Hawaii County Comprehensive Strategy for Juvenile Justice

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Hawaii County Juvenile Statistics Continued • Family Court referrals between 1995 and 1999 decreased by 24%. Each of the Circuits (First Oahu, Second Maui, Third Hawaii, Fifth Kauai) reported a decrease in both law violation and status offense referrals over that time period. The only exception was a 3% increase in law violation referrals in the Second Circuit. The First Circuit accounted for the majority of referrals each year (48% in 1999), with the Third Circuit accounting for the next largest referrer of youth (25% in 1999). However, the number of referrals from the First Circuit has been steadily decreasing since 1995, with increasing referrals coming from the Third Circuit. • The Third Circuit reported a significant decrease (37%) in law violation referrals between 1995 and 1999. Coupled with a 12% decrease in that same time period for status offense referrals, the Third Circuit experienced a total decrease of 29% in referrals to Family Court. Hawaii County: Addressing Youth Issues The Big Island community understands the importance of providing youth with a safe and healthy environment to live in. In an effort to address some of the issues facing young people today, Hawaii County has taken a proactive approach to improving the social climate in the community. Here are a few examples of how we are trying to provide an environment favorable for the healthy development of the youth. • Community Policing Officers working closely with community groups to identify solutions to local issues relating to public safety. • Hui Laulima, a group of State, County, private, and community organizations who meet regularly to discuss issues facing West Hawaii. This meeting functions to facilitate the flow of information between government and the community. • The Department of Health's "Hawaii student Alcohol, tobacco, and Other Drug Use Study, which is produced every two years has modified the study to include the 19 risk factors identified by national research upon which the Comprehensive Strategic Planning Process is based. • Community Empowerment Organization is the establishment of a communication network for the Big Island to address public safety issues. The goal is to facilitate the flow of information between the County government and community organizations. • The Children's Justice Center, which coordinates the efforts of State and County agencies along with other organizations to focus on the needs of the child victims when investigating cases and promoting a team approach in dealing with child abuse. • Community Coalitions for Neighborhood Safety is a group of neighborhood watch groups collaborating to secure communities through citizen involvement. • Juvenile Justice Information Sharing is a project to establish procedures and protocols to facilitate information sharing between County and State agencies. • Establishment of a Coordinator to explore issues relating to the establishment of a Juvenile Drug Court 9