- May 19, 2024
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Florida’s rates of youth incarceration are among the highest in the country, something the state’s Department of Justice is trying to change.
Juvenile Justice Secretary Wansley Walters held a meeting on Tuesday with Flagler County law enforcement officers, juvenile justice workers and community members to discuss the future of discipline for juveniles to decrease the rate of youth arrests.
“We have spent more time and resources on children that we didn't really need to do that with and with the unintended consequences of driving them deeper into the system,” Walters said.
Florida’s juvenile arrest rate is the fourth-highest in the country as of 2010, the most recent year for which data is available, according to the federal Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Program.
A 2007 University of Florida study found that students arrest for low-level crimes were significantly more likely to re-offend for more serious crimes.
Rather than arresting juveniles, Walters said she hopes state law enforcement will implement the civil citation program more frequently. Civil citations are given to first-time, nonviolent offenders as an alternative to an arrest.
Instead of being arrested, youth given civil citations must complete certain requirements, such as counseling or probation, but they avoid amassing a criminal record that would follow them into adulthood for youthful indiscretions.
Walters hopes to move away from a system of incarcerating youth and toward a system of crime prevention among juveniles, as well as behavior correction. There comes a point when arresting youth is not effective, she said.
And, Walters said, students with arrest histories are often excluded from participating in community activities that might prevent them from committing crimes. Additionally, a criminal record can make it harder to find employment later on, also increasing the likelihood of reoffending.
Focusing on mentoring, community programs, treatment and counseling will help youth and, in turn, lower crime rates in the future, Walters said.
According to a Juvenile Justice Department report, Flagler County was classified as having a high level of law enforcement referrals in comparison to its student population in the 2010-2011 school year.
Walters’ sentiments echoed those also expressed by Flagler County Sheriff Jim Manfre, who said in June that he is working to revise arrest reports so that given civil citations is easier for deputies to do. He also plans to increase training in the citation program, he said.
The key, both Manfre and Walters have said, is not creating a future for youth the first time they get into trouble by pushing them into the justice system too early.
“We need to find a way to give children hope for a future,” Walters said. “That’s crucial to crime prevention.”
