U.S. Department of Justice Office of Justice Programs Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention

John J. Wilson, Acting Administrator September 2000

Fighting Juvenile From the Administrator Gun Violence According to a study by the U.S. Departments of Justice and the Treasury, the age at which persons most often commit is 18, with those ages 18 to 20 accounting for 22 percent of homicide arrests. are used in 86 percent of all David Sheppard, Heath Grant, Wendy Rowe, and , and the rise in homicides Nancy Jacobs from the middle 1980’s through the early 1990’s can be attributed largely During the past two decades, the impact roughly three nonfatal shootings. to -related homicides. of gun violence in the United States has and unintentional gunshot injuries claim been greatest on juveniles and young the lives of even more juveniles than gun- Youth are also victimized by firearm adults. Firearms are the weapon of choice related homicides. A teenager today is violence. Today’s teen is more likely in most homicides (86 percent) commit- more likely to die of a to die of a gunshot wound than of ted by juveniles. The dramatic increase than of all natural causes or disease disease or other natural causes, and in homicides during the mid-to-late 1980’s (Fingerhut, 1993). for every fatal shooting there are and early 1990’s can be attributed to the three nonfatal shootings. Although gun violence and homicides have use of firearms, particularly among 15- to Reacting, in part, to these and other 24-year-olds. been declining in recent years, gun-related crime remains at unacceptably high levels. sobering statistics, the Office of Most notably, the handgun homicide rate A recent study by the U.S. Departments of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency for this age group increased 158 percent the Treasury and Justice of firearm-related Prevention established the Partner- from 1984 to 1993. These data contrast homicides found that the age at which ships To Reduce Juvenile Gun sharply with a 19-percent decline in fire- people most frequently commit homicide Violence Program, which seeks to arm among those individuals age was 18 and that 18- to 20-year-olds consti- increase the effectiveness of existing 24 and older for the same time period.1 tuted 22 percent of all those arrested for strategies by enhancing and coordi- Although the homicide rate involving fire- homicide (U.S. Department of the Treasury nating prevention, intervention, and arms steadily decreased between 1993 and U.S. Department of Justice, 1999). This suppression efforts and strengthen- and 1997, the number of juvenile victims age group also ranked first in the number ing community linkages. This Bulletin of gun violence was more than twice as of homicides committed with guns (24 per- describes the program’s implementa- high in 1997 than in 1984 (Snyder and cent). These data are consistent with the tion at four demonstration sites in Sickmund, 1999). trend in youth gun homicides over the Baton Rouge and Shreveport, LA; past 15 years (Snyder, 1999). Oakland, CA; and Syracuse, NY. Firearm injuries are the eighth leading cause of death for juveniles in the United The number of youth who report carrying It is my hope that the lessons learned States; for every fatal shooting, there are a gun outside the home is significant. In a in the demonstration sites will enable 1997 national youth risk behavior survey us to combat youth gun violence of students in grades 9 through 12, almost more effectively. 1 Firearm and nonfirearm homicide deaths for ages 6 percent reported carrying a gun outside John J. Wilson 15–24 and 25 and above (1980–1997): Data assembled the home in the past 30 days (Kahn et al., by the National Center for Health Statistics, Atlanta, Acting Administrator GA: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 1998). According to the same survey, 8.5 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 1998. percent reported carrying a weapon to and prevents illegal gun trafficking by developing special law enforcement units, using community allies to report illegal gun trafficking, targeting gang members, prosecuting those who pos- sess illegal guns, and imposing sanc- tions on those who are involved in gun violence. ◆ A juvenile justice strategy that applies appropriate alternative sanctions and interventions to respond to the needs of juvenile gun offenders. ◆ A communication strategy that unites law enforcement with neighborhoods, includes community policing, and ini- tiates community supervision to edu- cate at-risk and court-involved youth on the legal consequences of gun violence. school within the past 30 days (Brener et suppression efforts3 and strengthening ◆ A positive opportunities strategy that al., 1999).2 In the inner city, the problem linkages among community residents, law provides young people with beneficial appears to be more severe. An earlier enforcement personnel, and juvenile jus- programs such as academic tutoring, study involving 800 inner-city high school tice system professionals. mentoring, job training and placement, students reported that 22 percent said and afterschool activities. This problem-solving program is based on they carried weapons to school (Sheley ◆ An education strategy that teaches and Wright, 1993). A study of arrestees research showing that community assess- ment of local youth gun violence problems at-risk youth how to resolve conflicts from 11 urban areas revealed that nearly and resist peer pressure to carry or one-third of juvenile arrestees who were should guide program development and that strategies designed to reduce gun possess guns. gang members admitted carrying a gun all ◆ A public information strategy that en- or most of the time (Decker, Pennel, and violence should be comprehensive and theory driven and should include suppres- gages broadcast and print media to Caldwell, 1997). Two-thirds of those carry- communicate the dangers and conse- ing guns stated that the primary reason sion, intervention, and prevention compo- nents. The program goals are designed to: quences of gun violence to juveniles, was self-protection. An even greater num- families, and residents. ber of incarcerated juvenile offenders re- ◆ Reduce youth’s illegal access to guns. ported carrying firearms. Almost 85 per- ◆ A community mobilization strategy that ◆ Reduce the incidence of youth carrying cent of incarcerated juveniles in Atlanta, encourages neighborhood residents guns illegally and committing gun- GA, reported carrying handguns, and 84 and youth to improve the community. related crimes. percent of those who possessed guns said ◆ that they had obtained them before they Increase youth awareness of the per- The Demonstration were 15 years old (Ash, Kellerman, and sonal and legal consequences of gun Fuqua-Whitley, 1996). violence. Sites ◆ Increase participation of community Four demonstration communities received OJJDP’s Partnerships residents and organizations in youth OJJDP funding for this 3-year program: violence reduction efforts. Baton Rouge and Shreveport, LA; Oak- To Reduce Juvenile ◆ land, CA; and Syracuse, NY. These com- Increase and coordinate services and munities were asked to build extended Gun Violence Program resources for at-risk youth, especially partnerships to develop and implement As part of its commitment to address the youth involved in the justice system. the seven program strategies. During the continuing problem of youth violence, the Implementation of the following seven demonstration’s initial planning phase, Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency strategies is required if the program is to Shreveport was unable to create a viable Prevention (OJJDP) awarded four commu- achieve its goals: partnership structure and struggled to nities demonstration grants in 1997 to develop a comprehensive plan to reduce ◆ A firearms suppression strategy that implement the Partnerships To Reduce juvenile gun violence. As a result, the reduces juveniles’ access to illegal guns Juvenile Gun Violence Program (Office of community withdrew its application to Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Preven- participate in the program’s implementa- tion, 1996). The goal of these partner- tion phase. ships is to increase the effectiveness of 3 For the purpose of this Bulletin, prevention efforts existing strategies by enhancing and coor- employ public education strategies to reduce the use At the three remaining demonstration sites, of guns; intervention efforts, directed at youth who dinating prevention, intervention, and have previously committed gun-related offenses, seek high rates of juvenile and young adult gun to reduce the risk factors associated with carrying and violence helped focus the involvement of using illegal guns; and suppression efforts seek to key community stakeholders. In Baton 2 Weapons include guns, knives, box cutters, and so eliminate the sources of illegal guns. Rouge, the number of juveniles arrested forth.

2 annually in East Baton Rouge Parish had and to identify appropriate process and to identify a population of high-risk, gun- increased 61 percent from 1992 to 1996 impact outcome measures. involved youth and geographic areas in (from 2,931 arrests in 1992 to 4,716 in the jurisdiction in which gun violence is This capacity-building process, known as 1996) (Baton Rouge Police Department, more prevalent. In the absence of an iden- Uniform Crime Reports (UCR) records, action research or empowerment evalua- tified target population and geographic tion, helps program planners conduct con- 1997). One-fourth of all juveniles arrested neighborhoods specific to the underlying in 1996 were multiple offenders, having tinual self-evaluations and improves pro- problems, the likelihood of producing out- gram implementation (Gottfredson, 1994; committed a total of 940 violent crimes. comes or impacts to reduce juvenile gun Further analysis revealed that a large per- Yin, Kaftarian, and Jacobs, 1996). As a re- violence was minimal. Moreover, the pro- sult of these activities, the partnerships centage of these crimes were being com- posal reviews and initial site visits raised mitted in an area north of the center of developed comprehensive plans using the questions about the structure of the pro- logic models. This process has linked the the city. posed partnerships and their capacity for efforts of law enforcement, probation and strategic planning. Some partnerships had Oakland’s rates of overall violent crime prosecutors’ offices, city support agencies significant law enforcement involvement and gun homicides involving youth were (e.g., parks and recreation departments while others had little, some partnerships among the highest in the State and the Na- and housing and job training organiza- relied heavily on service providers but tion between 1986 and 1996. Young people tions), schools, faith-based institutions, were missing grassroots participation, and between the ages of 10 and 19 made up the and other youth-serving community orga- none of the partnerships had included rep- second largest number of the city’s homi- nizations (Sheppard, 1998). Initial assess- resentatives from the target population. cide victims each year (Oakland Police ments suggest that the three partnerships In short, while the grantees’ enthusiasm Department, UCR records, 1998). Youth have been successful in developing strate- for the project was high, there were few access to illegal guns has been a contribut- gies that focus on eliminating the sources assurances that the desired outcomes ing factor, and arrest data for violent crime of illegal guns (suppression), reducing the could be achieved. involving youth suggest that more than 50 risk factors associated with carrying and percent of these crimes have occurred in using illegal guns for youth who have been the eastern part of the city. In addition, a involved with gun violence previously (in- Additional Capacity- majority of juveniles and young adults ad- tervention), and reducing the use of guns Building Activities mitted to hospital trauma centers for gun- to resolve conflicts by employing public After a brief reassessment, the evaluation related injuries were from East Oakland. education strategies (prevention). team returned to each site to work with the partnerships’ stakeholders and to se- An examination of gun-related and violent lect appropriate target populations and crime in Syracuse revealed that roughly Initial Capacity-Building neighborhoods. Assisted by the evaluation 60 percent of the city’s arrests of youth Activities team, the partnerships identified pertinent between the ages of 12 and 24 occurred To begin, the evaluation team reviewed risk factors in each jurisdiction and in- within its west and southwest neighbor- the original proposals submitted by the vited appropriate agency- and community- hoods (Syracuse Police Department, UCR three demonstration sites. The sites were based group representatives who were records, 1998). During the early and mid- to demonstrate that: not yet partnership members to partici- 1990’s, the city witnessed a 185-percent ◆ pate. Now in control of their data and mo- increase in weapons possession arrests of The partnership was comprehensive tivated by the information they had been juveniles under age 16 and a 64-percent in structure, incorporating decision- able to uncover, the partnerships eagerly increase in similar arrests among 16- and makers from key agencies, service pro- addressed the issues that still threatened 17-year-olds. Gang-like “street crews” were viders, businesses, and neighborhoods their ability to produce change. The evalu- identified as a problem; the census tracts most affected by juvenile gun violence. ation team conducted additional site visits with the highest number of gun-related ◆ The partnership had, or soon would to help the partnerships develop tailored arrests of youth were within the bound- have, the technical staff and volunteer logic models for each component of their aries of two well-known street crews, 110 capacity to initiate and sustain a com- comprehensive plan, identify appropriate and Boot Camp. prehensive plan to reduce juvenile gun measures to capture the specified out- violence. comes, and set up process and impact Role of the National ◆ There was a comprehensive plan, data collection procedures. grounded in relevant theory, that clearly Evaluation Team identified high-risk target group(s), had During the initial phase of the project, the strategically linked activities, and Development of the national evaluation team4 provided the included measurable outcomes and Sites’ Comprehensive sites with intensive technical assistance impacts. in developing their comprehensive plans Plans The proposal reviews and initial visits to With the assistance of the evaluation team, and enhancing their partnership struc- each site revealed that the grantees had tures. The technical assistance involved the sites used an analysis of each partner- not collected much of the specific data ship’s juvenile gun violence problems to developing logic models (see page 4) for needed to define their juvenile gun vio- each site to enhance their local strategies identify specific geographic areas in which lence problems. Although the partner- to target their suppression, intervention, ships supplied citywide aggregated statis- and prevention strategies (see table 1). The tics documenting juvenile violent crimes, 4 COSMOS Corporation and the Criminal Justice Re- three demonstration sites vary in popula- the data were not broken down sufficiently search Center at John Jay College. tion size and characteristics and in rates

3 The Logic Model Process

The use of logic models to enhance to risks and needs but also to those re- availability of illegal guns, intervention project planning and facilitate program sources in the community that might al- and prevention strategies may be evaluation is not new. The logic model ready be having a positive influence. needed to help adjudicated juvenile is a succinct, logical series of state- offenders return to their neighborhoods The partnership’s goals and objectives ments that link the problems a program and families. are more easily defined when the assess- is attempting to address with the meth- ment of the city’s gun violence problem is Immediate outcomes are the initial in- ods it will use to address them and the thorough and complete. Measurable out- tended outcomes of each strategy. If a expected results. Illustrated in the figure comes can be used to define the project’s police department has created a gun is the logic model process as devel- goals and objectives. The partnership’s suppression team to sweep the target oped for the Partnerships To Reduce stakeholders, representing a broad col- area, immediate outcomes would be the Juvenile Gun Violence Program. number of guns seized, the number of youth arrested, and so forth. These may lead to intermediate outcomes—for ex- The Logic Model Process ample, a reduction in the availability of illegal firearms within the target areas. Analyze community’s Long-term outcomes are sustained gun violence problem changes made possible by a pooling of the strategies and activities of the com- prehensive plan over time. Long-term Evaluation and Identify goals and outcomes reflect the goals of the pro- feedback of objectives and implement gram (e.g., reducing juvenile gun vio- outcomes comprehensive plan lence in the target communities). Through the articulation of outcomes for each implemented strategy, the logic Immediate outcomes model specifies the actions to be taken Long-term over time, charting the strategies de- outcomes signed to produce desired outcomes. Intermediate The evaluators collect data that confirm outcomes these paths or information that provides for “rival” explanations of these out- comes. As evidence accumulates, the logic models are refined so that rather The logic model process begins with lection of key public and private agencies than simply producing information about analysis of the community’s gun vio- and community organizations, collaborate the ultimate accomplishments of a par- lence problem. The first objective is to to develop a comprehensive plan of ticular program, the evaluators can offer identify the sources of data needed to research-based strategies. The planners information on why particular goals and understand where gun violence is oc- must recognize that any single underlying objectives are or are not being achieved. curring and who is committing it. By issue may require several linked strate- The logic model process is circular— documenting this information, program gies to alleviate associated risk factors. planners are informed of needed pro- planners can identify hotspot target A comprehensive plan is required to join gram changes through constant feed- areas for implementing gun violence together juvenile gun violence suppres- back and evaluation. Logic models are suppression, intervention, and/or pre- sion, intervention, and prevention strate- never static tools; rather, they are con- vention strategies. The underlying issues gies. For example, although suppression stantly being adjusted and modified as that define gun violence speak not only strategies may be needed to reduce the outcome data are accumulated.

of violent crime: Oakland’s target popula- nership’s chairperson, the Baton Rouge and judges from the juvenile court, to facili- tion is twice as large as that of Syracuse program built on an existing partnership tate the comprehensive planning process. or Baton Rouge, and Baton Rouge and structure, the city’s antidrug task force, to Oakland have 2.5 times more violent implement its initial planning phase. Dur- In addition, the evaluators noted that the planners did not have sufficient data to crime (e.g., homicides, robberies, rapes, ing the initial project workshop, the na- and aggravated ) than Syracuse. tional evaluators noted that a broader define adequately the juvenile gun violence problem in Baton Rouge. As a result, the representation from the community was needed at the planning table. The partner- partnership’s staff and agency representa- The Baton Rouge tives launched an intensive effort to gather Partnership ship’s leaders quickly assembled the miss- ing stakeholders, including representatives and analyze relevant data on the hotspot locations of juvenile gun violence, which With the mayor’s office serving as its lead from the faith and business communities agency and the chief of police as the part- resulted in the identification of target

4 interpersonal skills; (2) strengthen their Table 1: Characteristics of the Three Sites families; and (3) build resilience in the community by addressing risk factors Characteristics associated with gun violence. These strategies are being implemented Site and City Target Area Citywide Violent through a case management system that Lead Agency Population Population Crime Rate, 1997* identifies the needs of each youth and Baton Rouge: The 229,553 65,565 798 through individual service plans that ad- Mayor’s Office dress the risks and needs from the as- sessment process. A primary component Oakland: Youth Alive! 376,976 142,335 850 of the intervention strategy is the Life and the Oakland Police Skills Academy, a program that ad- Department dresses character strengthening and parenting skills for the targeted youth, Syracuse: The Center 159,610 70,586 292 their siblings, and parents. The academy for Community Alternatives, is held in participating churches in the the Onondaga County District target areas and covers 12 skill areas Attorney’s Office, and the (e.g., anger management, goal setting, Syracuse Mayor’s Office parenting skills, and vocational skill de- velopment) over a 22-week period. The program involves 21 grassroots leaders *Per 100,000 population. as speakers, mentors, and tutors and offers direct access to social services and recreational programs for the youth neighborhoods for their comprehensive crime and also monitors Brady Bill back- and their families. plan. By looking closely at police and ground checks of applicants for gun per- The partnership also implemented a pre- probation records of those juveniles and mits. This information is used to identify vention strategy by helping to form ACT young adults who had committed gun- juvenile and young adult gun offenders NOW, a grassroots organization that links related crimes, the partnership defined a and also to give Federal, State, and local a diverse array of 54 community and faith target population (youth currently on pro- law enforcement agencies information leaders to respond to violence in their bation for gun-related or other violent of- about applicants who have felony records neighborhoods and to work with the part- fenses) on which to focus the project’s in- or are known associates of individuals nership’s target population and families. tervention and prevention strategies. The with felony records. Other suppression Working with ACT NOW and other com- partnership designated these youth as strategies include the School Drug Task munity groups, the partnership has par- “Eigers” (Eiger is a mountain in Switzer- Force, a police unit that enforces the ticipated in several school programs land reported to be one of the world’s school’s zero tolerance policies for drug that address risk factors associated with most difficult to climb). and weapons possession, and Operation gun violence such as Character First, a Takedown, which targets street-level nar- program focusing on discipline and self- At the core of the Baton Rouge compre- cotics sales. A four-member judicial advi- hensive plan is an organizational struc- esteem, and mentoring strategies that link sory committee composed of the district individuals to basic literacy, GED (general ture involving law enforcement, the courts, attorney and three judges (one from the juvenile justice system, community educational development), and vocational criminal court and two from juvenile services. The partnership and its members service organizations, and the faith com- court) advises the partnership on justice munity. The partnership includes an ex- also have actively involved the broadcast system reforms and additional residential and print media and made regular presen- ecutive committee and several task forces and nonresidential treatment services. that focus on enforcement (suppression), tations to community organizations, busi- Although the partnership’s original imple- nesses, churches, and civic leaders. intervention, prevention, and grassroots mentation strategies focused on enforce- mobilization. Operation Eiger (see page ment activities, by the end of the first The Oakland Partnership 6), an intensive supervision program for year, several intervention, prevention, youth on probation for gun-related and community mobilization strategies The partnership’s lead agencies in Oak- offenses, is a central component of the also were under development. land are Youth Alive!, a nonprofit agency partnership’s suppression and interven- that has developed innovative youth gun tion strategies. The program pairs police Baton Rouge’s intervention strategies violence prevention initiatives in the city, officers with probation officials to con- address risk factors associated with the and the Oakland Police Department. Ini- duct home checks of the target popula- violent behaviors of the partnership’s tially, the lack of sufficient data to conduct tion, ensuring that youth are meeting the target group of youth who have commit- a thorough analysis of the city’s youth terms of their probation. ted gun-related offenses previously. A gun violence problems made it difficult three-pronged program has been devel- The partnership monitors the U.S. Depart- for the partnership to adequately identify oped to (1) provide targeted youth with either a target area or those youth at ment of the Treasury’s Bureau of Alcohol, intensive services to address their alien- Tobacco and Firearms’ (ATF’s) and Baton highest risk for committing gun violence. ation, violent behavior, academic failure, With geographically based crime data Rouge Police Department’s activities in unemployment, and lack of social and tracing and seizing guns used to commit provided by the police department and

5 Operation Eiger: An Example of Linked Strategies Targeting Juveniles at Risk for Gun Violence

Following an assessment of the city’s of this process by setting enforceable lings of Eigers also can be referred to gun-involved youth and the identification probation conditions to help the Eiger myriad prevention services coordi- of hotspot areas in which violence was youth and family members address the nated by the partnership. occurring, the Baton Rouge partnership risk factors associated with the youth’s The Eiger program also is building resil- developed Operation Eiger, a set of violent behaviors (e.g., curfew violations, ience in the neighborhoods in which the comprehensive problem-solving strate- poor school attendance, possession of targeted youth live. These community- gies that link the resources of the juve- illegal guns or other weapons, associa- strengthening initiatives include efforts nile justice system, law enforcement, tion with delinquent peers, and use of to reduce neighborhood deterioration, public and private service providers, drugs and alcohol). Youth who violate implement activities to increase com- and community grassroots organiza- their terms of probation or commit new munity cohesion, and address factors tions. The partnership designated those offenses are severely sanctioned by the that contribute to economic deprivation. juveniles and young adults at highest court’s zero tolerance policy (e.g., with risk for gun violence as “Eigers” (named jail sentences). The partnership tracks Eigers as they after a mountain in Switzerland). The complete the terms of their probation During the police-probation visits, any program includes suppression, interven- and records their progress while they signs of abuse or neglect of Eigers or tion, and prevention strategies for youth are receiving social services. The Eigers’ their siblings are recorded and referred referred from the county’s juvenile pro- performance records are then analyzed to the State’s social services agency for bation department. and the results used to refine and up- followup. Other needs of the targeted grade the program’s comprehensive The partnership’s case coordinator youth are brought to the attention of the plan. A total of 304 youth have been records the Eigers’ conditions of pro- partnership’s case coordinator, and indi- identified during Operation Eiger’s first bation as imposed by the juvenile vidual case plans are developed for each 22 months. The police-probation teams court. The identified youth are then Eiger, including those who are inactive have conducted 9,610 Eiger home visits placed on a contact list for the Eiger and no longer on probation. The targeted since the program began, with each police-probation teams, which are youth are connected to a variety of so- Eiger contacted an average of 4 to 6 composed of specially trained police cial services operated or coordinated by times per month. Dramatically, the per- and juvenile probation officers. These the Baton Rouge partnership. These pro- centage of contacts for which no proba- teams conduct unscheduled evening grams include mentoring services, aca- tion violations were reported increased visits to the Eigers’ homes. Each Eiger demic tutoring, job training and place- from 56 percent in September 1997 to is visited an average of six times per ment, substance abuse counseling, 74 percent in June 1999, the most re- month, and during the visits, the team mental health treatment, conflict resolu- cent month for which data are available. checks for compliance with the terms tion training, and social skills develop- Eiger rearrests for gun-related and of probation and assesses the youth’s ment. Parents of Eigers may be referred non-gun-related offenses are being col- needs and family situation. The juve- to family counseling and other family lected for the program’s impact evalua- nile court enhances the effectiveness management services, if needed. Sib- tion, to be reported at a later date.

technical assistance from the national gram so that it included integrated gun incidents and develop gun abatement evaluators, the partnership began to de- violence suppression, intervention, and strategies with the police department’s velop a more complete understanding of prevention strategies. The Oakland Police Weapons Unit. These strategies focused gun violence in the city. This analysis Department strengthened its role in the on undercover enforcement to identify helped identify specific neighborhoods program by appointing a command-level “straw purchasers”5 and illegal gun traf- where there were high levels of juvenile officer as the partnership’s codirector fickers in the target area. gun violence. As a result, an area in East and the chief of police as its chairman. In Oakland, roughly corresponding to the addition, representatives from the city The partnership also sought to enhance its strategies that focused on juveniles at risk police department’s third district and in- manager’s office, State juvenile services, cluding the catchment area of two high the Alameda County District Attorney’s for gun violence through the formation of an intervention committee and by identify- schools, was designated as the program’s Office, the U.S. Attorney’s Office, the Oak- target area. land and Alameda County school district, ing a population in the defined target area of those at risk for gun-related crimes. The clergy, and other social service providers During the program’s first year, the part- were recruited to join the partnership. partnership agreed to seek referrals of ju- nership dedicated itself primarily to a venile probationers who live in the area prevention focus that limited the develop- A suppression committee was formed to and have committed gun-related or other ment of a more comprehensive plan in- include representatives from ATF, the po- violent offenses. Also targeted are violent corporating gun suppression and inter- lice department, district attorney’s office, vention strategies. The partnership’s juvenile probation office, and community members, using the logic model planning organizations. The suppression commit- 5 Purchasers who obtain guns for those who have process, broadened the focus of the pro- tee was asked to review gun-related crime criminal records or do not want to be identified as gun owners.

6 juveniles from the county’s detention fa- cilities who have returned to their neigh- borhoods and victims of gun violence re- ferred from a nearby hospital trauma center. The intervention committee, com- posed of probation officers, partnership staff, and community service providers, currently reviews the case referrals and conducts intake assessments to develop tailored intervention plans. The targeted youth are matched with mentors and re- ferred to services that include counseling, anger management, educational tutoring, and vocational training, depending on needs identified during the intake pro- cess. The intervention committee also tracks the progress of the targeted youth during their probation period. Two existing Youth Alive! gun violence of local residents, business leaders, clergy, crime hotspots and gang activity within prevention programs have been incorpo- rated into the partnership’s comprehen- leaders of community organizations, and the program’s target area. SAFE originally public advocates who work with the Oak- served as the police department’s violent sive plan. Teens on Target (TNT), a peer mentoring program operating in the target land police to create safer neighborhoods. crime enforcement unit, with little or no Representatives of the partnership make involvement from the community. Recently, area’s two high schools, offers opportuni- ties for trained student leaders to work presentations at NCPC meetings, and the the SAFE committee merged with the NCPC chairpersons from the program’s region’s Law Enforcement Roundtable, a with at-risk students. The TNT mentors also conduct presentations on alternatives target area participate in the development multijurisdictional violent crime task of strategies to reduce gun violence in force, to bring the U.S. Attorney’s Office, to gun violence to younger students in the feeder middle and elementary schools. their neighborhoods. ATF, and other county and State law en- forcement agencies into the partnership. Another prevention program, Caught in the The Syracuse Partnership Crossfire, provides bedside counseling to A new component of the partnership’s The lead agencies for the Syracuse Part- suppression strategy, Project START (Sur- victims of gun violence to prevent future nership are the Center for Community Al- retaliation by the victim or the victim’s veillance, Treatment, and Rehabilitation ternatives (CCA), a nonprofit agency that Together), composed of eight officers friends and family members. Many of these works with the courts and correctional victims and family members are known to from the police department’s SAFE unit agencies to provide offender rehabilitation and six county probation officers, pro- be involved with guns and are referred to services, and the Onondaga County Dis- the partnership’s intervention program. vides intensive home monitoring and su- trict Attorney’s Office. The partnership is pervision of high-risk, gun-involved pro- The partnership has participated in sev- governed by a steering committee com- bationers. The START team makes weekly eral public education programs, including posed of representatives from key stake- home visits to ensure that the targeted support for local ordinances that promote holder agencies: the mayor’s office, the youth are in compliance with probation safe storage of guns, triggerlocks for fire- Onondaga County Executive’s Office, the conditions and to identify additional arms, and ordinances that restrict guns Syracuse Police Department, the county needs within the population. To demon- being sold in residential areas of the city. probation department, city schools, the strate support for Project START’s efforts A citywide conference on youth gun vio- U.S. Attorney’s Office, and faith-based or- to reintegrate probationers with violent lence, held during the program’s first ganizations. CCA recently contracted with crime histories back into the community year, drew significant media attention and the city of Syracuse to oversee the imple- successfully, local clergy and pastors increased the visibility of the partnership mentation of the partnership’s comprehen- from the target neighborhoods also par- among stakeholders and residents in East sive plan. This action reflects increased ticipate in the home visits. Police- Oakland. Partnership members regularly collaboration between the partnership and community communications also are be- contribute to local media programs on the mayor’s office. A community manage- ing enhanced through the partnership’s firearm violence, and a silent witness tele- ment team composed of service providers efforts to revitalize neighborhood watch phone hotline developed by the partner- and community grassroots organizations groups within the target area. ship has been publicized throughout the develops and helps implement the part- In order to identify appropriate service city to encourage citizen reporting of illegal nership’s intervention and prevention gun possession and gun-related crimes. strategies. needs for its target population, Syracuse developed the Partnership Peacekeepers Grassroots mobilization also has become The Syracuse Anti-Firearms Enforcement Program (PPP) to complement Project an important goal of the partnership (SAFE) committee was formed with repre- START. The partnership hired outreach through the city’s Neighborhood Crime sentatives from the police department, workers with close ties to the commu- Prevention Councils (NCPC’s) in the tar- the district attorney’s office, and the pro- nity to identify gun-involved and other get area. NCPC’s are composed of groups bation department to identify violent at-risk youth. A referral source for PPP

7 intervention teams. These teams, com- ing a wide range of suppression, interven- posed of local clergy and community tion, and prevention activities. Initially, at leaders, provide immediate counseling all three sites, the lack of problem-defining assistance for this population and their data not only inhibited the planning pro- families. cess but also prevented the sites from implementing outcome-focused strategies. A Summary of the Strategies For example, after key stakeholders in the The partnerships were required to de- Baton Rouge partnership reviewed the velop integrated and comprehensive gun city’s gun violence data, not only did a violence reduction plans that incorpo- target area emerge (an area responsible rated each of the seven OJJDP strategies for two-thirds of the city’s homicides), but within a suppression, intervention, and the partners also found that the majority prevention framework. The specific strat- of gun-related violent crimes were being egies and activities selected by each site committed by a group of chronic youth were based on an analysis of available offenders. From these analyses, Operation community resources and gaps in ser- Eiger was created to remove illegal guns vices. The final logic models developed and provide intervention services for by each partnership and facilitated by those involved in gun violence. the national evaluation team reflect their differing identifications of underlying Similarly, Syracuse and Oakland conducted issues and problems, organizational needs assessments to evaluate the risks needs/resources, and initial focus. Table and needs of youthful offenders involved 2 provides a summary of the variety of in gun violence. The partnerships discov- strategies implemented by the partner- ered that their communities lacked suffi- ships. cient resources for reintegrating offend- ers back into their neighborhoods. In (in addition to Project START) is the sub- Syracuse, the partnership originally had group of youth arrested for, or suspected Conclusion: What Has identified a need for outreach workers to of committing, gun-related crimes. The Been Learned So Far assist recently released offenders but partnership’s outreach coordinator re- lacked information on their developmen- views the daily intake records from the Partnership Development tal and economic needs with which to judicial holding center to identify juve- develop strategies for working with this niles and young adults who have been OJJDP’s Partnerships To Reduce Juvenile population. Following the completion of a arrested on gun-related charges. PPP out- Gun Violence Program was developed to more detailed needs assessment for this reach workers identify eligible youth strengthen the linkages among commu- population, the outreach worker concept from the target area for intake into the nity grassroots organizations, law en- evolved to include working with youth program; these youth then go through an forcement, social service providers, and currently in prison, conducting offender assessment process that documents the juvenile justice system. Community risk assessments, and developing indivi- their individual service needs. The out- crime reduction theory suggests that by dual reintegration plans. reach workers contact appropriate ser- creating these partnerships, the partici- Lesson 2: The partnership should de- vice providers, match offenders with ap- pating agencies and organizations be- propriate services (e.g., job training, come more effective in developing and velop a comprehensive plan using the logic model process. Each site used the mentoring, treatment), follow up each implementing comprehensive strategies youth’s progress, and provide feedback to reduce youth gun violence. The grant- logic model process to develop its com- prehensive plan. In addition to focusing to the probation officers assigned to ees in all three of the demonstration each case. sites have developed functioning part- strategy development and ensuring a link nerships. The evaluation team’s techni- between actual community needs and the During the program’s initial development, cal assistance during the program’s ini- strategies selected, the logic model pro- the Syracuse partnership has implemented tial planning and implementation stages cess helps partners agree on a shared several neighborhood-based violence pre- has revealed some important lessons community vision. vention activities, including community related to creating effective partnerships At all of the partnership sites, the process forums that focus on the consequences of involving such a large spectrum of gun violence and conflict resolution train- of completing the logic model helped the stakeholders. participating agencies and organizations ing programs within area schools and cor- rectional facilities. Through PPP and Lesson 1: A comprehensive and accu- understand how all of the activities fit together into an integrated plan. By iden- Project START, there has been an effort to rate needs assessment is critical to stra- identify and work with the younger sib- tegic planning. Working with the national tifying measurable immediate, intermedi- ate, and long-term outcomes, the partners lings of the targeted youth who are already evaluation team, the grantees identified involved in street gang violence. data and data sources that helped them recognized how law enforcement-based complete viable needs assessments. Using tactics complemented activities that are Recognizing the need for crisis counseling these needs assessments, the partner- more traditionally in the purview of the of the victims of gun-related violence, the ships were able to develop comprehensive courts or probation. For example, prior Syracuse partnership has formed crisis plans that closely linked strategies cover- to the implementation of Baton Rouge’s

8 Operation Eiger, which was developed Table 2: Gun Violence Reduction Strategy Matrix using the logic model planning, there was very little communication between proba- Gun Violence Reduction Strategies Baton Rouge Oakland Syracuse tion, parole, and the police (as found in many jurisdictions). As a result of this Suppression strategies intensive planning, these agencies have become active collaborators in the man- Targeted gun sweeps/hotspots agement and support of the analysis of gun crimes X X X partnership’s goals. ATF tracing of illegal guns X X Recently, both Oakland and Syracuse have used the logic model process to bring more Tracking Brady Bill background checks X stakeholder groups to the planning table. Enhanced gang intelligence X Oakland used its logic models to solicit the active support of the Alameda County Home police/probation supervision Probation Office, a stakeholder integral to of probationers X X the new case management approach to Enhanced prosecution of those working with juvenile probationers. The committing gun-related crimes X logic models demonstrated that without the participation of probation, the part- Street narcotics enforcement units X X nership’s intervention strategy would be Judicial reforms and sanctions X ineffective. Similarly, meetings between Syracuse partnership members and the Enhanced citizen reporting of illegal mayor’s office garnered the support of gun activities X X X the office in implementing the strategies specified in previously developed logic Intervention strategies models. The partnerships need to make adjustments to the logic models as new Enhanced assessment and case resources are added because the partici- management of gun-involved youth X X X pation of these agencies was not part of Prerelease and aftercare programs X X X the original process. Gang intervention strategies X Lesson 3: The partnerships can use per- formance data to inform program plan- Youth and parents life skills training X X ners and task force members as they refine their gun violence strategies. In Job training and placement X X addition to allowing planners to make Street outreach workers X “mid-course” corrections, identifying im- mediate outcome measures provides Conflict resolution training X X X decisionmakers with a means of ensuring accountability throughout the implemen- Prevention strategies tation process. Immediate outcome mea- sures provide milestones for defining Local gun ordinances and legislation what needs to be accomplished, when, restricting the buying, selling, and and by whom. carrying of guns X X Failure to identify appropriate immediate Grassroots mobilization and outcomes (within the logic model frame- community rallies X X X work) contributed to implementation lags Gun violence educational programs at all the sites. Individual stakeholders in the schools X X X and partnership staff sometimes felt overwhelmed by the complexity of imple- Mentoring programs for at-risk youth X X X menting the full menu of strategies and Peer training X X X activities envisioned in the sites’ compre- hensive plans. Without adequate outcome Counseling for victims of gun violence X X measures to inform planning, the partner- Community policing X X X ships had difficulty assigning tasks appro- priately and lacked the means to monitor School Safe Passages Program X whether these tasks had been implemen- ted as designed. Revisions to the logic models helped the stakeholders and pro- ject staff develop more realistic measures

9 of immediate outcomes and more effec- sive plan that contains integrated sup- missed. From October 1998 to June tive monitoring systems. pression, intervention, and prevention 1999, the Oakland Police Department strategies and that facilitates changes in recovered 2,255 firearms. From Janu- Lesson 4: Key stakeholders need to the policies and procedures of participat- ary 1997 through July 1999, the Syra- make a commitment to the program and ing public and private agencies. As a re- cuse Police Department recovered be active participants in the partner- sult, the following program outcomes 1,238 guns. ship. Program implementation across the have been realized:6 three sites was affected directly by the ◆ Intervention. All three partnerships degree to which key stakeholders were ◆ Suppression. Suppression strategies have implemented intensive interven- active participants. In Baton Rouge, the of local police departments—with the tion strategies to provide case manage- early involvement of the mayor’s office participation of ATF and State and ment services for their target popula- and the chief of police as the partnership’s county law enforcement agencies and tions. These intervention strategies chairperson played a substantial role in the efforts of community organizations— rely on referrals from law enforcement, the partnership’s ability to implement its have removed illegal guns from the juvenile and adult probation and pa- strategies quickly. To develop sustainable streets. This has been accomplished role offices, judges, correctional agen- activities, stakeholders need to make a through many activities, including gun cies, and trauma centers at local hospi- commitment to the partnership’s vision tracing, targeted enforcement operations tals. Operation Eiger began to identify and goals. This commitment should be by the police, and community-supported youth for intensive supervision and realized in terms of active participation silent witness programs that encourage case management in October 1997. and the provision of resources. For ex- residents to report the presence of By March 2000, the project had con- ample, the Baton Rouge Police Depart- illegal guns. ducted 388 intakes and placed the ment contributes in-kind staff and equip- youth in the partnership’s case man- The Baton Rouge partnership was the agement system.8 The Oakland part- ment resources to Operation Eiger. The first effort within East Baton Rouge Eiger program, however, would have met nership began receiving referrals in Parish to implement a comprehensive February 1998 and by March 2000 had with significant community resistance if suppression strategy involving the the planning process had not included received 55 referrals from juvenile pro- city’s police department, district bation and its hospital-based Caught key representatives from the community, attorney’s office, U.S. Attorney’s Office, including clergy members. Although this in the Crossfire program. These youth ATF, State police, and sheriff’s depart- are enrolled in the partnership’s inter- community representation was missing ment. During the first 3 years the part- initially, the partnership invited these vention services programs. Syracuse nership has been in operation, it has began receiving referrals from its local leaders to participate in the onsite work- helped reduce violent crime in Baton shops conducted by the evaluation correctional and juvenile facilities in Rouge, specifically gun crime in the September 1998 and is providing team during the planning period. target area. Homicides in Baton Rouge mentoring, tutoring, job training, and Syracuse and Oakland struggled initially dropped from 71 in 1996 to 48 in other services to 49 at-risk juveniles 1999—a drop of 28 percent. In the to find their vision and to accept the effi- and young adults. cacy of a complete suppression, interven- partnership’s high-crime target area, tion, and prevention framework. Now that the drop in homicides was 44 percent. Table 3 presents the risk characteris- they have added key city and agency re- Furthermore, gun-related homicides in tics of the juveniles and young adults sources to the planning process, these the target area have declined even more assigned to the partnerships’ case sites are actively implementing their com- dramatically, from 19 in 1996 to 9 in management intervention strategies, prehensive plans. Implementing Oakland’s 1999—a drop of more than 47 percent. including their history of violent intervention strategy would have been crimes and their involvement in gun- In addition, 110 gun cases were referred related activities. difficult, if not impossible, without access to the U.S. Attorney’s Office in 1999 as to key stakeholders in the county’s proba- part of its implementation of Project ◆ Prevention. All three partnerships tion office. Syracuse relies on the support Exile.7 Of those cases, 3 are pending have implemented integrated strate- of local adult and juvenile correctional grand jury action; 6 were declined by gies focusing on the prevention of facilities to gain access to its target popu- the U.S. Attorney’s Office; 70 resulted youth gun violence. These strategies lation. At both sites, the key stakeholders in convictions (66 plea agreements and reach thousands of residents through have committed themselves and their 4 guilty verdicts); 1 resulted in an ac- community-sponsored rallies, marches, agencies’ resources to reducing gun vio- quittal; 22 are pending trial; and 8 re- and public information campaigns. lence through proactive collaboration. In sulted in indictment and then were dis- Grassroots mobilization efforts have Shreveport, the partnership was unable ignited in all three sites, with the addi- to involve many of the key stakeholders tion of ACT NOW in Baton Rouge, the in developing a common vision and sub- 6 Data provided by the Baton Rouge, Oakland, and Oakland partnership’s collaboration sequently lacked sufficient capacity to Syracuse partnerships based on information provided with Neighborhood Crime Prevention develop a comprehensive framework. by local police department records, U.S. Attorney files, Councils in Oakland, and the active ATF reports, and partnership outcome measures. participation of the clergy in Syracuse. 7 This U.S. Department of Justice initiative refers cases Program Outcomes involving illegal firearms for Federal prosecution when Federal guidelines provide for greater sentences than Although the implementation of gun vio- 8 It is noted that Baton Rouge maintains case records State prosecution. Project Exile involves the combined lence reduction strategies has varied on all youth who have been assigned to the Eiger pro- efforts of the U.S. Attorneys, ATF, and the Federal Bu- across the three partnerships, each site gram. The number of active probation cases at any reau of Investigation, with the cooperation of State and point averages between 60 and 80 Eigers. has successfully developed a comprehen- local police and prosecutors.

10 onstration period in 2001, a national Table 3: Characteristics of the Targeted Youth cross-site impact assessment of the over- all program will be developed. Baton Rouge Oakland Syracuse Characteristics (388 cases) (55 cases) (49 cases) References Age at intake to program Ash, P., Kellerman, A., and Fuqua-Whitley, Juvenile* 79.6% 81.8% 14.3% D. 1996. Gun acquisition and use by juve- Young adult 20.4 18.2 85.7 nile offenders. Journal of the American Mean age (years) 15.4 15.9 17.9 Medical Association 275:1754–1758. Age range (years) 11–20 12–19 14–22 Sex Brener, N.D., Simon, T.R., Krug, E.G., and Male 87.6% 90.9% 93.9% Lowry, R. 1999. Recent Trends in Violence- Female 12.4 9.1 6.1 Related Behaviors Among High School Stu- dents in the United States. Hyattsville, MD: Race U.S. Department of Health and Human African American 98.2% 76.4% 89.8% Services, Centers for Disease Control and White 1.5 0.0 2.0 Prevention, National Center for Health Hispanic 0.0 16.4 4.1 Statistics. Other 0.3 7.2 4.1 Decker, S.H., Pennel, S., and Caldwell, A. Family living situation 1997. Illegal Firearms Access and Use by Single-parent households 64.9% 37.1% 55.1% Arrestees. , DC: U.S. Department Drug involvement (self-reported) of Justice, National Institute of Justice. Occasional use 51.8% 14.3% 14.3% Chronic use 10.6 8.6 71.4 Fingerhut, L.A. 1993. Firearm mortality No use 37.6 77.1 14.3 among children, youth, and young adults 1–34 years of age, trends and current sta- Drug trafficking 20.1% 0.0% 71.4% tus: United States, 1985–1990. Advance Prior criminal history (arrests) Data From Vital and Health Statistics. Num- Violence and gun involvement 32.7% 12.7% 40.8% ber 231. Hyattsville, MD: U.S. Department Violence but no gun involvement 26.0 43.6 16.3 of Health and Human Services, Centers Gun possession but no violence 17.0 7.3 26.6 for Disease Control and Prevention, Na- No violence and no gun involvement 24.3 36.4 16.3 tional Center for Health Statistics. Gottfredson, D.M. 1994. The Action Re- * The legal definition of “juvenile” varies from State to State. In Louisiana, juvenile court jurisdiction search Model: Collaboration for improving covers all individuals under age 17. California recently revised its legal definition to provide juvenile courts with jurisdiction over all youth under age 18. New York provides juvenile court jurisdiction for information in juvenile justice. In Improv- youth over age 7 and under age 16. ing Information for Rational Decisionmaking in Juvenile Justice. Sacramento, CA: Justice Policy Research Corporation. These efforts have involved a variety ships have developed agreements with of prevention activities, including the their local police, probation agencies, Kahn, L., Kinchen, S.A., Williams, B.I., Ross, development of strategies to increase and prosecutors’ offices to share records J.G., Lowry, R., Hill, C.V., Grunbaum, J.A., citizen crime reporting and to enhance on juveniles and young adults arrested Blumson, P.S., Collins, J.L., and Kolbe, L.J., police-community relations. for or convicted of gun-related offenses. 1998. Youth risk behavior surveillance — United States, 1997. Morbidity and Mortal- ◆ Policy and operational procedure This level of cooperation has not been seen in the past and is attributed to the ity Weekly Report CDC Surveillance Sum- changes. Participating public and maries 47(3):1–89. private agencies have made policy and active participation of the stakeholders operational procedure changes in sup- who share a common vision—the reduc- Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency port of the partnerships’ efforts. Proba- tion of youth gun violence. Prevention. 1996. Partnerships To Reduce tion agencies at all three sites have Juvenile Gun Violence. Program Announce- modified their assessment and referral What’s Next ment. Washington, DC: U.S. Department systems to help place high-risk, gun- The evaluation team is now engaged in a of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, Of- involved youth in treatment services national process and impact evaluation of fice of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency and case management programs man- the demonstration sites. The partner- Prevention. ships’ logic models are being used to aged by the partnerships. In Baton Sheley, J.F., and Wright, J.D. 1993. Gun Ac- Rouge, police crime analysis and report- identify relevant process and impact mea- quisition and Possession in Selected Juve- sures. The evaluators also are capturing ing have been enhanced. The partner- nile Samples. Research in Brief. Washing- ship has taken the lead in analyzing ATF extensive information on the partner- ton, DC: U.S. Department of Justice, Office ships’ capacity-building efforts and their and Brady Bill data and reported results of Justice Programs, National Institute of to the police department and the local achievement of short-term and long-term Justice. U.S. Attorney’s Office. All of the partner- outcomes. At the completion of the dem-

11 U.S. Department of Justice PRESORTED STANDARD Office of Justice Programs POSTAGE & FEES PAID DOJ/OJJDP Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention PERMIT NO. G–91

Washington, DC 20531 Official Business Penalty for Private Use $300

Bulletin NCJ 182679

Sheppard, D.I. 1998. Developing commu- fice of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency This Bulletin was prepared under grant nity partnerships to reduce juvenile gun Prevention. number 97–MU–FX–0004 from the Office of violence. Paper presented at the 50th Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, U.S. Department of the Treasury and U.S. Annual Meeting of the American Society U.S. Department of Justice. Department of Justice. 1999. Gun Crime in of , Washington, DC. the Age Group 18–20. Washington, DC: U.S. Snyder, H. 1999. Juvenile Arrests 1998. Department of the Treasury and U.S. De- The Office of Juvenile Justice and Delin- Bulletin. Washington, DC: U.S. Department partment of Justice. quency Prevention is a component of the Of- of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, Of- fice of Justice Programs, which also includes Yin, R.K., Kaftarian, S.J., and Jacobs, N.F. fice of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency the Bureau of Justice Assistance, the Bureau 1996. Empowerment evaluation at Federal Prevention. of Justice Statistics, the National Institute of and local levels. In Empowerment Evaluation: Justice, and the Office for Victims of Crime. Snyder, H., and Sickmund, M. 1999. Juve- Knowledge and Tools for Self-Assessment and nile Offenders and Victims: 1999 National Accountability, edited by D.M. Fetterman, Report. Washington, DC: U.S. Department S.J. Kaftarian, and A. Wandersmans. Thou- of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, Of- sand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications, Inc.

Acknowledgments David Sheppard, Ph.D., is a Program Director with COSMOS Corporation, Bethesda, MD. Heath Grant, M.A., is a Research Associate with the Criminal Justice Research Center, John Jay College, New York, NY. Wendy Rowe, M.A., is an independent consultant, Bellingham, WA. Nancy Jacobs, Ph.D., is Director of the Criminal Justice Research Center. Photograph page 2 copyright © 2000 PhotoDisc, Inc.; photograph page 7 copy- right © 2000 Clair Alaska c/o Artville; photograph page 8 copyright © 1998 Corbis.