Douglas County, Nebraska is at the forefront of juvenile justice reform.

This article is from the website: Leading Reform – Feb 7, 2024

My cmnt: Here we have repeated the claim that “the adolescent brain works differently than an adult brain”. Having raised children myself (our sons are now 40 and 37 yrs old respectively) we have witnessed firsthand the irresponsibility and lack of sound judgement contained in the brains of young men and women often well into their late 20s.

My cmnt: Given that fact it is the height of irresponsibility on the part of democrats that demanded following the Vietnam War that the voting age be lowered from 21 to 18 and now they are lobbying for the voting age to be lowered to 16! They also pretend that prepubescent teenagers (i.e., children) are mature enough to decide their own gender and to be given life-altering surgeries and drugs to that end.

My cmnt: Democrat hypocrisy knows no bounds. It is well past time that we, the adults in the room, stop listening to the nonsense of the democrat-media-educational complex and start applying common sense once again. Along with raising the legal voting age back to 21 (and even higher – 25 would be more in keeping with the facts) we need to ensure that all young, single male illegal aliens are deported promptly and that all illegal aliens that commit any crimes beyond parking tickets also be deported so that the democrats will not be able to make them into a new hoard of democrat voters who would further destroy our society, culture and freedoms by voting themselves taxpayer funded welfare. Further, any illegal alien who is currently incarcerated should also be deported immediately. And to keep them from coming back we need all of our current immigration laws enforced.

Many juvenile justice systems across America are broken. Youth are treated like adults, despite developmental differences. Minor infractions are criminalized. And low-risk offenders are placed in harsh detention.
But Douglas County, Nebraska is at the forefront of juvenile justice reform.
By investing in prevention and early intervention programs that are age-appropriate, we’re seeing positive outcomes for our young people and a safer community — at a far lower cost.

THE FACTS

• The vast majority of young people age out of delinquent behavior without any interventions when they are positively supported.
• When it comes to decision making and problem solving, the adolescent brain works differently than an adult brain. The prefrontal lobe does not fully develop until age 25.
• Prior detention is a greater predictor of recidivism than carrying a weapon, gang membership, or poor parental relationship.
• Youth are best served in the least restrictive environment, regardless of the underlying offense type.
• Young people with behavioral health or mental health issues simply get worse in detention.
• There is little evidence that detention decreases overall crime in a community.
• Community-based solutions are more effective than system-based solutions.

Worth the Investment

It costs more than $100,000 every year to detain one young person in a juvenile detention facility. Detention of young people is costly and highly ineffective. It harms their physical and mental health, impedes their educational and career success, and puts them at risk for abuse, homelessness, poor health, unemployment and adult incarceration. Addressing the underlying cause of a youth’s behavior is a better public safety return on investment and a more long-term benefit for the youth’s well-being.