June 2, 2015 JDAI Committee Meeting

Audience

Illinois Juvenile Justice Commission JDAI Committee Members and Staff. The public is welcome to attend.

Date/Time

June 2, 2015, 9:30a.m. to 11:00a.m.

Location

401 S Clinton
1st floor
Chicago, IL
823 E Monroe
Springfield, IL

Agenda

Call to Order
Roll Call
Approval of Minutes
Chair's Comments
Detention/Detention Alternatives
1. Project Updates
  1. Juvenile Detention Data Report Update
  2. Transportation Study
  3. Detention Standards/jail standards
  4. IPCSA Partnership
2. Compliance Report
New Business
Next Meeting
July 7, 2015
Adjourn

Minutes

Call to Order
The meeting was called to order at 9:35am.
Roll Call
Chairman Rick Velasquez, Rodney Ahitow, Jacqueline Bullard, George Hill and Ben Roe. Quorum declared present. Guests: Connie Kaiser, Kanako Ishida. Staff: Julie Stremlau, Karima Douglas, Robert Vickery, Dick Walsh and Ron Smith.
Approval of Minutes
Commissioner Hill motioned to approve the minutes from January 6th and March 3rd, Commissioner Bullard seconded the motion. All in favor minutes approved.
Chair's Comments
Chairman Velasquez explained the meeting details and requested to discuss Compliance first.
Detention/Detention Alternatives
1. Project Updates
  1. Juvenile Detention Data Report Update
    Susan Witkin, Senior Research Program Coordinator updated the group on this report. Susan explained the work completed thus far and the next steps. She indicated there are certain areas that "jump out". She inquired as to how the IJJC would handle these areas as the study reviewed grouped targets not specific areas of focus. Major status offender agencies and detention centers that have the longest youth stays were two of the areas noted. The items to discuss exist and depend entirely on what the IJJC finds of interest. Chairman Velasquez requested that Susan Witkin and Rob Vickery review the findings further and choose the areas of interest. He also requested an explanation of those choices at the next JDAI meeting. Executive Director Vickery pointed out that there is a high variability in this detention study due to the population of the different counties. Susan Witkin will compare the 2013 and 2014 data and present her findings to the JDAI Committee at the next meeting.
  2. Transportation Study
    There is no further updates at this time.
  3. Detention Standards/jail standards
    Work continues to update the standards but there is no update at this time.
  4. IPCSA Partnership
    Executive Director, Rob Vickery has not heard from IPCSA recently. In November of last year a response was sent to IPCSA and there has been no action since that time. It appears that nothing has moved forward. The question remains is the IJJC the best entity at this point to work with Casey. The IJJC is still open to a partnership with Casey but there needs to be some measure of effort to move this forward. Another update is requested for the July meeting.
2. Compliance Report
  Executive Director, Rob Vickery explained the Compliance materials in the meeting packet. Jail removal on page 14 for 2014 final numbers was 195 violations. Most occurred in Municipal lock ups. Page 18 indicates 2015 numbers and currently at 116 violations. This number represents only 3 months of reporting. The de minimis is based on population. The JDAI Committee needs to discuss these increased numbers and determine what can be done to address them. The main factors appear to be the 17 year-old felon legislation and the phasing out and end of the Transportation Grant. Ron Smith explained that the need to transport kids out by the 6-hour rule is the issue. Chairman Velasquez believes there should be some analysis of the data. The group discussed the varying issues with Aurora, Jefferson and Franklin Counties. Chairman Velasquez also questioned whether the Juvenile Justice Councils were aware of these issues. JDAI Coordinator Jeff Bradley indicated that the JJC's are aware but there seems to be a lack of cooperation from their stakeholders.
  Compliance Monitors, Ron Smith and Dick Walsh explained a variety of reasons for the violations. They believe the 17 year-old felons have impacted the numbers greatly. Aurora covers four counties and has major gang issues. There are issues with staffing and the small departments that operate in the Franklin County area. Poverty is a factor. It was noted that the urban and suburban municipalities seem to take longer to process youth and the investigation time extends it as well. Cook Counties' bed space has been reduced significantly. There is the difference between the state law and the federal law to consider. JDAI Coordinator, Jeff Bradley stated there is an issue with Jefferson County to the Franklin Detention Center. He explained that in Jefferson County the probation officers complete the detention screenings not the detention staff. He believes more kids are detained out of Jefferson because of the aggravating and mitigating factors the staff determines. He added that if the detention center staff completed the screening the number detained would be lower. The group believes further staff training is needed and more analysis of the data. The JJ Councils need to be aware of the issue and work toward a solid plan of action. Domestic Battery programming and CCBYS providers should focus on these issues. The JDAI Committee will continue to monitor.
New Business
Executive Director, Rob Vickery explained the current plan for the Juvenile Domestic Battery (DB) program. Basically, the IJJC asked ICOY to partner with Cook County, DuPage County and Peoria County CCBYS providers to complete the DB work. A resource guide was developed and we use this information. A report is to be completed by the end of June and will be presented to the JDAI Committee by Wendy Nussbaum of DuPage County and then to the full Commission.
Next Meeting
September 1, 2015
Adjourn
Commissioner Hill motioned to adjourn, Commission Bullard seconded the motion, meeting adjourned at 11:50am.