Boone Co. minority youth more likely to be referred to juvenile detention

Community leaders and officials in Boone County are taking a deeper a look at disproportionate minority contact, which occurs when there is a disproportionate number of minority youth who are referred to the juvenile justice system.

In 2014, the relative rate index for Boone County was 6.3, meaning black youth were 6.3 times more likely to referred to the juvenile office than white youth. In 2015, that number dropped to 5.4. In previous years, Boone County had one of the highest relative rate indices when compared to other counties in Missouri, but has now dropped to around sixth in the state.

Some say the improvements are due to alternative programs in place over the past several years–such as the Juvenile Detention Alternative Initiative–which seek to keep at risk youth out of the juvenile detention system.

“There’s only two reasons why you should put youth in detention. Are they a safety risk? Do they pose a safety risk to the community or the person or property of others? Are they a flight risk are they going to fail to appear in court?”Marcia Hazelhorst, Executive Director of the Missouri Juvenile Justice Association tells ABC 17 News.

There are a number of alternative programs in place–from GPS monitoring with an ankle bracelet to shelter care for youth whose families may have problems.

“We want to see less kids making it to the juvenile court as a consequence. Let’s work with those kids and families at an early stage before you get to that point where you have to make an arrest or have to make a referral and then that starts that court process with the kid,”Rick Gaines, State Disproportionate Minority Contact Coordinator for Missouri Juvenile Justice Association says.

As for why minority youth may be referred to the system more than others? Officials don’t have one specific answer, but they are looking into a number of possible causes.

“Some of the things we think may play into those things are mental health issues, socio-economic status, lack of education maybe or knowledge about the issue by those out here in the community,”Courtney Pulley, Supervisor for the Robert L. Perry Juvenile Justice Center and Disproportionate Minority Contact Coordinator for 13th Judicial Circuit explains.

While there is still more work to be done, community leaders want the public to know their efforts are working.

“We’ve had children who have come through our system and been placed in alternatives to detention…some of those kids have gone on to graduate from high school. Some of them have gone on to college. Some of them have gone on to play sports in college. Some of them are starting their own families even,” Pulley notes.

Those who work with at risk youth are also hoping to change the stigma surrounding them and prove to the community that these kids are worth our efforts.

“There are safe alternatives to detention using community resources and for the most part, youth are successful,”Hazelhorst says.

“At lot of these kids have had really tough lives,” Pulley adds. “A lot of things have contributed to the behaviors so I hope people look at that kid as a whole person and don’t label them just as a bad kid.”