The Success of Diverting Juvenile Domestic Violence Cases to Services with Informal Sanctions : The FIRS Center

• In Event: Minimizing Justice Contact for Juvenile Domestic Violence: Policing Decisions, Alternative Placement and Informal Sanctions

Abstract

Scheduled to open in July 2016 in Seattle, WA, the Family Intervention and Restorative Services (FIRS) Center will provide an alternative to detention for over 300 youth who are arrested annually for Juvenile Domestic Violence. Juvenile Domestic Violence currently represents 32% of new bookings to juvenile detention in the County. The overwhelming majority of these cases involve youth who have been violent toward a family member, often their mother. Current Washington state law requires police to make an arrest if the youth is 16 or older. Prior to FIRS, youth would have to be prosecuted before the youth and their families could receive intervention services from the County. The FIRS Center will now provide these families with an alternative to detention and immediate access to services. This discussion will describe the innovative collaboration among the City of Seattle, King County, and community organization partners that led to the development of the FIRS Center and will provide an update on its first months of implementation.

Author

• Claudia Gross-Shader, City of Seattle Office of City Auditor