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Juvenile & Youth Services
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The Juvenile and Youth Services Department administers the County's juvenile justice system of care from prevention to adjudication of juveniles and includes community re-integration of returning juveniles. The Department's responsibilities include detention custody and care, residential treatment, and community-based services for Wayne County youth who have had formal contact with the Family Division of the Wayne County Third Circuit Court. The Department also provides prevention services designed to assist at-risk youth avoid formal court action, reduce delinquency adjudications, and help youths remain engaged in school and their communities.
The Department consists of three divisions:
(Juvenile and youth services functions were formerly in a division in the Health, Human and Veterans Services Department)
The Juvenile Institutional Care Services Division
The Juvenile and Institutional Care Services Division oversees institutional services for adjudicated delinquent and pre-adjudicated Wayne County juvenile detainees. The Division's responsibilities include operating and managing the Wayne County Juvenile Detention Facility (JDF). The JDF is a secure residential facility designed to provide temporary custody and short term stabilization of juveniles while awaiting adjudication after being charged with a crime and/or while awaiting a residential placement after adjudication. The Division operates JDF on a 24-hour / 7 days-a-week basis and is responsible for ensuring that JDF operates in compliance with State of Michigan Child Welfare License rules and standards.Through this Division, the County contracts with third-party providers licensed by the State of Michigan to provide juvenile detention services for delinquent juveniles and other youths who are assigned to detention by the Third Circuit Court's Family Division. The Division also contracts with licensed third-party providers to provide long-term residential treatment services that comply with State of Michigan Child Welfare License rules and standards.
This Division also oversees and manages the Warrant Enforcement Bureau (WEB), which is an InHome Detention program (supported by electronic monitoring) that is used by the Third Circuit Court's Family Division as an alternative to secure out-of-home detention for pre-adjudicated and adjudicated juveniles. The WEB is supported by the Wayne County Sheriff's Office and operates in close coordination with Third Circuit Court's Family Division jurists, the County's Care Management Organizations (CMO), and other community partners.
The Juvenile Community-Based Services Division
The Juvenile Community-Based Services Division oversees and manages community-based programs for Wayne County juveniles who have formal contact with the Family Division of Third Circuit Court, in accordance with a Memorandum of Understanding between the County and Third Circuit Court. Services provided by the Division include programs designed to deter youth from having formal contact with the court system.The single point of entry for access to appropriate services for all juveniles in the County's juvenile justice system of care is the Juvenile Assessment Center (JAC). Through the Juvenile CommunityBased Services Division, the County contracts for administration and management of the JAC, which follows an assessment process that ensures uniform and comprehensive screening of juveniles and their families. The JAC monitors each juvenile's level of care (home-based or residential) selected by the CMO and reviews each youth's progress at specified intervals. The JAC also monitors courts orders to insure the CMO's adherence to specific conditions.
Through this Division, the County also contracts with Care Management Organizations (CMOs) to provide and manage court-mandated juvenile justice services for Wayne County juveniles and their families. A CMO serves as the lead agency for a defined service delivery area (aligned by zip codes) and is responsible for developing a locally organized network of services and resources for adjudicated juveniles and their families, including community-based and residential placement options for juveniles.
Through this Division, the County also contracts with community-based agencies located throughout Wayne County to provide Youth Assistance Programs (YAP). YAPs provide a range of services designed to prevent and deter at-risk youth from entering the juvenile justice system. YAP services include but are not limited to peer-to-peer counseling; tutoring; substance abuse education; domestic violence and intervention education; as well as training for conflict and anger management, employability, and leadership skills.
Prevention and Diversion Services Division
The Prevention and Diversion Services Division administers "First Contact" programs, which are designed to deter youth from having contact with the formal juvenile justice system and out-of-home placements. Through this Division, the County contracts with a variety of community-based agencies that offer a wide range of programs, including early childhood intervention; family crisis counseling; mentoring; tutoring; school truancy reduction; financial literacy, substance abuse, domestic violence, and intervention education; forensic interviewing, career development and job readiness training.This Division also administers the "Right Trac" diversion program for at-risk youth who encounter the juvenile court system. Under the Right Trac program, youth are screened redirected from the justice system to appropriate services that promote the goals of accountability and personal responsibility. Youth in this diversion program may avert formal charges by successfully completing a YAP. Eligibility for participation in the Right Trac diversion program is determined by the Wayne County Prosecutor's Office.
