Comment on Maine experts lay out alternatives to locking up youth

Maine experts lay out alternatives to locking up youth

A team of researchers published a report Wednesday that aims to serve as a blueprint for the future of Maine’s juvenile justice system. The report, called “ Place Matters,” urges Maine to shift away from confining youth in institutional settings and, instead, invest in a range of programming that supports their ability to live at home. The outline of alternatives starts with prevention programs to help teens build skills and good relationships with adults in their communities, such as tutoring and team sports. When teens do get involved with the law or require deeper interventions, they should not be confined in detention centers, but offered nonpunitive, rehabilitative options at home — from mentoring, to schooling, to mental health and substance use treatments and therapies, according to the report. That vision is in contrast with the state’s current model for addressing youth offenders, which heavily relies on the state’s only youth prison, the Long Creek Youth Development Center. The March 6 report was written by Mara Sanchez and Erica King, both of the Justice Policy Program at the Muskie School of Public Service, and Jill Ward of the Maine Center for Juvenile Policy and Law at the University of Maine School of Law. “Our biggest hope in putting this out there is that it will be a rallying document,” Sanchez said.

 

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