Youth find supportive paths away from involvement with criminal justice and dependency
The Community Assessment Team (CAT) specializes in partnering with youth seeking stability due to risk of involvement in the criminal justice or dependency systems. Youth and families receive support from a highly skilled team which provides comprehensive supportive services, resource coordination, and connections. Working to Insure and Nurture Girls’ Success (WINGS) and Juvenile Diversion, including Teen Court, are innovative components of this program.
Services Include:
- WINGS collaborates closely with probation officers to ensure culturally responsive engagement to young women who have run into the juvenile justice system for the first time.
- Juvenile Diversion programs work closely with law enforcement agencies to divert first-time juvenile offenders from the Juvenile Justice system while also providing clinical and trauma-informed services. SAY San Diego has two primary Juvenile Diversion programs: Teen Court and Truancy/Curfew group.
Teen Court is founded on the principles of restorative justice and is designated for youth who have been arrested for a first-time misdemeanor offense. Youth attend a Teen Court hearing (typically located at Crawford High School, Lincoln High School, or Downtown San Diego) to have their case reviewed by a jury of their teen peers. They then have 90-days to complete the sentence handed down by their jury, which typically includes:
repairing the harm, accountability, and/or skill building.
Accepting responsibility for their offense and successful completion of the program ensure that the charge will not be moved forward to Juvenile Court and the minor will not have an arrest on his/her record.
Truancy/Curfew Group is designed for youth who have been arrested for a status offense (i.e. Daytime Loitering and Curfew) in which they complete a 3-week group focusing on the law, positive decision making, influence of peers, and goal setting. In addition, youth complete a 500-word essay and 5 hours of community service. Groups meet in City Heights, Kearny Mesa, and Point Loma.
In 2016:
- 542 youth participated in the CAT program.
- 93% of Diversion, 96% of WINGS, and 94% of Teen Court youth improved resiliency.
- Out of 497 kids checked for re-offenses 90 days after completing the program, 98.8% were found not to have re-offended.
- 94% of youth Teen Court cases were successfully completed.
- 75 Teen Court students were trained as peer jurors on the juvenile justice system including principles of restorative justice.
Locations: SAY Administrative Office and SAY Mid City Family Resource Center
Funding Partner: San Diego County Probation
Youth
Delinquency Prevention and Youth Development 
