, a Baltimore-based
private charitable organization, to participate
in its Juvenile Detention Alternatives
Initiative (JDAI). JDAI is a reform project
that works to establish more constructive
and effective approaches to juvenile detention.
The JJC will coordinate the efforts of
multiple stakeholders at the state and
local level in examining New Jersey's
youth detention system.
In addition to a $200,000 annual grant,
the Casey Foundation will provide the
JJC with technical assistance on various
detention reform strategies as well as
opportunities to participate with and
learn from colleagues in other jurisdictions.
The JJC's formal participation will begin
on January 1, 2004. Atlantic, Camden,
Essex and Union Counties have been selected
to be a part of this comprehensive detention
reform effort.
"As
Governor, I have prioritized children's
issues to fundamentally improve the safety
and care of NJ's children. Tough problems
like overcrowding and overrepresentation
of minority children in detention, and
children in the custody of DYFS awaiting
placement in detention will not be ignored,"
said Governor James E. McGreevey. "I
am very pleased with Howard Beyer's leadership
at the Juvenile Justice Commission, including
his work in bringing the Annie E. Casey
Foundation to expand its presence here
in NJ by bringing successful detention
reform strategies to bear. We all recognize
that child welfare reform will not succeed
without looking at the juvenile justice,
DYFS, and children's mental health systems."
"The
Annie E. Casey Foundation is a national
leader in the field of juvenile detention
reform," said Howard L. Beyer, Executive
Director, Juvenile Justice Commission.
"For the first time in New Jersey,
the JDAI Project will bring together all
of the stakeholders - the juvenile detention
centers, the courts, the public defender,
local law enforcement, the Attorney General,
the Child Advocate, the Department of
Human Services, and the JJC to make sure
that appropriate juveniles are in detention
and that effective alternatives are in
place. By working together, we can reduce
overcrowding at juvenile detention centers
and ensure that juveniles have the opportunities
to become productive adults."
"The Annie E. Casey Foundation is
pleased to be working with the New Jersey
Juvenile Justice Commission. This agency
has demonstrated a strong commitment to
work with county governments to improve
this component of the juvenile justice
system," said Bart Lubow, Director,
Program for High Risk Youth and Their
Families, Casey Foundation, "JDAI
requires the implementation of a variety
of strategies designed to make the juvenile
detention system smarter, fairer, more
efficient and more effective. The Casey
Foundation is happy to be making a difference
in the State of New Jersey."
Since 1948, The Annie E. Casey Foundation
(AECF) has worked to build better futures
for disadvantaged children and their families
in the United States. The primary mission
of the Foundation is to foster public
policies, human service reforms, and community
supports that more effectively meet the
needs of today's vulnerable children and
families.
The Juvenile Detention Alternatives Initiative
(JDAI) began in 1992. The objectives of
JDAI are to reduce the number of children
unnecessarily or inappropriately detained;
to minimize the number of youth who fail
to appear in court or reoffend pending
adjudication; to redirect public funds
toward successful reform strategies; and
to improve conditions of confinement.
This well-documented system reform project
has demonstrated in multiple jurisdictions
how to safely reduce reliance on secure
detention for juveniles.
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Realizing
Potential & Changing Futures
