Idaho Juvenile Detention Centers

The state of Idaho has several juvenile facilities run by both the state (Department of Juvenile Corrections, DJC) and the county. The two largest county run facilities are the Ada County Juvenile Detention Center and the Canyon County Juvenile Detention Center. They are similar to adult jails with cells and prison clothing and supplies. The state run programs are programs to which a judge may "commit" a juvenile if s/he finds it to be best. After a juvenile has been committed they stay for about seven days in the detention center of their county, and then depending on the region in which they live they are transported either to a building called JCC Nampa which contains Observation and Assessment (OnA is what the residents and most other people call JCC Nampa) which is located in Nampa, Idaho, JCC Lewiston which is located in the city of Lewiston, Idaho or JCC St. Anthonys which is located in the city of St. Anthony, Idaho. After a juvenile goes to OnA they are sent to the state run program deemed best for them.

Ada County

Ada County is a county-run facility.

The center in Ada County has cell blocks with single rooms which include a thin mattress, a pillow, a metal sink which is connected to a metal toilet, two sheets and two blankets, one pillow and pillow case, a small vent and a small window which is positioned to be difficult to see through but to allow light inside. Once a prisoner arrives at the Ada county center he is pat searched and logged into the system. He is then strip searched if he has been there before. The guards, called staff, do not touch the inmates but do observe them to ensure no contraband comes in. Immediately after the strip search they are given a few minutes to shower, and then are issued a pair of blue pants, a green Tee Shirt, and white tennis shoes, in addition to white velcro shoes for gym time, and also white socks and generic white boxers.

Inmates placed on suicide watch are issued very different items. Those inmates are then escorted to a cell which is about four locked doors away from the entrance room. In the cell is a small paper cup, a small cup of toothpaste, a comb, a small bar of soap, and two books or magazines, and, if desired, an additional religious book. When first entered there is nothing in it but a thin green fire-proof mattress. Inmates are given clean bedding. During the booking process juveniles are given a handbook with the rules that they are expected to follow. Failure to follow these rules may result in disciplinary actions.

Canyon County

The Southwest Idaho Juvenile Detention Center is a division of Canyon County Idaho and is located in the city of Caldwell. The facility was established in 1992 and has been administered by Director Steven Jett since its inception. While the facility has the ability to house 90 juveniles, the average population is around 60-70% of its maximum capacity. The facility provides a range of helpful services which are aimed at developing the physical, emotional, and social development of the juveniles that have found themselves on the wrong side of the law. The philosophy and goals of The Southwest Idaho Juvenile Detention Center are based on the ‘Balanced Approach’ which focuses on protecting the community by holding juveniles responsible for their actions, while helping them develop skills that will aid them as they mature into adults.

Other county run facilities

Idaho has several smaller juvenile detentions, but the one in Canyon County and the one in Ada County are the largest of them. Additional and smaller juvenile detention facilities are located in Coeur d'Alene, Minidoka, Twin Falls, Lewiston and various other cities in Idaho.

JCC Nampa, Observation and Assessment

Observation and Assessment is a state run facility.cite web | title=IDJC report | url=http://dfm.idaho.gov/Publications/BB/PerfReport/PR2003/perf285.pdf | accessdate=10 August | accessyear=2006 (PDF format) ]

OnA is different from a detention center in a few ways. Juveniles still get a private cell, but the way the cell is designed is different. It has a polished metal mirror bolted to the wall of each cell, and a porcelain sink and toilet combo which has a different design than the ones at most detention centers in Idaho. Also some of the doors at OnA are made of thick wood instead of metal. Besides for these differences however the facility looks similar to a standard Idaho Detention Center. OnA is where all juveniles who get committed go, so it is a mixing pot of people with various types of crimes. Some common crimes are armed robbery, Gang related assaults, drug possession and distribution, rape, child molestation, aggravated assault, assault on an officer, "Drive Bys", burglary, and less commonly habitual offenders who have not committed very serious crimes but whom committed less severe crimes frequently. The ages at OnA range from around twelve to around seventeen, much less commonly an older or younger person may end up at OnA however. When juveniles are at OnA they receive a battery of tests which assess their risk level. They are also under constant observation of staff and are logged on at all times. After being at OnA for about one month juveniles are given an ICLA and/or a PAR which is a form of Risk Assessment.cite web | title=PAR information | url=http://www.idjc.idaho.gov/docs/Publications/IDJC%20Progress%20Assessment-Reclassification.pdf | accessdate=10 August | accessyear=2006 (PDF format) ] Depending on the ICLA/PAR level of the juvenile, availability of facilities and location of the juveniles home they are then sent to a "Rehabilitation Program."

5-C (Five County)

Five County is a county run facility that contracts with the state of Idaho and the Federal Bureau of Prisons.

Five County, better known as 5-C, is a detention center, rehabilitation program, and Federal Bureau of Prisons holding center located in St. Anthony’s. It has a design and cells which are very similar to a jail with multiple cellmates in each room and a shared toilet in most of the cells. It has a fence with barbed and razor wire stretched across the top of it, and has several locked metal doors through out the building. Five County runs the same treatment program as the Youth Ranch Campus does (A mixture of T-FAC and Equip) but it has additional MRT drug and alcohol abuse classes. 5-C is for very high risk to medium high risk juveniles. 5-C mixes federally charged prisoners under the age of twenty-one with state committed individuals under the age of twenty-one. 5-C also has a separate jail section for the local juvenile delinquents who are imprisoned only temporarily on a county level. The county juveniles in 5-C have virtually no contact with the state and federal juveniles and are all under the age of eighteen. 5-C has a very high level of gang activity but a relatively low level of reported physical assaults. 5-C has virtually no contraband or drugs as it has very high security, although on occasion drugs are smuggled in. 5-C runs on a phase system, and state committed juveniles on higher phases that demonstrate good behavior can sometimes leave the facility to do community service. State juveniles nearing the end of their stay who are on high phases may sometimes leave the building on community passes for brief periods of time. On much rarer occasions federally charged juveniles can leave the facility to do community service, but in order for this to happen the staff on duty often are required to be armed. Juveniles at 5-C shower in groups of three in a small room but they have an amount of privacy provided to them by the design of the shower room. The average stay for a state committed juvenile at 5-C is nine months to one year, the average stay for a federally imprisoned inmate varies tremendously but is approximately two years (Although very rarely will the imprisoned juvenile stay at 5-C for their full time.) Occasionally a federally imprisoned juvenile will go to 5-C who has over twenty years of time left to serve.

St. Anthony’s Campus

St. Anthony's is a state run facility.cite web | title=IDJC report | url=http://dfm.idaho.gov/Publications/BB/PerfReport/PR2003/perf285.pdf | accessdate=10 August | accessyear=2006 (PDF format) ]

St. Anthony’s campus is located in the town of St. Anthony’s and is for higher risk Juveniles. It is the largestcite web | title=IDJC report | url=http://dfm.idaho.gov/Publications/BB/PerfReport/PR2003/perf285.pdf | accessdate=10 August | accessyear=2006 (PDF format) ] state run youth correctional facility in the state of Idaho with over one hundred youth incarcerated in its borders. St. Anthony’s has no fences and the campus is set up with several small cottages. Each cottage holds one or more groups of up to twelve juveniles. The St. Anthony’s program uses a PPCcite web | title=IDJC report | url=http://dfm.idaho.gov/Publications/BB/PerfReport/PR2003/perf285.pdf | accessdate=10 August | accessyear=2006 (PDF format) ] (Positive Peer Culture) style of programming and also teaches T-FAC classes. St. Anthony’s has a drug treatment program but it is fairly generic and not one of the better ones in the state. St. Anthony’s has one cottage which is dedicated to sex offenders. At St. Anthony’s the juveniles in most cottages shower as a full group of up to twelve. One exception to this is in the sex offender cottage where juveniles shower individually. St. Anthony’s is the only state run program in the state of Idaho in which juveniles are both allowed and encouraged to physically restrain the other juveniles if they become uncooperative (Although this happens at many other programs it is only allowed to happen at St. Anthony’s.) St. Anthony’s has a broad mixture of juveniles, but it has a significant level of gang activity (varies depending on the individual cottage). St. Anthony’s rarely has contraband or drugs smuggled into it. Juveniles at St. Anthony’s frequently leave the campus as a group for community service but virtually never leave the campus for individual community passes. The average stay at St. Anthony’s is approximately eighteen months.

C.H.O.I.C.E.S.

Choices is a state run facility.

Choices is located in the same building as Observation and Assessment, in Nampa Idaho. C.H.O.I.C.E.S. (an acronym which stands for Creating Honest, Open Individuals Choosing Enduring Solutions) is a program which focuses on juveniles who have very serious drug and alcohol problems and a wide range of risk levels, although the average juvenile in Choices often has a medium to high risk level. Choices does not use the PPC or EQUIP style of programming but rather uses a unique mixture of TASC (Thinking And Self Change) and Hazelden drug and alcohol rehabilitation books. Choices used to do RSAT programming but no longer receives funding. Choices focuses almost exclusively on drug and alcohol problems and the vast majority of programming at the Choices facility reflects this. Choices is made up of three groups which are housed in three different pods, A, B, and C pods. Each pod has up to twelve juveniles in it, and Choices can hold a total of thirty-six juveniles. The three pods are divided into twelve cells each. The cells at Choices are very similar to the cells at Observation and Assessment, but only C-pod has private toilets and sinks located in the cells, and a semi-communal shower (three shower stalls divided by concrete walls). The other pods have two toilets and two completely separate showers. Choices has a significant level of gang related activity and has had illegal drugs used with in its borders on several occasions. Choices uses a level system and juveniles who achieve a high level are allowed to leave the program on community service and home passes. In following the restorative justice model, community service passes are granted to the highest functioning juveniles in an attempt to give something back to the community (as well as fulfill court ordered CS hours, and are a requirement for graduation from the program). Home passes are also granted only to the highest functioning juveniles in the program, in hopes that the juvenile will be able to build, or re-build bonds with their families. The average stay at Choices is nine months to a year but occasionally juveniles will stay for as long as eighteen months. Choices once received government funding called RSAT which would not allow a juvenile to stay longer than one year, but Choices no longer receives this funding and now juveniles can stay for over one year of time.

Three Springs

Three Springs is a program for (often nonviolent) sexual offenders and is located in Mountain Home. It should be noted that there are also other Three Springs programs for Unruly children in various parts of the eastern United States.

Other state run and contracted facilities

Brown Schools/Loral Ridge

(Contracted by Idaho located in Texas) (Predominantly for sex offenders and juveniles with violent anger problems.)

Family Table

facilities in Meridian and Eagle.

3-B

(Mission Statement)The 3-B Juvenile Detention Center is committed to providing a clean, secure, safe environment, for youth placed within the facility. It is the intent of the 3-B Detention Center to utilize a balanced approach of providing accountability, communityprotection, and building competency skills.(History) The facility was built in 1997 and provides detention services for 3counties with over 20,000 youth. Detention beds are used for temporary placement of juveniles ranging in agefrom 10-17 years old who require secure custody for their own or the community's protection.(3-B PATHFINDERS TREATMENT PROGRAM DESCRIPTION)During June of 1999 a Treatment Program began at 3-B Juvenile Detention Center. The philosophy of the 3-B Pathfinders Treatment Program is to hold the juvenile offender accountable and responsible to their community and victims for their inappropriate behavior, utilizing the “Balanced Approach”. The Program provides Competency Development by utilizing a community collaboration of resources. The Program provides an intensive multi-disciplinary approach in treatment planning. The program currently has ten beds dedicated to treatment. It is a collaborative effort between the 3-B Detention Center, County Probation, Courts, School Districts, and the Idaho Department of Juvenile Corrections. The program is designed to address issues of substance abuse/dependency, gang and other criminal behaviors in adolescent males as well as addressing academic re-mediation. Treatment is based on a behavioral / cognitive foundation with a strong family component. This program admits individuals with criminal history or behaviors that have affected life areas such as housing, social, educational, family, vocational, life skills, and living in the community.

Idaho Youth Ranch

The Idaho Youth Ranch is a non-profit, nationally accredited (Council on Accreditation - COA), multi-service charity that has been in existence for 53 years. The agency is governed by a volunteer Board of Directors and is mission-based and value-driven in its decisions and practices. As a result IYR exists for the purpose of “providing troubled youth and families a bridge to a productive, responsible future” (excerpted from the IYR Mission Statement).

Agency programs are: adoptions, alternative education, foster care recruitment and training, vocational training, family counseling, case management, aftercare, independent living services (residential and case management), crisis shelter, community-based group homes (one specializing in independent living, and one specializing in substance abuse treatment) and a 56-bed residential facility (550 acres, site of the original “Ranch”). IYR also owns and operates 23 thrift stores throughout Idaho that serve as an additional resource for families, an employment opportunity for youth in our programs and an agency source of revenue.

Referral sources are: Idaho Department of Juvenile Corrections (DJC), Department of Health and Welfare (DHW), Idaho Department of Vocational Rehabilitation, county probation, education, private agencies (i.e., shelters, residential facilities, hospitals), states outside Idaho, and directly from families. IYR has experience working with a range of presenting problems and issues including: out of control behavior, substance abuse, family dysfunction, physical and sexual abuse, mental health, delinquency, homelessness, employability and educational deficits.

Revenue sources are: state and county contracts, state and federal grants, private donations, fundraising, thrift sales, endowment and earnings. Administrative expenses account for 12% of the total agency expenses (including fundraising). The Idaho Youth Ranch is a fiscally sound, practical and frugal organization, with diverse funding to sustain agency operating expenses.

For fiscal year 2006, over 1,800 Idaho youth and families were served through IYR programs and services. The Idaho Youth Ranch understands the importance of a continuum of care to meet the diverse needs and presenting problems of Idaho's at-risk youth and families. When possible, client-families benefit from multiple IYR programs in response to need and at times when some of the IYR services in the plan are not part of any contract, grant, or fee-for-service reimbursement. IYR, as a charity, has been able to absorb service costs when possible to respond to the needs of youth and families rather than have decisions solely bound by restricted revenue sources.

Of the youth and families served by the Idaho Youth Ranch in FY06:
*47% came from homes in which the parent(s) were on some form of public assistance
*56% came from a home in which one or both parents had a substance abuse problem
*45% came from homes in which one or both parents had a criminal record
*75% had been physically and/or sexually abused
*30% had a history of suicide attempts
*47% had a substance abuse problem
*61% were placed due to delinquent or out-of-control behavior
*49% had a history of physical aggression
*55% had committed one or more criminal offenses (non-status offenses)
*62% male; 38% female
*78% Caucasian; 13% Hispanic; 4% Native American; 1% African American; 4% unknown
*Average age of youth in residential programs was 15.5 years old
*Average age of youth in non-residential programs was 12.7 years old

The Idaho Youth Ranch measures effectiveness and performance through a variety of methods. At one year post-services:
* 95% of the youth progressed academically
* Youth, parents and referral sources were “very satisfied” with the services received (average score 6.27 of 7)
* 80% of the youth were still in their homes
* 27% of the youth recidivated (misdemeanors and/or felonies)

Please see http://www.youthranch.org for agency and contact information

Intermountain

Also a mental hospital, juveniles are rarely committed to this facility.

Patriot Center

Located in Emmett, Idaho.

Juvenile Corrections Center Lewiston

A lockdown facility located in the northern Idaho city of Lewiston. Often has juveniles with anger problems stay for programming. Also an OnA like program.

Northwest Children's Home

Northwest Children's Home is a residential treatment center in Lewiston, Idaho for children with emotional disorders, with facilities in Lewiston and Nampa. It was founded in 1908.

References

*The Idaho Department of Juvenile Corrections
*The Idaho Department of Juvenile Probation
* [http://www.youthranch.org Idaho Youth Ranch]
* [http://www.northwestchildrenshome.org Northwest Children's Home]
*http://dfm.idaho.gov/Publications/BB/PerfReport/PR2003/perf285.pdf
* [http://www.idjc.idaho.gov Idaho Department of Juvenile Corrections]
*http://www.ncjj.org

Notes