Read the Press Release
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
July 7, 2010
Contacts: LaWanda Johnson, ljohnson@justicepolicy.org, (202) 558-7974
x308
Adam Ratliff, aratliff@justicepolicy.org, (202) 558-7974 x306.
Most Justice-Involved Youth Affected by
Traumatic Childhood Experiences
As many as 9 in 10 youth
in justice system have experienced a traumatic event, yet few such
youth are identified as traumatized, and fewer receive appropriate
treatment or placement
Washington DC - The Justice Policy Institute (JPI) released a brief
today examining the relationship between childhood trauma and justice
system involvement for youth. According to Healing Invisible Wounds: Why Investing in
Trauma-Informed Care for Children Makes Sense, of the more
than 93,000 children that are currently incarcerated in the United
States, between 75 and 93 percent have experienced at least one
traumatic experience, including sexual abuse, war, community violence,
neglect and maltreatment. Research points to long term effects of
childhood trauma, including emotional problems and negative impacts on
youth brain development. The brief notes that while holding youth who
engage in delinquent behavior accountable is important, it is critical
that trauma exposure be considered in placement decisions, as youth who
receive treatment in the community have better outcomes than those
placed in correctional facilities.
“Incarcerated youth already face significant challenges, but youth who
have experienced trauma are even more acutely affected,” said author
Erica Adams, M.D. “Addressing a child’s trauma through the public
health system before that child becomes involved with the justice
system is critical to promoting the well-being of the child, the family
and ultimately, the community.”
Researchers found that youth who suffer trauma are more likely to
develop life-long psychiatric conditions, including personality
disorders, conduct disorder, ADHD, depression, anxiety, substance abuse
disorders and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Traumatized youth
can experience developmental delays, decreased cognitive abilities,
learning disabilities and even lower IQ levels, with school problems
including school dropout and expulsion rates at nearly three times that
of their peers who had not experienced trauma.
“We simply cannot afford to ignore the evidence and prevalence of the
long-term effects of untreated childhood trauma,” says Tracy
Velázquez, executive director of the Justice Policy Institute.
“If we are to have strong healthy communities, then we must start with
these children whose unseen and untreated wounds hinder their ability
to become healthy, productive adults.”
Velázquez will be sharing the findings of Healing Invisiblen
Wounds next week at the National Juvenile Justice Network’s eighth
annual forum in New Orleans, Louisiana.
As detailed in the research brief, currently the justice system does
not meet the needs of traumatized youth and may increase trauma through
its use of incarceration. Thousands of youth are incarcerated each
year, and few are screened for trauma-related symptoms or provided
trauma-informed care. In one study, 84 percent of agencies reported
either no or extremely limited information provided on the youth’s
trauma history, and 33 percent of the agencies reported not training
staff to assess for trauma at all. Although 60 percent of states
surveyed report using universal or selective trauma screenings, the
scope is often limited, and fewer than 20 percent of states provide
evidence-based or otherwise standardized assessment tools. According to
Adams, this may be because trauma often resembles delinquent behavior.
“Although it may be difficult initially to identify the role trauma has
played, the most effective and appropriate response to traumatized
youth, in or out of the system, is one of treatment and support,” says
Adams. “Yet, once these children enter the justice system, quality,
evidence-based, trauma-informed treatments and interventions are
currently almost non-existent.”
Experts advocating for system reforms that address the unique needs of
trauma-affected children say that long-term strategies to treat rather
than incarcerate are needed to curb the cycle of justice system
involvement at its source, and that these programs should be supported
at federal and state levels.
Based largely on the collaborative work of researchers, clinicians and
members of the National Child Traumatic Stress Network (NCTSN), JPI
makes the following recommendations for child-serving systems, law
enforcement, judges and entire judicial systems to better recognize and
treat trauma in children. The following policies outline steps towards
a trauma-informed system.
- Improve reporting of
and screening for trauma exposure. The justice system and law
enforcement must emphasize assisting people who experience trauma, as
well as supporting people who do report incidents of violence, abuse or
neglect, regardless of willingness to prosecute.
- Improve assessment
of trauma exposure. There should be an investigation into the
child’s current environment beyond basic safety assurance, which is
important for both diagnosis and treatment of trauma-related
dysfunction by a professional trained in both general psychiatric
assessment and child traumatic stress assessment.
- Provide targeted
prevention and early intervention programs. Counseling and
other early interventions should be provided for all people who have
experienced trauma and should be instituted relatively soon following
the initial incident.
- Ensure children who
have experienced trauma receive services and treatment. Youth
and families that have experienced trauma should be referred to
practitioners or agencies that provide evidence-based, trauma-informed
treatment. Youth should not have to enter the justice system to access
these and other mental health services.
- Avoid further trauma
within the justice system. At all stages of processing, care
should be taken to not further traumatize youth entering child-serving
systems, most of whom have previous traumatic experiences or concurrent
mental illness.
- Consider trauma
exposure when deciding sentencing and placement. Judges should
receive training on the impact of trauma on youth and appropriate,
evidence-based responses. It is critical for judges to understand the
role of trauma exposure on youth, particularly if the traumatic
exposure may have contributed to an offense.
- Invest in prevention
and trauma-informed programs. Although many states are
currently grappling with record budget deficits, cutting prevention and
trauma-informed programs may result in more costs down the road. The
direct and indirect costs associated with child maltreatment make it
among the most costly public health problems in the United States.
To read the full brief click the link Healing
Invisible
Wounds:
Why Investing in Trauma-Informed Care for Children
Makes Sense. For additional information, please contact LaWanda
Johnson at (202) 558-7974 x308 or ljohnson@justicepolicy.org. For more
on JPI’s research, please visit our website at www.justicepolicy.org.
The Justice Policy
Institute (JPI) is a Washington, D.C.-based organization dedicated to
reducing society’s use of incarceration and promoting just and
effective social policies.
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