The attorneys came from Kapa‘a Middle School, Friday. “They’re changing so they look more like lawyers,” one parent said while waiting for the rest of the Teen Court program to show up Friday for a mayoral proclamation. Annaleah Atkinson of
The attorneys came from Kapa‘a Middle School, Friday.
“They’re changing so they look more like lawyers,” one parent said while waiting for the rest of the Teen Court program to show up Friday for a mayoral proclamation.
Annaleah Atkinson of Hale ‘Opio, the umbrella agency for the Teen Court program, said, “They don’t need to wear suits, they just need to be presentable.”
According to the proclamation that celebrates September as National Youth Court Month, this is the sixth celebration that feature the outstanding achievements of youth programs throughout the country.
In 2006, more than 120,000 youth volunteered to hear more than 130,000 juvenile cases and more than 20,000 adults volunteered to facilitate peer justice in youth programs, the proclamation states.
The youth court program addresses offenses that might otherwise go unaddressed until the offending behavior escalates. It also helps reduce caseloads for the juvenile justice system.
Additionally, the proclamation states that a fundamental correlation exists between youth service and lifelong community involvement.
Volunteer service and related service learning opportunities in the youth court program enable young people to build character and develop and enhance life skills such as responsibility, decision-making, time management, teamwork, public speaking and leadership which have been proven to be assets prospective employers look for.
On Kaua‘i, the Teen Court program strives to help young people reach their potential as contributing members of our society.
It is one of more than 950 teen court programs in communities across the nation and provides an alternative to Family Court.
Working in partnership with the Office of the Mayor, the Kaua‘i County Prosecutor, the Kaua‘i Police Department, the Fifth Circuit Family Court and the Office of Youth Services, the goal of the Kaua‘i Teen Court program is restorative justice, not punishment, for first-time juvenile offenders, thereby helping first-arrest students avoid further arrests.
Young people between the ages of 10 through 17 who are first offenders are usually referred to the Kaua‘i Teen Court, according to the program’s mission statement.
If the teens are willing to admit their guilt and receive sentencing from a jury of their peers, they will receive a hearing.
Teen Court judges are selected from a pool of participating judges and attorneys and sentences may include letters of apology or referral to counseling or skill-building sessions.
Such sessions include conflict resolution, anger management, substance abuse or family counseling.
All youth serve on at least three juries to complete their sentence.
The Kaua‘i Teen Court program can use either student or adult volunteers. They can use people who act as advisor with skills to offer teens, or as a participant on an advisory council. Other volunteers include those who care about young people and want to support them in making good choices.
