Juvenile Crime Prevention Evaluation

Phase 2 Interim ReportFindings in Brief

Juvenile Crime Prevention Evaluation

Phase 2 Interim ReportFindings in Brief

April 2003April 2003

Oregon Criminal Justice Commission

Enabling legislation: SB 555 (1999)• The purpose of JCP is to prevent and reduce juvenile

crime• JCP programs utilize research and evidence-based

practices• These practices target youth with 2 or more of the

following factors that put them at risk for juvenile crime: Antisocial behavior Poor family functioning or support Failure in school Substance abuse problems Negative peer association

The JCP approach aims to reduce juvenile crime and associated risk factors: It is working to reduce risk and increase protective factors for targeted youth

JCP provides research-based prevention services to youth at high risk for delinquency, and their families

• Youth must have multiple risk factors for juvenile delinquency

• Communities fund services based on local needs, within guidelines set by JCPAC

• Services include direct interventions, case management, and resources to help families meet basic needs

Research basis of JCP• Over 40 years of research document effective

strategies to prevent and reduce juvenile crime U.S. Department of Justice; U.S. Surgeon General (2001) University of Maryland (Gottfredson) Washington State Institute for Public Policy Loeber & Farrington; Hawkins & Catalano; Latessa Oregon Social Learning Center (Reid, Patterson, Walker) IVDB (Walker et al.)

Research converges on same findings: interventions targeting risk factors for juvenile delinquency reduce juvenile crime

Juvenile Crime Prevention: Oregon’s model

• Basic Services and High-Risk Prevention Services

• All 36 counties participating; working with 9 tribes in development of tribal JCP plans

• Different interventions based on local needs, but all are research based and target the five areas that put youth at risk for involvement in juvenile crime

High Risk Youth Identified JCP Interventions

Intermediate Outcomes:

Risks Decreased;Protective

Factors Increased

Basic and Diversion Services

High Level Outcomes1. Reduce Juvenile Arrests 2. Reduce Juvenile Recidivism3. Stay within OYA bed limit

JCP interventions target risk factors for juvenile crime

Examples from local plans:• Clackamas County: parent training, substance abuse

treatment• Jackson County: tutoring, intensive parenting program• Malheur County: multi-dimensional services• Multnomah County: early intervention for youth 11 years

and younger with a law violation, residential drug and alcohol treatment

• Yamhill County: family functional therapy, truancy program

JCP programs are reaching the right youth

• JCP provides interventions for youth at high risk of delinquency

• Almost 5,000 youth were enrolled in JCP high-risk prevention services in the first year of this biennium (7/1/01 – 6/30/02)

• Participating juveniles have issues in an average of 3 of the 5 risk areas

Who is being served?

• Males: 66% ; Females: 34%

• Average age 14 years (range 7-18)

• White: 70%; Latino: 11.4%; Black: 4.3%; Native American: 3%; Asian: 1.1%; Multi: 1.9%; Other/Unknown: 8.3%

Who is being served?

• Youth have multiple risk domains that need to be targeted

• Many youth have multiple indicators within each risk domain

• 27.8% of youth were rated as having a serious mental health issue

Juveniles have issues in multiple domains that put them at risk of

delinquency2 risk domains

23%

3 risk domains29%

4 risk domains28%

5 risk domains20%

Antisocial behavior Poor family

functioning or support Failure in school Substance abuse

problems Negative peer

association

High Risk Youth Identified JCP Interventions

Intermediate Outcomes:

Risks Decreased;Protective

Factors Increased

Basic and Diversion Services

High Level Outcomes1. Reduce Juvenile Arrests 2. Reduce Juvenile Recidivism3. Stay within OYA bed limit

•JCP youth had reduced risk for delinquency

•Reductions were seen in all 16 risk indicators

Results

JCP reduces risk for delinquency

• By youth:Youth had an average of 43% fewer risk

indicators after JCP services

• By risk indicators:Reductions ranged from 15% to 88%Particularly large reductions were seen in the

anti-social behavior area (72% to 86%)

JCP reduces risk for delinquency

RISK DOMAIN % of risk indicators that were eliminated, Time 1 to Time 2

School Failure 60%

Negative Peers 42%

Antisocial Behavior 78%

Poor Family Functioning

47%

Substance Abuse 43%

Examples of reductions in risk indicators

SCHOOL FAILURE

% of juveniles whose risk indicator was eliminated from Time 1 to Time 2

Academic Failure: Failing 2 or more classes

58% of juveniles

Chronic Truancy: Skips school at least once a week or more than 4 times past month

59% of juveniles

School Dropout: Stopped attending school or not enrolled

58% of juveniles

Changes in Risk Factors

Changes in risk factors from Time 1 to Time 2

63%

16%

21%

Reduced RiskIncreased RiskNo Change in Risk

JCP protects against delinquency

• Youth who participated in JCP programs had increases in protective indicators

• All 10 protective indicators increased over time

• Improvements ranged from 32% to 79%

JCP increases protective indicators

PROTECTIVE INDICATORS

% of juveniles who gained this indicator during JCP

Family actively involved in helping youth succeed in school

42% of juveniles

Has friends who are academic achievers

57% of juveniles

Communicates effectively with family members

54% of juveniles

High Risk Youth Identified JCP Interventions

Intermediate Outcomes:

Risks Decreased;Protective

Factors Increased

Basic and Diversion Services

High Level Outcomes1. Reduce Juvenile Arrests 2. Reduce Juvenile Recidivism3. Stay within OYA bed limit

JCP High-Level Outcomes

• Reduce Juvenile Arrests

• Reduce Juvenile Recidivism

• Stay within Oregon Youth Authority Bed Limit

Juvenile Criminal Referral Rate by Year

7771 70

6358

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100

1998 1999 2000 2001 2002

Rate ofJuvenileCriminalReferralsperThousand

Percent of high risk non-offenders with a subsequent first

referral within 12 months

4.9%

91.1%

4.0%

No New Offense

New CriminalOffense

New Non-CriminalOffense

Reduce Juvenile Recidivism

• Recidivism for JCP participants is lower than other juvenile offenders

• The offenses of JCP program youth were less serious and less frequent than before their JCP intervention.

• There has been a reduction in the recidivism rate of first time offenders.

Pre-Post Comparison of Criminal OffendingPercent of juvenile department referrals with criminal referral

12 months before and 12 months after enrollment in JCP Prevention services

79.0%

28.3%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

Pre-enrollment Post-enrollment

CriminalOffenses

Re-offending by Youth with Prior Criminal Referrals: JCP Youth, Compared to Youth Offenders Statewide

42.2%

28.3%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

All Youth Offenders JCP Youth Offenders

Committed new crime

Demonstrated Benefits of JCP

• Reductions in youth problem behaviors and other risk factors that put youth at higher risk of juvenile justice involvement

• Increases in protective factors that prevent youth from juvenile justice involvement

• Increased public safety due to reductions in juvenile recidivism