Sussex County Detention Alternatives Has an 88% Success Rate in 2014

The Sussex County Detention Alternatives (Home Detention Program, Home Supervision Program) is headed into its sixth year since its inception in late 2009. Since its beginning, the program has served 225 youths. In the year 2014, 33 youths, 27 males and 6 females, were admitted to the program. While a client is in a detention alternative program, the staff provides daily face to face contact with the clients, 24 hour electronic monitoring through GPS tracking (when applicable), and case management services. They also help link the client to community based services mandated by Family Court. In addition, the staff ensures the client is in compliance with court ordered treatment by removing transportation barriers.

Of the 33 admissions to the Detention Alternatives Program in 2014, 29 clients were successfully released from the program once they were linked to local community providers for a range of services. For example, a client may have been linked to substance abuse treatment, anger management, life skills, or individual counseling, to name a few. Furthermore, all clients supervised by staff appeared at their scheduled court hearings, probation reporting, and court ordered treatment services.

This year Detention Alternatives will be participating in the Juvenile Detention Alternative Initiative (JDAI) development and implementation. To Sussex County's benefit, the Detention Alternatives programs were developed with the anticipation of JDAI being implemented in all 21 counties throughout the State of New Jersey. The focus of JDAI is to support the vision of the Annie E. Casey Foundation "that all youth involved in the juvenile justice system have opportunities to develop into healthy, productive adults" utilizing alternative systems and/or programs other than incarceration. The Casey Foundation reports, since the JDAI inception in 1992, JDAI has repeatedly demonstrated that jurisdictions can safely reduce reliance on secure detention. Currently there are, approximately, 200 JDAI jurisdictions in 39 states and the District of Columbia.