BOISE, Idaho — Tucked away off Liberty St. in Boise is Ada County's 71-bed juvenile detention facility. A new center, just across the street, aims to keep at-risk kids with behavioral problems out of that facility - and out of the justice system.
The Bridge Youth and Family Resource Center is a new facility that screens, assesses, and connects youth with resources to help put them on the right track.
"A lot of times parents were told, 'Your child can't get any help until they're put in the system,'" Meridian Police Chief Tracy Basterrechea said. "And we know that once we get a child in the juvenile justice system, they have a way higher rate of reoffending, and just staying in that cycle. So, we really want to take these kids who don't belong in the juvenile justice system and get them the help that they need."
The Bridge is all about connecting youth with services and support to keep them out of the cycle of crime and reoffending. And it's not just for kids - the center provides support for entire families.
"Statistically, we know that if youth are diverted from the system for the same types of crimes that youth might be formally charged for, they have much better outcomes," Alison Tate, director of juvenile services for Ada County said. "They're more likely to graduate from high school, they're less likely to commit a crime. Felony recidivism actually increases 33% if you incarcerate kids at the beginning."
Juveniles with behavioral issues can be referred to the center by family, teachers, counselors or law enforcement.
"We've already in the two months that it's been open, have given a lot of referrals to get kids here, to get them the help that they need" Basterrechea said. "Get the families here, get the parents the resources they need so that they can be successful parents. That's what it's really about - serving that family."
The Bridge is a place where kids can rest, can something to eat, and then be assessed to find the root causes of what's going on - and what's causing issues.
"We're going to do a series of validated screening assessments on all the members of the family," Tate said. "So not just focusing on the youth we think is not behaving well, but what's really going on. What we have found so far is that a lot of parents have said, 'You know, I'm realizing that maybe I need counseling too.' So, we will be connecting them to those resources and providing ongoing case management."
Some of the cases The Bridge handles include mental health concerns, substance abuse, anxiety, and runaways.
After they're assessed, juveniles and their families are connected to resources that can help and are provided ongoing case management.
"So counseling, pro-social activities, we're going to try and help them if they need scholarships, if they need referrals," Tate said. "We might be talking to school counselors and sharing information about what's going on, parenting resources."
The Bridge started taking referrals in March. On Monday, they celebrated the opening of their new building with a ribbon cutting.
The center has received 10 referrals just in the last week and is currently seeing 40 families in their programming.
"The sooner we can get to these kids, the sooner we can get them the help they need," Governor Brad Little said during the ribbon cutting. "The sooner we can get them the support means that they, their families and their community are going to be safer."
The Bridge is also offering drop-in classes about parenting and substance addiction to help families who might be struggling with parenting topics.
The Bridge was built with a grant from the Idaho Department of Juvenile Corrections.
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