Indiana Supreme Court Justice Steven H. David recently received national recognition for his work with children in court. Justice David was presented with the Annie E. Casey Foundation Juvenile Detention Alternatives Initiative (JDAI) Distinguished System Leadership Award. He accepted the award on behalf of the Court family saying, “My role is easy when you have […]
JEFFERSONVILLE — As part of an ongoing effort to raise awareness of human sex trafficking across the state, Indiana Attorney General Greg Zoeller visited the Clark County Youth Shelter & Family Services facility in Jeffersonville on Tuesday. The center, which provides support services to abused and neglected youth, houses a population that Zoeller said is […]
Some of the most needy youth in the region are not receiving an education they deserve, according to the official in charge of their care. Those teens are confined at Lake County Juvenile Detention Center. Thomas Stefaniak Jr., the senior judge in Lake County’s Juvenile Division, said he believes these tweens and teens should be […]
Juveniles commit crimes for many reasons, and one of the most common is that the juvenile has been a victim. Victimization can include assault, homicide, bullying, robbery, hate crimes, sexual assault, stalking, sibling violence, property theft, family or neighborhood violence and any type of abuse. The National Center for Victims of Crime reports that young […]
The Indiana Judicial Center (IJC) has a link to the updated Juvenile Delinquency Permanency Roundtable Action Plan. It was made available sometime since January 2015, and is much easier to complete than the plan originally issued to probation. You may find it at http://www.in.gov/judiciary/probation/2342.htm.
The conventional graduation ceremonies occurring across Indiana offer an opportunity to recognize an unconventional one. A Columbia City high school is graduating five seniors from a student body of 38 this year – students nobody else could manage, one at a time, without pomp or ceremony, at about half the cost of a public school. […]
NEW ALBANY, Ind. (WHAS11) – Six of Floyd County’s top leaders took a defiant stand in a meeting Monday evening against budget cuts totaling $1.2 million across various departments. Three of the county judges including Judge Susan Orth, chief probation officer Rexann Farris, prosecutor Keith Henderson and Sheriff Frank Loop stood in front of the […]
What happens to a person whose life is one spent in various kinds of trouble and “whacked out” on drugs? For Van Wert native Christine Miller, the solution was to leave that life behind and make a new start following an in-house substance abuse treatment program. “They say you can never move away from your […]
STEUBEN COUNTY, Ind. (WANE) A man was arrested in Steuben County after a probation officer saw materials to make methamphetamine during a home visit. The probation officer contacted the Steuben County Sheriff’s Department and the state meth suppression lab team, during which officers found several more items used to make meth inside the home and […]
Probation Officer Donald Knepple was shot and killed after being ambushed by a man at a counseling center on South Calhoun Street in Fort Wayne. The suspect, a former juvenile corrections officer who had been convicted of attempted child molestation, had arranged a meeting with his counselor and Probation Officer Knepple with the intent of […]
INDIANAPOLIS – The enthusiasm for a major shift away from jailing low-level offenders to local treatment and supervision instead is clear at the Statehouse. But will the money be there when the budget is finalized at the end of April? It is the final question in a criminal justice overhaul that has been in the […]
INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. (Feb. 9, 2015) — A Marion County judge sent a letter to school superintendents urging them to cut down on the arrest of kids at school. Judge Marilyn Moores said that with turnover in administrations and the rise in arrests, she felt it necessary to crack down on an existing policy. “Locking up […]
TIPPECANOE COUNTY, Ind. (WLFI) – A proposed bill would treat juveniles involved in human and sexual trafficking as victims not criminals. The Indiana Attorney General’s office had 100 reported complaints of human trafficking come into their office in 2014. In an effort to curtail these rising numbers, the new bill proposed that if police come […]
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Gov. Mike Pence’s proposal for expanding two state prisons is drawing skepticism from some legislative leaders as it comes just months after Indiana’s criminal sentencing laws changed in part to reduce the need for more prison space. An alternative plan with bipartisan support in the Indiana House calls for directing $50 million […]
Another year ends! The holiday season is the time to look forward and apply past experience to future planning. Realistic planning can be done in 5-year time spans and requires some predictions made with uncertain information. So let’s predict. Probation and parole is a government funded program and subject to the politics of the times. […]
The Clark County Circuit Court Board of Judges has named Jamie Hayden as the county’s chief probation officer, effective Jan. 12. Hayden, a probation officer for 21 years who most recently worked as division chief of its adult probation division, will assume the leadership duties held for the last three years by Henry Ford, who […]
Birdena Lee Oakley was at the peak of her career as an opera singer. “I toured throughout France, Spain, Italy, Germany,” she says. “I went on to perform in different countries such as Switzerland, Poland, Hungary, I traveled all over the world. It was one of the greatest experiences I’ve ever had.” It wasn’t easy […]
Monroe County officials are beginning work on a program they hope will reduce the number of people in the county’s jail and keep offenders from missing court appointment. The Indiana Supreme Court is also keeping an eye the Monroe County program to see if it is an example of a system that can be expanded […]
INDIANAPOLIS | The nitty-gritty work of writing Indiana’s laws most of the time gets done not in the glittering House and Senate chambers, but in dreary, plain committee rooms scattered throughout the Statehouse. It is there representatives and senators go through legislative proposals line byline, make changes they decide are needed and hear the opinions […]
(INDY STAR) — State Sen. Karen Tallian has tried for years to legalize marijuana. The Democrat from Portage, Ind., has introduced bills that would have decriminalized the possession of small amounts of marijuana. Those efforts have so far failed. This coming session, Tallian hopes a more narrowly defined bill to legalize marijuana for people with […]
A new multipurpose computer lab aimed at helping young offenders was to open today at the Allen County Juvenile Center. “The computer lab is part of a larger strategy to get kids on juvenile probation back on track, in school and away from crime,” said Judge Dan Heath of the Family Relations Division of the […]
When Erik May started working as the referee for Howard County Circuit Court’s juvenile court eight years ago, he said it was rare to see children younger than 15 run up against the criminal justice system. “If the juvenile was younger than 13, I’d look at our prosecutor and say, ‘Why the heck am I […]
Bob Bennett turned 65 on Thursday, and on Friday retired with more than 37 years as director of the Lake County Juvenile Detention Complex with a sense of pride and accomplishment. “I’ve talked to thousands of kids over the years and I hope some of them heard me,” Bennett said. “I had a job to […]
He looks like he works there. He’s got an office at New Haven High School with computer, desks, chairs and books. He’s got an athletic build but, with his measured, friendly tone, he reminds one of a thoughtful guidance counselor rather than an employee of the Allen County Juvenile Court. Yet, for 25 New Haven […]
The people on the front line in the struggle to prevent juvenile delinquency met last week to reaffirm their commitment to the community’s youth. Led by Howard Circuit Court Judge Lynn Murray, these individuals signed an updated memorandum to provide education, treatment, and supervision to juveniles. “This is to renew our strategy of systematic information […]
ALLEN COUNTY, Ind. (21ALIVE) — A plan is unfolding here in Allen County to reduce the number of juveniles housed in corrections facilities. It involves a strategy that a local judge insists can save money and protect public safety at the same time. On an average day, 83 juvenile offenders are locked up at the […]
SEBRING — An Avon Park teenager who told authorities he robbed a convenience store clerk to get money to pay his $500 probation fine will spend the next 10 years in prison, a judge decided this week. “I felt like I needed the money to, you know, pay off my probation and stuff,” Jalen Williams […]
SOUTH BEND – Recent budget cuts to the Juvenile Justice Center of St. Joseph County has probate Judge James Fox worried about the area’s at risk youth. The center was asked to cut three percent of the remainder of their 2014 budget, forking over nearly 160,000 dollars. The center is expected to cut even more […]
Carrie Napoleon CROWN POINT — The understaffed criminal courts will be getting five new probation officers, but how the county plans to pay for them remains up in the air. The Lake County Council on Tuesday approved hiring the five new probation officers for a total of $184,801 in salary plus benefits to bring the […]
The fact that the new chief justice of Indiana’s Supreme Court took the oath of office in the court’s cramped but historic law library at the Statehouse was no coincidence. Loretta Rush, the first female to lead the state’s high court, said Monday she picked the location of her ceremonial swearing in with purpose. “I […]
Full Article Fox 28, August 20, 2014 By: Alexi Gray, Multimedia Journalist SOUTH BEND – A big task is underway right now in St. Joseph County. Department heads forced to cut three percent from their budgets. They’re getting down to business, making hard choices about where and how to spend your tax dollars. But there’s a human […]
Full Article Justice Research, U.S. Department of Justice William J. Sabol, Acting Director, NIJ August 2014 Decades of study have revealed much about risk factors for delinquency and crime. Individual characteristics and various factors can increase the probability of offending and may also predict substance abuse, teenage pregnancy, dropping out of school and other problems during […]
Full Article The Republic By Lauren Fitch-Slagter (Kokomo Tribune) KOKOMO, Indiana — One or two nights a week after wrapping up his work day for the Kokomo Police Department, Detective Mike Banush heads out to make some extra rounds. He and five other officers take turns covering four- to five-hour shifts visiting juveniles seven days […]
Full Article ABC News August 6, 2014 Tom LoBianco, Associated Press Loretta Rush, a longtime juvenile court judge who joined the Indiana Supreme Court in 2012, was unanimously chosen as the state’s first female chief justice Wednesday, setting the stage for what could be a long run at the court’s helm. The seven-member Judicial Nominating […]
Full Article Kokomo Tribune (CorrectionsOne.com) July 20, 2014 By Mike Fletcher KOKOMO, Ind. — Sentencing reform aims to reduce Indiana’s prison population, but the law may have the opposite effect on county jails. The reforms passed this year mean to divert low-level offenders away from state prisons and into county jails or community-based programs by […]
Full Article Evansville Courier & Press July 13, 2014 By Mark Wilson EVANSVILLE, Ind. — As Indiana’s criminal justice system has evolved in its approach to rehabilitating offenders the role of probation officers has also evolved. “It’s a lot different from it was 20 years ago. Trail ‘em, nail ‘em and jail ‘em. That’s how we […]
Full Article Journal Gazette By: Vivian Sade July 12, 2014 Money helps county to find options for kids in court system FORT WAYNE – Coming up with alternatives for Allen County juveniles who have broken laws and are now involved in the court system will be a continuing initiative after the county commissioners Friday accepted a […]
Full Article Indianapolis Business Journal Associated Press July 1, 2014 Sweeping changes to Indiana’s criminal code took effect Tuesday that will send more low-level, nonviolent criminals to community corrections programs and jails instead of state prisons, causing concern by some about the financial burden it will put on counties.
Full Article Tristatehomepage.com Indianapolis, IN- Indiana State Police unveil a new link on their meth website. The link lists properties that have previously been identified by law enforcement as the location of a meth lab. This site provides the user with the date of seizure, county, street address, type of lab and location of the […]
Full Article June 12, 2014 WLFI INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — After “inadvertent” or “unintended” mistakes in Indiana’s criminal code, Indiana lawmakers will return to the statehouse next week to make technical corrections to a law set to take effect July 1. Without the changes – they warn – court systems could become bogged down with unnecessary work, […]
Full Article June 10, 2014 Kokomo Tribune Lauren Fitch More than 800 Howard County students missed at least 10 days of school without an excuse in 2012-13, and the prosecutor’s office plans to make parents more accountable for ongoing absences.
