Executive Director’s Report MARCH 2014 Note of Appreciation to the Thousands of CONTENTS Juvenile Justice Professionals Around the State PAGE 1 (TJJD & County Juvenile Probation Departments) Note of Appreciation to the Thousands of Juvenile Justice Professionals Around the State I want to use the Executive Director report to memorialize, for the record, how TJJD Commemorates 30 Years of Texas Juvenile Law much I admire the work you perform for the citizens of Texas. Our profession requires a commitment that few people understand. PAGE 2 TJJD Employees Assist Accident Victims In thirty-eight years of working in the juvenile justice system I have never worked with a finer group of people. You have raised the bar for juvenile PAGE 3 justice in this state to the highest level in our profession’s history. Evins Youth Participate in Saturday Enhancement Program I know I speak for the thousands of juvenile board members, county commissioners and our TJJD Board in saying – Thank You. PAGE 4 Bishop Michael Sis visits Ron Jackson Campus Please stay the course and don’t let anything sway you from the task of helping for Confirmation Service young adults placed in our care. TJJD Receives Grant Awards Family Day Respectfully Yours – Mike PAGE 5 Ron Jackson Volunteers Facilitate an Interpersonal Communication Class TJJD Employees Recognized for Charitable TJJD Commemorates 30 Years of Texas Juvenile Law Contributions Planning Begins for the Publication of the 9th Edition in 2016 PAGE 6 Evins Youth Celebrate Bishop’s Birthday The Texas Juvenile Justice Department Navarro College Program BenefitsT JJD Youth (TJJD) is proud to commemorate the 30th anniversary of Texas Juvenile PAGE 7 Law, the foremost legal reference trea- Prevention Grants tise for juvenile justice practitioners PAGE 10 in Texas. Affectionately referred to as Employees Receiving Tenure Awards the “operator’s manual for the juvenile justice system”, this book is an impor- tant educational and reference tool for practitioners statewide. The former Texas Juvenile Probation Commission (TJPC) began publishing the book in 1984 and it is impossible to talk about this book without remembering its original author. Professor Robert O. TJJD | www.tjjd.texas.gov | March 2014 1 Dawson (Bob) was the former the Texas Youth Commission and TJPC). His contribu- Bryant Smith Chair in Law at the tions were significant and Texas Juvenile Law documents University of Texas School of Law not only the current state of the juvenile system and the in Austin. Professor Dawson, au- governing law, but contains invaluable historic perspec- thor of the first six editions of the tives and chronologies of the development of the system book, died on February 26, 2005, since 1973. After Professor Dawson’s death in 2005, TJPC and the juvenile justice profes- attorneys took over the full responsibility for writing, edit- sion has greatly felt the magni- ing and publishing Texas Juvenile Law, publishing the 7th Robert O. Dawson tude of this loss nearly ten years Edition in 2008. 1939-2005 ago. Bob gave generously of his time and expertise to juvenile justice professionals across After the merger of TYC and TJPC in 2011, the fate of the state and nation and to the legislative leadership of this publication was uncertain as successful completion Texas on all issues affecting the juvenile justice system. As of merger activities was the paramount focus of the new the original and primary draftsman of Title 3 of the Family agency. In the fall of 2012, TJJD Executive Director, Mike Code in 1973 and the significant reforms in 1995, Professor Griffiths, reaffirmed the commitment to publish the books Dawson fiercely advocated for youth in the juvenile jus- and TJJD proudly continued the tradition of Professor tice system and both of TJJD’s predecessor agencies (i.e., Dawson and TJPC with the publication of the 8th Edition of Texas Juvenile Law in December 2012. TJJD attorneys Lisa Capers, Nydia Thomas and Chris Cowan, who had worked on the previous Editions of the book, led a team TJJD Employees Assist Accident Victims of committed staff internal and external to the agency in making the two-volume, 8th Edition a reality in the midst On Wednesday morning, March 5, 2014, a head-on car of the merger activities and the beginning of the new TJJD. collision occurred southeast of Brownwood. UTMB Clinical Case Manager Renae Koen, R.N., came upon The First Edition of the book was originally published in the accident and provided the following account: 1984 following the 1983 legislative session. A new edition “I would like to say that I was very proud of the ladies of Texas Juvenile Law is published after every other leg- and gentlemen in the green TJJD shirts. I pulled up on islative session and a supplement is published after each a head on collision this morning and we could not get of the interim legislative sessions. The First Edition was into the vehicle to help the man that was still barely directed primarily at juvenile court judges and juvenile alive. Suddenly there were green shirts everywhere! probation officers. It became a standard reference work TJJD staff that were on their way to training jumped for those users, but it was also used by law enforcement, out and jumped in the mess and were able to get into educa¬tors, prosecutors, defense attorneys and justice and the vehicle so that aid could be rendered. WAY TO municipal court staff. Accordingly, beginning with the GO TJJD STAFF! Very proud of the heart that I saw Second Edition, the scope of the book has increased to in- clude subjects of interest to those users as well. Professor this morning in these people.” Dawson was always very proud that the people who run The staff involved were all on their way to pre-service the juvenile justice system, or participate in its operation, training. Upon arrival at the crash site, Ms. Kendra have found Texas Juvenile Law to be a valuable reference Galloway went through the back window which was tool. The book is used extensively by juvenile justice prac- broken out and began rescue breaths. Adam Owen, titioners but is also frequently cited by appellate courts as Robert Thompson, and Jamey Williams got a crow bar well. This treatise has also become an important acquisi- and opened the door to the vehicle. Mr. Thompson tion for university and county libraries. TJJD again con- then began chest compressions. They performed CPR tinued the tradition of providing complimentary copies of until paramedics and DPS arrived which was about the book set to probation departments, juvenile courts, ap- 30 minutes. Mary Van Hollebeke and Justin Doss di- pellate courts and the legislature as a public service of the rected traffic. agency. In 2012, nearly 1,400 complimentary copies of the Our special thanks go to Ms. Galloway, Mr. Owen, two-volume set were provided to practitioners statewide. Mr. Thompson, Mr. Williams, Ms. Van Hollebeke and Additional copies were made available for sale at cost. Justin Doss for their quick action and for representing As TJJD celebrates the 30th anniversary of this publica- the high values and character of our employees and tion, the Administration and Training Division has begun our agency. ■ the planning phase for the publication of 9th Edition of 2 TJJD | www.tjjd.texas.gov | March 2014 Texas Juvenile Law which is scheduled to be published in the spring of 2016. Amidst tight budgetary constraints and limited staff resources, a publication endeavor of this mag- nitude will be challenging for TJJD. Editing of the book is ongoing at all times to update statutory changes, state and federal case law as well as attorney general opinions. Immediately after the 2015 legislative session, attorneys will begin the inclusion of any new laws. The team needed to produce this publication consists of approximately six attorneys (both internal and external to the agency), sup- port staff, policy and budget staff, and other staff that will plan, draft, edit, market, produce and distribute the book. Thousands of man hours are devoted in the four months Former University of Texas and current Cleveland immediately prior to the publication deadline. It is cer- Browns running back Fozzy Whittaker came to the tainly a monumental project, but TJJD is committed to Giddings State School on Sunday, March 23, 2014. once again providing this resource to juvenile justice prac- Whittaker spoke to a number of Giddings youth about titioners in Texas and continuing the legacy of Professor his life experiences, his football career, and the obsta- Robert O Dawson which lives on in Texas Juvenile Law. ■ cles he has had to overcome to achieve his dream. ■ Evins Youth Participate in Saturday Enhancement Program One by one 15 youth at the Evins Regional Juvenile Center walked into the family center and sat in to listen to representa- tives from the Gary Job Corps as part of the ongoing Saturday Enhancement Activity Program. Administered by the U.S. Department of Labor, Job Corps is the nation’s largest career technical training and education program for low-income young people ages 16-24. Outreach & Admissions Assistant for Gary Job Corps Angela Torres began her presentation by telling the youth that the program is federally funded and each student gets a scholarship grant worth $24,500 for whatever program they choose and about the variety of hands-on trades offered. Upon graduation every student is given a $1,000 bonus to use for whatever they need-to get them started in the work- force. Students who are age 18 can apply by themselves and their parent’s income or resources won’t be considered for enrollment. If the youth is under the age of 18 and the parents are receiving any type of federal or state assistance they will automatically qualify.