Youth Justice Manager Andre Johnson, data and analysis by program analyst Ariel Barak
For more than 35 years, Youth Justice has been active in Dane County. Currently, Youth Justice is comprised of 6 units: Intake, Court Diversion Unit (CDU), Early Intervention Services Unit (EISU), and 3 formal Ongoing units: Intensive Ongoing/High Risk (IO), Northeast Team (NET), and Southwest Team (SWT). We provide intake and assessment of youth, ongoing case management, court related supervision, diversion activities, mentoring, and groups and individual support. Youth Justice also includes the Gang Response Intervention Team (GRIT) which provides group and individual support for youth attached to the 4 Madison Metro School District (MMSD) schools, Verona, Middleton, and Sun Prairie, Sex Trafficking support, Support for 17-25 year olds, and Right Track Work Teams. We also provide a variety of external services/contracts that support youth through employment, restorative justice, sex offender services, intensive supervision, and community service and restitution. Currently around 900-1,000 youth are served annually in these YJ programs by internal staff. In past years (pre-Covid), these numbers were higher, approaching 1,500-1,800 annually.
Youth Justice (YJ) social workers are charged with assessing youth and families who are referred by law enforcement for violations of state statutes. The YJ social worker decides, based on the use of an evidence-based risk and needs assessment (YASI) and Dane County’s own Youth Justice Assessment, whether to recommend Counsel and Release, a formal referral to Juvenile court, or if a Deferred Prosecution Agreement (DPA) can meet the needs of the youth and family. Based on the outcome of the assessment youth are supervised through one of the formal units or the Court Diversion Unit.
If a youth can be served through a DPA then they will be supervised in the CDU. The CDU was formed in 2011 in order to provide improved services for youth under informal supervision and as an attempt to impact the racial disparities that exist in the YJ system in Dane County.
Dane County Youth Justice and Prevention is charged with accepting referrals from law enforcement agencies for youth ages 10-16 who have been referred on state charges to YJP and the District Attorney’s office. YJP staff assess youth and determine the best course of action to best meet their needs as well as protecting the community. A variety of interventions or services may be provided to assist in this area. Dane County, like many other jurisdictions, has seen a decrease in Juvenile arrests and referrals over the last couple of years. This is in part due to the many efforts and interventions that have been implemented over the years as well as a recognition of child brain development and best practices in responding to their behaviors. (Covid also had an impact).
A variety of services and interventions across the continuum of Prevention, Intervention and Interruption are included in Youth Justice work.
Restorative Justice programming - The YWCA and Briarpatch receive funding to provide restorative interventions in the community. This funding supports the development of community based restorative circles opportunities for youth. Through a collaboration with the cities of Madison, Middleton, Sun Prairie, and Cross Plains, we divert 12-16 year olds who receive a municipal citation from the municipal court. These youth are given the opportunity to participate in a restorative circle process prior to the point where it would count as an arrest. The hope is that we can impact the disparity issues that exist at point of arrest and provide a more meaningful response.
