THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, December 14, 1995 TAG: 9512140407
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B7 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY ROBERT LITTLE, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: RICHMOND LENGTH: Short : 49 lines
A plan to reform the state's juvenile justice system - including more treatment and prevention programs as well as more money for incarceration - will cost at least $30.5 million a year, a legislative commission announced Wednesday.
The Virginia Commission on Youth, comissioned by the General Assembly to propose an overhaul of the state's treatment of young criminals, released its final proposal for the 1996 legislative session Wednesday. Most of the details had been made public, but Wednesday's meeting offered the first look at the plan's projected cost.
A similar commission sponsored by Gov. George F. Allen will release its final report next week.
Lawmakers crafting the state's two-year budget for 1997 and 1998 are predicting a cash shortage. But legislators drafting the proposed juvenile justice package say they expect it to be a priority despite cost.
``The governor, the attorney general, the General Assembly - all say juvenile justice reform is a top priority for the legislature this year,'' said Del. Jerrauld Jones, D-Norfolk, chairman of the Commission on Youth. ``It seems to me that they'd want to follow through.''
The commission's proposal, which will be offered to the legislature when it convenes Jan. 10, would open most juvenile trials to the public and allow criminals sentenced as juveniles to be imprisoned until age 25.
It also would require more community service or restitution for young offenders, and would make parents criminally liable for failing to supervise their children.
Among the proposals that would require an increase in the state budget:
$11 million to finance treatment for first-time offenders, either through probation offices or local public or private agencies.
About $5 million to hire 183 new prosecutors, paralegals and secretaries around the state, and $7 million by 1998 for 172 new probation officers, supervisors and support staff.
$4.8 million for a new truancy prevention program.
$4.3 million within two years to finance a projected increase of 124 inmates in youth homes and prisons. The jump would result from proposed laws letting judges sentence juveniles to more time in jail.
$3.2 million spread among various localities to finance treatment programs as alternatives to jails. by CNB