Our Mission Statement
We support Juvenile Justice programs that value children’s basic needs including mental health and promote fairness and equity. We focus on delinquency prevention and the expanded use of rehabilitative programs.
We believe that the Juvenile Justice system should:
- Promote the prevention of juvenile delinquency
- Rehabilitate, rather than punish
- Provide alternatives to incarceration for low-level crimes
- Treat youth as youth, who do not have a fully matured brain
We advocate for:
We work toward this vision through education of the membership and public, advocacy to government and monitoring of programs and institutions. We make ourselves heard!
JUSTICE PROGRAM Plan 2021-2022
Goals and Specific Objectives
Goal 1
Educate and increase awareness of Juvenile Justice Committee (JJC) among League of
Women Voters Collier County (LWVCC) general membership and JJC members.
Goal 2
Explore viability of resurrecting the Neighborhood Accountability Board (NAB) in Collier
County (CC), based on restorative justice.
Goal 3
Review in and out of school suspension rates in CCPS and its relationship to the juvenile
justice system; compare with alternative discipline programs in other jurisdictions that
are in lieu of suspensions.
Goal 4
Continue to monitor Florida legislation and take appropriate action at the CC level
relative to the juvenile justice system. This includes a focus on the regulation of the
use of direct file of juveniles to adult court, the use of civil citation, the Baker Act,
and rehabilitative programs.
Goal 5
Educate and increase awareness of Civil Citation diversion programs for low-level Juvenile crimes in lieu of arrest; review of CCSD program to prevent delinquency and support diversion and identify gaps.
Note: In addition, the JJC regularly monitors the following programs, agencies, and organizations in CC to remain apprised of their work, and to act when appropriate. The Juvenile Justice System (emphasis on rehabilitation, alternatives to incarceration and diversion programs); Youth and Delinquency Prevention Services of the CC Sheriff’s Office; Unified Family Court; Florida Department of Juvenile Justice; Pace Center for Girls; Trinity Life Foundation; CC Youth Resource Center; LWVFL Juvenile Justice Action Team.