Tyler

By CASEY KNAUPP
Staff Writer

Juvenile criminal cases in Smith County dropped by 15 percent in 2007, officials announced on Thursday.

Smith County Juvenile Services reported the overall decrease in the number of juvenile cases presented by law enforcement agencies.

A 5 percent reduction in first-time offenders was also announced, and the number of juveniles committing multiple offenses at the same time dropped 43 percent. The number of minors detained at the Smith County Juvenile Center decreased by 19 percent, according to a prepared statement from Juvenile Ser-vices Director Nel-son Downing.

"I've always tho-ught that we have one of the best, if not the best, juvenile departments in Texas," said County Court-at-Law No. 3 Judge Floyd Getz, who presides over juvenile cases. "These numbers serve to confirm what I had already thought. The probation officers, detention staff, JJAEP (Juvenile Justice Alternative Education Program) faculty, volunteers and everyone else at Smith County Juvenile go the extra mile to accomplish our goal of turning young folks away from criminal conduct and toward positive goals for their lives.

"We also benefit from the hard work and dedication of our local law enforcement officers who very effectively deal with juvenile crime in our community."

Downing agreed.

"It takes a special person, with a vision of what our youth can be as adults, who are willing to go through the emotional rigors of this job to help troubled adolescents, and to really make a difference in today's youth, as well as tomorrow's families and community," he said. "Smith County has the best team of those officers and staff in the state."

For the past few years, Smith County has followed a plan of bringing many services to minors and their families locally, instead of contracting them to other facilities.

Downing said the juvenile center now has its own sexual offender team and of the 26 juveniles who have gone through the program, one has committed a sexual offense after beginning treatment.

Downing is also encouraged by the new Drug Intervention Program because 70 percent of the youth completing the program have not tested positive for additional drug use, he said.

Smith County saved more than $500,000 in 2007 by providing the services in-house, compared to what it would cost to send sex and drug offenders to other facilities for treatment, he reported.

The juvenile center also offers schooling to the young offenders.

Some of the youngsters attend school every day for an average of six weeks and Downing reported a healthy increase in the average grade levels for reading and math.

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