JUVENILE PROBATION-Detention Alternative Initiatives

JUVENILE PROBATION AND COURT SERVICES DEPARTMENT
Detention Alternative Initiatives

Court Notification	Evening Reporting Centers
Community Outreach Supervision	Sheriff's Work Alternative Program for Juveniles (S.W.A.P.)
Detention Screening	Electronic Monitoring Program
Home Confinement	Staff Secure Shelter

The Juvenile Probation and Court Services Department's continuum of detention alternative programs has earned the Circuit Court of Cook County designation as one of three model learning sites by the Annie E. Casey Foundation for court jurisdictions nationwide. The following programs enable the court to divert minors from detention into constructive community-based counseling, treatment and residential care.

Court Notification
All minors' households are given written and telephone notice in advance of every court hearing during the pre-adjudication stage of proceedings. For more information, click here.

Community Outreach Supervision
Community-based agencies provide advocates who perform court-ordered supervision of pre-adjudicated minors for up to ten hours per week through recreational or social activities. For more information, click here.

Detention Screening
A criteria-based assessment instrument is used to determine which minors who have been identified by police will require secure detention for up to 36 hours pending a judicial hearing. For more information, click here.

Home Confinement
Minors who have been released from custody under a judicial order of home confinement receive daily supervision from a team of two probation officers, including evening, weekend and holiday visitation. The purpose of Home Confinement is to expand the Department's vigilance over minors, deter delinquent behavior and enhance community protection. The program is reserved for pre-dispositional minors whose activities beyond home, school and religious or medical purposes are restricted. A minor must meet certain criteria for the court to consider an order of home confinement. For more information, click here.

Evening Reporting Centers
Minors who would otherwise face a term of secure detention can be referred to Evening Reporting Centers by judicial order. The Evening Reporting Centers are community-based alternative detention sites that operate in partnership with sponsoring social service organizations. The centers provide nonviolent minors with highly structured and well supervised group activities during high risk periods. The program's goal is to reduce the likelihood of re-arrest and to allow minors to continue to attend school and remain at home. Juveniles are supervised five days per week from 4:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. in five Chicago locations and one suburban location. Professional staff members offer minors educational activities, recreational programming and life development workshops. For more information, click here.

Sheriff's Work Alternative Program for Juveniles (S.W.A.P.)
Minors who would otherwise face a term of secure detention can be referred to the S.W.A.P. program by judicial order. Referrals to this program are limited to Municipal District One (Chicago). Nonviolent male probationers between the ages of 13 and 17 in this alternative program perform simple cleaning or maintenance projects in and around city parks under the supervision of Cook County Sheriff's deputies. S.W.A.P. participants are organized in small groups which maintain a 5:1 ratio of juveniles to Sheriff's deputies. A parent or guardian must sign a formal consent authorizing a child's participation in S.W.A.P. Juveniles participate in S.W.A.P. for the same number of days (5 day minimum - 30 day maximum) as they would otherwise be detained in the Cook County Juvenile Temporary Detention Center. During the summer, juveniles participating in S.W.A.P. work Monday through Saturday from 8:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. This schedule is adjusted during the school term to allow participants enrolled in school to log hours on the weekends and after school. For more information, click here.

Electronic Monitoring Program
Electronic monitoring can be ordered by the court as an alternative to secure detention for nonviolent minors who have violated probation, home confinement, evening reporting, a work alternative program or have committed a new offense. Minors must reside in households with adult supervision and a "no-frills" working telephone. Participants wear monitoring bracelets electronically linked to a transmitter/receiver installed in the household phone line that immediately alerts the probation officer if the minor ventures outside. Any report of tampering with the electronic monitoring equipment prompts an immediate investigation which could result in the arrest of the minor and detention in the Cook County Juvenile Temporary Detention Center. For more information, click here.

Staff Secure Shelter
In conjunction with outside agencies, the Juvenile Probation and Court Services Department operates two temporary shelters for juveniles who would otherwise be detained at the Cook County Juvenile Temporary Detention Center. The Manuel Saura Center was established in 1995 for male offenders and Maryville at St. Malachy's was established in 1999 to provide gender specific shelter care exclusively for girls. Placement in these shelters is limited to 15 days unless extended by court order. Minors who are placed in either of these shelters include: juveniles whose circumstances merit this alternative to detention, minors who have not been successfully reunified with a parent and detained minors within 30 days of placement into a long term non-secure setting. While at the shelter, minors receive educational instruction, recreation, living skills, counseling and transportation to court and other required appointments. For more information, click here.