With a class of 43, the largest graduating class yet, a group of inmate facilitators and advisors were in a boisterous mood as they prepared the certificates for the fourth graduating cycle of Kid CAT’s (Creating Awareness Together) First Step curriculum on a Sunday evening this spring. The ARC building was set up for a celebration with nametags on chairs for all the graduates as they waited outside the building. As do all groups, the attendees signed in as they filtered into the ARC building. The graduates completed a 28-week three-phase … [Read more...] about KID CAT graduates 43 in its fourth cycle
Youth Offender
Resilience: A key factor in growth
Successful adults who overcame difficult childhoods have one thing in common – resilience, according to social scientists. “The dictionary defines resilience as elasticity, which is the ability to recover quickly, and easily…these images are fine for describing recovery from short-term problems, but they don’t capture how resiliency truly works and feels,” said Dr. Meg Jay, author of Supernormal: The Untold Story of Adversity and Resilience. “The most common childhood adversities aren’t one-time events but chronic sources of stress: … [Read more...] about Resilience: A key factor in growth
Young offenders learn expression through poetry
For nearly 15 years New Earth, a nonprofit organization, has served incarcerated and formerly incarcerated youth throughout Southern California. New Earth provides youth offenders in juvenile halls, group homes and probation camps with a support system and mentorship program. The organization also has a reentry center that caters to the needs of youths ages 13-25 upon their release. “Our first program was just really a poetry program,” Harry Grammer, founder of New Earth, told the San Quentin News. “We wanted to give opportunities to young … [Read more...] about Young offenders learn expression through poetry
USSC Children’s right to counsel
Fifty years ago the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that children have a right to counsel, but many kids in the juvenile system are still left unrepresented, according to a new report. Children of color are disproportionately affected, and they make up a majority of arrests, says the May report by the National Juvenile Defender Center. Other key findings: --Despite the court ruling, “Children in the United States are not guaranteed lawyers.” Only 11 states provide every child accused of an offense with a lawyer, regardless of financial … [Read more...] about USSC Children’s right to counsel
Keep kids out of the system
Several counties in the U.S. have implemented a new program that has helped to keep kids out of the juvenile justice system, according to The Crime Report. Called “System of Care,” the program is “changing the way the county addresses juvenile crime” since it was launched in November, wrote Anne Jungen in Wisconsin’s La Crosse Tribune. The program focuses on kids in school. System of Care “fills a gap between how schools handle misconduct and what the juvenile justice system provides by addressing the [troublesome or acting out] behavior … [Read more...] about Keep kids out of the system
Youth offender who realizes opportunity a little too late
Many youth offenders who find themselves incarcerated at San Quentin fail to recognize the opportunities available to them and end up transferred to higher level institutions due to behavioral infractions. “I didn’t realize what I had here in San Quentin,” said Andrew Joseph Biovin, 21, a youth offender who was deemed a program failure and was transferred out of San Quentin. “Now I want to go to programs and learn all I can. Now, it’s real. Now I care.” In 2013, a new law AB1276, allowed new offenders between the ages of 18 and 23 an … [Read more...] about Youth offender who realizes opportunity a little too late
Dear Kid CAT by Saul Martinez
My name is Saul Martinez and I have been incarcerated for the past 20 years and on Jan. 9, 2018, I was found suitable for parole during my first board appearance. My hearing lasted five hours, and when the time came for the victim’s family to speak, they spoke about pardon and forgiveness. By the time the board announced their decision, they said I no longer posed a danger to society and they found me suitable for parole. I was able to have a successful hearing through a number of groups that I have attended. Of particular importance in my … [Read more...] about Dear Kid CAT by Saul Martinez
CA senators bill baring juveniles from adult courts
Two California senators introduce a bill that would bar prosecutors from trying juveniles 15 years old and younger in adult court. The proposal that would “bar prosecutors from asking that minors to be tried in adult court if they were 14 or 15 years old at the time of their crime….(is) one of several in a package of bills introduced by Sens. Holly J. Mitchell (D-Los Angeles) and Ricardo Lara (D-Bell Gardens),” The Los Angeles Times reported. Other bills proposed by Mitchell and Lara would repeal a one-year sentence enhancement for prior … [Read more...] about CA senators bill baring juveniles from adult courts
Life of crime overturned by positive choices
A variety of rehabilitative programs, including dance, helped Anouthinh Pangthong turn his life around despite a rocky youth and 21 years in prison since the age of 15. “Life in prison can become tedious, doing the same thing over and over. Sparks of violence would break the monotony. When an opportunity came to do something different through dancing, I jumped at the chance. My life has since been anything but ordinary,” said Pangthong. “Dancing really saved my life.” Pangthong, known to his friends as Choy, is the latest Kid CAT member to be … [Read more...] about Life of crime overturned by positive choices
Valley State Prison holds inaugural YOP graduation
Valley State Prison (Chowchilla) celebrated a milestone earlier this year when it hosted its inaugural Youth Offender Program (YOP) graduation. The ceremony recognized 97 young prisoners who lived up to their commitments to complete various rehabilitative programs. The graduates successfully reached their goals of earning high school diplomas or general education diplomas (GED), learning vocation trades or enrolling into college courses, according to the prison press release. The young offenders personally selected the goals that they … [Read more...] about Valley State Prison holds inaugural YOP graduation