Transcript What the Research Tells Us about Youth in the Juvenile

Cuyahoga County Strengthening
Communities –Youth (SCY) Project:
Findings & Implications for Juvenile
Justice
David L. Hussey, Ph.D.
Associate Professor
Institute for the Study and Prevention of Violence
Kent State University
Strengthening Communities –
Youth (SCY)
The SCY project (2002-2007, CSAT 3.75 million dollars)
served youth between the ages of 12 and 17 who arrive
at the Cuyahoga County Detention Center as a result
of a new arrest
 Youth are screened for substance use by a
representative from the Public Defender’s office/Juvenile
Division and referred to Catholic Counseling Services
for further assessment using the Global Appraisal of
Individual Needs (GAIN)
 Clinical recommendations will be presented to court
prior to disposition
 Once assessed, youth are referred to an appropriate
level of care for substance abuse treatment and
followed at 3, 6, and 12 months

Demographics
82% male
 53% African-American, 29% Caucasian, 6%
Hispanic/Latino, 11% biracial/mixed, 1%
other
 Average age=15.7 years (range=12-18)
 At least 64% are Medicaid eligible
 About half (54%) live in the city of
Cleveland
 84% 12-month follow-up rate for study

GAIN Mental Health Indices
Moderate
Severe
Range
Internal
Mental
Distress
Somatic
Symptoms
Depressive
Symptoms
Homicidal
Suicidal
Thoughts
Anxiety
Symptoms
Traumatic
Stress
All Youth
90 (39%)
117 (50%)
148 (64%)
57 (25%)
103 (44%)
81 (35%)
Males
64 (34%)
89 (47%)
113 (59%)
42 (22%)
79 (42%)
59 (31%)
Females
26 (62%)*
28 (67%)*
35 (83%)*
15 (36%)
24 (57%)
22 (52%)*
Moderate
Severe
Range
Behavior
ADHD
Complexity
Inattentive
Disorder
Hyperactive Conduct
Disorder
Disorder
All Youth
162 (70%)
123 (53%)
95 (41%)
40 (17%)
163 (70%)
Males
127 (67%)
98 (52%)
73 (38%)
26 (14%)
129 (68%)
Females
35 (83%)*
25 (59%)
22 (52%)
14 (33%) *
34 (81%)
*Statistically significant differences between males and females, p < .05
Lifetime Charges (JIMS Data)

SCY youth were, on average, 14.41 years old at the time
of their first charge

Total charges=2,571 (N=227)

On average, SCY youth had been charged with 10.19
(SD=7.30, median=9) offenses (excluding traffic)

Misdemeanors accounted for the largest proportion of
charges (40%), followed by felonies (30%), traffic
offenses (11%), probation violations (10%) and status
offenses (9%)
Domestic Violence Charges

43% of youth had at least one domestic violence
charge

41% had at least one adjudicated domestic violence
charge

Of the total adjudicated domestic violence charges,
90% were misdemeanor level and 10% were felony
level

A higher proportion of females than males had
adjudicated domestic violence charges
Environmental Risk (GAIN-I)
100%
90%
80%
40.5
41.8
70%
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
76.1
74.4
High
Moderate
57.7
1.8
Environmental
Risk
Low
55.0
3.2
Living Risk
22.0
25.6
1.8
0.0
Vocational
Risk
Social Risk
General Victimization Scale
(GAIN-I)

On average, youth reported the first time
they were victimized they were 11 years
old

Significantly more females than males
report sexual victimization and emotional
abuse at the hands of someone close to
them or that they trusted

Significantly more males than females
report being attacked with a weapon
Child Welfare Involvement (CPS data)




The majority of SCY youth (69%) had at least one
allegation of any type of maltreatment (neglect, physical
abuse, sexual abuse, emotional maltreatment)
Almost half (47%) of youth had a substantiated or
indicated maltreatment incident in their lifetime
On average, SCY youth were 7.7 years old at the time of
first maltreatment allegation
24% of SCY youth had experienced at least one out-ofhome placement (OHP) in their lifetime
◦ On average, youth who had experienced any OHP had 3 out-ofhome placements (median=2)
◦ Most commonly, placement was in foster/adoptive homes or
community residential centers
Victimization

64% of youth report some type of
victimization on the GAIN

47% of youth had a substantiated/
indicated incident of maltreatment

If considered together, 80% of all SCY
youth have a history of some type of
victimization
Youth Cross-System Involvement

Juvenile Justice, Alcohol and Drug, Mental Health,
Special Education, Child Protective Services (CPS)

12% of youth were involved with only the juvenile
justice and alcohol and drug systems

88% were involved in at least one other system

32% involved in 3 systems, 40% involved in 4
systems, 15% involved in all five systems
Youth Cross–System Involvement
System Involvement In Addition to Juvenile Justice and
Alcohol and Drug (N = 232)
Mental Health
131 (56%)
Special Education
67 (29%)
Child Protective Services (CPS) - any contact
Any Allegation
Any Substantiated / Indicated Finding
Any Out-of-Home Placement
173 (75%)
159 (68%)
108 (47%)
56 (24%)
Mental Health and Special Education
41 (18%)
Mental Health & CPS
104 (45%)
Special Education & CPS
57 (25%)
Mental Health, Special Education & CPS
36 (15%)
Average Age in Years
SCY Youth Problem Trajectory
17.0
16.0
15.0
14.0
13.0
12.0
11.0
10.0
9.0
8.0
7.0
6.0
15.7
14.4
13.1
11.0
7.7
DCFS 1st
Maltreatment
Allegation
Self-Reported
Victimization
Self-Reported 1st
Time Drunk or Used
Drugs
1st Delinquent
Charge
SCY Enrollment for
Substance Abuse
Treatment
Discussion & Implications
For juvenile justice youth, mental health,
substance abuse, comorbidity, violence,
victimization, delinquency, and lifetime crosssystem involvement rates very high, strongly
interconnected, and closely related to
identification, assessment, intervention, and
outcomes
 Emerging gender differences impact
assessment and treatment
 High levels of domestic violence and
environmental risk present contextual
challenges in practice
