Third Annual Minister of Justice National youth Justice Policing Awards

Narration

The Department of Justice, in collaboration with the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police is pleased to present the third annual Minister of Justice National Youth Justice Policing Awards.

This award recognizes the innovative efforts of police officers who promote the goals of Youth Justice Renewal in Canada.

There are problems in Canada's youth justice system. For example, Canada has the highest rate of Youth incarceration in the western world. Canada's Court system is also burdened with minor offences - offences that could be better handled outside the court. The Government of Canada's Youth Justice Renewal Initiative strives to create a fairer, more effective youth justice system.

The new initiative is based on three key directions: prevention, meaningful consequences for youth crime, and intensified rehabilitation and reintegration to help youth safely return to their communities. The initiative includes new legislation, the Youth Criminal Justice Act, which will come into force in April, 2003. The new law will encourage the use of community-based programs as effective alternatives to the court system for less serious youth crime. It will also reserve custody for the most serious crimes and have special measures for serious violent offenders.

But legislation alone will not accomplish the goals of Youth Justice Renewal. Police officers from across Canada are strongly devoted to working with youth in conflict with the law. These dedicated men and women will help make the new youth justice system a reality. It is those officers who are being recognized with the 2002 National Youth Justice Policing Awards.

This year's committee has decided that 2 of the nominations deserve an honourable mention.

In the summer of 2001 Constable Nathalie Legros of the Montreal Police Service teamed up with a local artist and 9 troubled youths to help solve Montreal's graffiti problem. As part of the Youth Creation Project, these young people produced 5 colourful murals, which gave them an opportunity to learn a new skill and contribute to the community, while helping local citizens feel safer in their surroundings.

Interview Constable Legros

We realize that these murals have never been touched, and that they respect the artwork of others. They are proud of the work they do, people stop them on the street to congratulate them so they have a real sense of pride and self worth. They have been arrested before so when the youth know they have to work with the police, they are apprehensive and unsure. At the beginning they don't talk very much, but by the end we can talk and discuss anything, so the police are now seen differently.

Narration

Our second honourable mention is awarded to Constables Dan Lewis, Mike MacDonald, Wayne Pendergast, and Tom Ripley of the Cape Breton Police Service in Sydney Nova Scotia. Their involvement in the Island community justice society has meant more meaningful consequences and rehabilitation for youths who have committed offences.

Interview Constable Wayne Pendergast

The youth having to appear in front of victims and in front of the community groups themselves and having the youth actually get up and speak as to what took place why it took place and why they may have done it and then letting the youth hear what effect it may have had on the community as a whole and on the victim, so the youth has to take responsibility, and I think it brings the message home a lot clearer. Police participation is also very important in these programs to make the youth aware of the problems that come about through alcoholism, theft, and what effect it has on the community, what effect it could have in the youth in the future. A lot of the offenders are first time offenders and are not ware of the impact these things have. So it's very important to get the message across to them.

Narration

Three nominations were chosen to receive certificates of distinction

Constable Greg Ericson of the RCMP's Turtle Mountain detachment in Killarney, Manitoba has brought together community members to form the Killarney and District Justice Committee. Their mandate is to assign a variety of consequences to hold young people in conflict with the law accountable for their actions, and give them an opportunity to right the wrong without receiving a criminal record.

Interview Constable Ericson

It gives most the kids a second chance. You know, I mean lets face it, we were all kids once and, uh, I would say 95 per cent of us probably did something wrong as a child or as a youth. So they go before the committee, the committee hears the complaint, most of the time we invite the complainant to come as well, so they sit in on and hear what the youths have to say and why they did what they did, and the complainant has an opportunity to voice their opinion, and the committee decides what the outcome should be. And it could be community service or payback restitution, and uh, letters of apology, we've even had times where our kids have done research papers. So it's kind of an education.

Narration

Staff Sergeant Scott McLean of the Niagara Regional Police Service in St Catherine's Ontario receives our second certificate of distinction for his strong commitment to youth justice by creating and raising funds for youth justice committees in Port Colburn and Wainfleet. This restorative Justice model hasbeen designed to fit the needs of small communities. The committee has helped troubled youth understand the impact of their offending behaviour, while consulting with community members to choose appropriate penalties without going to court.

Interview Staff Sgt. McLean

Were learning that communities have to band together, they have to become one, and through that community spirit, everyone benefits, with the benefit being an understanding, an improvement, and the community taking care of itself, accepting ownership for their own members. And through that ownership and through that membership, we start to understand more. And we can generate more interest towards crime solving, crime prevention, and it just helps everyone out.

Narration

The Final Certificate of Distinction is awarded to Corporals Al Vance and Jim Pratt, and Constable Gerry Sonier of the Regina Police Service. They are using traditional methods and the knowledge of the elders to help First Nations youths in conflict with the law. They have organized week-long cultural camps for in-custody youths, where they rough it in tee pees and learn the value of community relationships, and the importance taking responsibility for one's actions.

Interview Corp. Vance

All of these camps are set in a very challenging setting. We've had winter camps, out in the bush where we stay in the tee pees, where the wood has to be chopped, the fires have to be built, the fires have to be kept. So its very challenging surroundings for youth that can be, well for lack of better words who can be a little soft at times. So they learn to find themselves and learn their own capabilities. They learn that they're capable of doing things that they probably never thought they were. And if you instill pride in somebody, that translates into high self-esteem and self-assurance. Somebody that has good self-assurance and high self-esteem is not likely to commit a crime.

Narration:

This year's winner of the National Youth Justice Policing Award is Constable Jim Olsen of the Lethbridge Police Service. His work with youths in conflict with the law who suffer from Fetal Alcohol Syndrome has also earned him the respect and appreciation of the citizens from this southern Alberta community, and the many young people he deals with.

Interview Donna Debolt

In Lethbridge we always knew that we wanted to do something specifically in the area of justice, but we had no takers, until Jim Olsen arrived at my doorstep in December of 1999, with a young man in tow who had fetal alcohol syndrome

Interview Jim Olsen

I had no idea what it was. So basically I ended up meeting with an FAS specialist, Donna Debolt, who kinda gave me the inside information on exactly what we were dealing with this child, and we developed a way to deal with him, and at the same time we discussed how we could deal with other kids in relationship to the same issue.

Narration

What they developed was the FAS Justice committee. It included 15 different community organizations with one goal in mind, to change the way the justice system deals with young people affected by Fetal Alcohol Syndrome . Youth suffering from this brain disorder, which is caused by mothers drinking alcohol during pregnancy, often have difficulty learning from traditional consequences.

Interview Jim Olsen

There's a lot of kids in our area that suffer from this disability and we really need to have a look at how were dealing with them, because dealing with them through the courts has no effect.

One of the organizations Constable Olsen deals with is the First steps program. They deal with young women with FAS and one of their success stories is Sarah Morrison. After a proper diagnosis and intervention by the FAS justice committee, Sarah was directed to the people who could help her to deal with her condition. Sarah and her family were now able to understand some of her behavior, and deal with it before she came into conflict with the law. This story could have had a very different ending.

Interview Cathy Wilson (Sarah's mom)

Three years ago we could have very well lost Sarah into the criminal system, but you know with the help of Charlene Campbell and Jim Olsen, and the Lethbridge Police Service, we've kept Sarah out of trouble and Sarah's come 150 per cent since.

Interview Charlene Campbell (Regional Manager First Steps Program)

If you take someone that's as sweet as Sarah and put them into a situation where there's some hardcore people, you're not going to get a positive result. And they're easily victimized because they're just nice young women and nice young men so what we do, and what Jims done and does a super job of is creating a way around that.

Interview Sarah Morrison

The support that Charlene and everyone gives you and Jim and everybody, they're always there if you need somebody to talk to. And before I never had that, if I needed someone to talk to I just had my parents, who I would be like fighting with. He's really understanding about stuff and tries to always help me if I'm in trouble or anything, he's always there.

Interview Charlene Campbell

He really picked up on the fact that these kids are special, that they have a lot of strengths - they're wonderful kids. And they need to be treated a little differently, and when you do so, you get really positive results.

Interview Donna Debolt

What we know about children with fetal alcohol syndrome is that they need a great deal of supervision, and that need doesn't tend to go away because they advance in age. The average 15 year old with fetal alcohol syndrome, is probably functioning like an eight or nine year old. And would be best served with us remembering that.

Interview Jim Olsen

The kids we helped - a lot of them were not even having to deal with them again. I mean they're in really great homes and great structured environments. And I seem to be dealing more with our really really high needs kids.

Narration

Communities around north America are looking to Lethbridge as a model. Eighty to ninety per cent of the youth involved in this program have not re-offended. This success rate is attributed to a team approach. Key people in the justice system, including the Crown Prosecutors office and every member of the Lethbridge Police Service have received specialized FAS training through the Justice Committee.

Interview Ian Cameron(Acting Police Chief)

If our members are out there, and they have a basic understanding and can basically do a bit of a diagnosis that this person is most likely an FAS or FAE sufferer, and start them into this system.

Interview Donna Debolt

Our hope is, that if we get really good at what we do with these teenagers, that the philosophy and the case management principles that we put in place for them as teenagers will follow them into the adult arena.

Interview Jim Olsen

Some of this stuff that were doing - yeah, you are going to say, yeah I made a mistake and that's OK with me, because if you can make a mistake and you can learn by it, and you can do better, then great - and that seems to make a very positive impact with the kids.

Interview Ian Cameron(Interim Police Chief)

You have to have someone who believes in it totally, 100 per cent, and is prepared to put every ounce and fibre of their being into it. And Jim certainly has done that.

Interview Sgt.Darcy Murray(Youth Services)

If not for Jim, this initiative would not have got off the ground and got to the stage that it is today

Interview Donna Debolt

You need disciples in this work, and he's a disciple - for children and adolescents and even adults with fetal alcohol syndrome

Interview Sgt.Darcy Murray

If we believe in community policing, and that means that we also believe in trying to develop new programs and new ways of diverting, and not even diverting but stopping crime before it even happens.

Interview Cathy Wilson (Sarah's mom)

These different programs will keep kids out of the system, and now and then they're gonna have a fighting chance of being somebody.

Narration

The Department of Justice, and the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police congratulate all the winners of the National Youth Policing Awards. We recognize the significant contribution they have made in improving the youth justice system in Canada. It is this kind of innovation that will benefit all Canadians.