Mark McCormick, a newsroom columnist and employee rep on the editorial board, did a public service in writing about the funding and staffing needs in the area of juvenile justice supervision in Sedgwick County. Too many kids, 600 to 700, and too few caseworkers are resulting in high staff turnover. The real problem may be too many years without a budget increase from the state, meaning state funding has dropped since 2001 from $21.3 million to $14.8 million. Area lawmakers need to put the department’s needed $4.5 million more on their 2008 agenda.
Posted by Rhonda Holman
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11 Comments
Does the Eagle ever find a government service that doesn’t need more funding?
Sure, every government agency needs more money. The Kansas juvinile justice system does not work. The whole concept of treating criminals as non-criminals just because of their age has never worked. If we are to expect people under 18 to be responsible for their actions…treat them that way. Make them responsible. What’s with this “help” the criminal kids stuff?
There is a fine line between rehabilitation and turning a kid into a hardened criminal…we need to try and save these kids while they’re young. Throwing them in the can with older, hardened criminals isn’t the way to help them turn their lives around. Often they were raised by criminals and that lifestyle is all they’ve known. They need to be shown a differnet way…not more of what they’ve already lived. Cosequences yes, but also intensive rehabilitation.
How interesting! Where are all the bloggers on this subject? It amazes me that so many are experts on international politics and world morality yet so few know anything about youth in crisis.
There are a lot of things that need more funding. EMS is one. But like anything you get what you pay for, and too many conservatives think that you can squeeze blood out of a turnip.
Thinkfirst, because they’re kids!
Everyone was young and dumb at one time…even you.
“How interesting! Where are all the bloggers on this subject? It amazes me that so many are experts on international politics and world morality yet so few know anything about youth in crisis.”
Maybe they just don’t give a rip, and that’s why we have so many kids in crisis. Too many selfish people today, most not willing to get involved unless it directly affects them in some way. The village is deserted, everyone has better things to do nowadays.
The village is deserted
Posted by: Mary Caruso | October 03, 2007 at 08:09 PM
It is not deserted, it is abandoned. We support famine in third world countries with Christian charities et al, but here if we try to help the poor its scoffed upon as another government excess entitlement.
We strive to provide medical assistance overseas, but here we tell our children their parents are failures because they can’t afford health insurance; so too bad, just suffer.
Here we ignore children in crisis until drugs and/or gangs provide an alternative to meeting their needs, but will admire the politico who secures (all by his lonesome) funds to prosecute them after its too late. And later bitch about the cost of prisons.
So true, KK. We need a national overhaul of our priorities.
I suppose my next label on this site will not be a conservative, not a liberal, not even a middle roader; I’ll be a damned humanist…oh noooooo. :):):)
I have to agree. If the topic is immigration, you’ll get dozens of people responding within seconds who didn’t even read the article, but just repeat the biases they repeat every time. This is a serious issue, and I noticed these are the kids who call for “intensive” intervention. If this is intensive, I’d hate to see the kind of help kids who just need average intervention are getting.