New approach urged in dealing with juvenile delinquents By Marian A. Maraya

A more stringent approach to handling juvenile delinquency cases may be needed in the CNMI, Division of Youth Services Juvenile Corrections Unit Supervisor Sylvio Ada stated after witnessing first-hand stateside youth probation practices in Phoenix, Arizona recently.

Saying he is not necessarily advocating “stricter” enforcement measures, the probation officer, however, underscored that all crimes committed by youths crimes should not be taken lightly.

In the CNMI, the system provides for more flexibility on punishments imposed on youth offenders compared to the states’ almost inviolable probation verdicts.

“But it really depends on the magnitude of the crime. I believe there are also crimes which should be taken into consideration,” said Mr. Ada.

After attending a week-long probation officers training in Phoenix, Mr. Ada has had the opportunity to make comparisons of the mainland versus the local system, noting slight differences with the performance of standard operating procedures.

The most striking and apparent difference, according to Mr. Ada, is the size of probation clients handled at Arizona state as opposed to the small community being catered by the youth services.

“They have 20,000 people on probation over there so they really deal in bulks. Whereas, CNMI handles so little compared to that number,” said Mr. Ada.

After an ocular visit at Phoenix’s probation department, Mr. Ada came up with the conclusion that some procedures done there would not necessarily work in the CNMI.

He explained that local probation officers are more “accountable” for individual probation cases they handle.

“Here, we know who our clients are and where they are at all times. Over there, majority of the time, a probation officer would probably see his client like maybe once a year. So there’s lack of accountability in the process,” he said.

He added that local practices make room for a more close personal attention when it comes to monitoring the behavior of youths on probation.

“But they have an edge in that they have laws to back them up,” he said.

Mr. Ada reiterated that youths who have committed grave crimes should be made to realize the seriousness of their acts.

“[R]egardless of their accomplishments within the prison facility, whether they’re performing well or not because they are suppose to perform well. That’s why they were placed under a structured environment,” he said.

But juvenile delinquency cases in the Commonwealth have dropped tremendously from 523 in 1997 to 369 in 1999, according to DYS records.

According to the DYS statistical summary of people served in Fiscal Years 1997-1999 juvenile detainees have gone down from 162 in 1997 to 82 in 1999.

The real key to effectively curb crimes, according to Mr. Ada, is through prevention and public awareness.

“One thing I have always believed in is that prevention is really the key to mitigate criminal acts and misdemeanors. So I think we should pump more money into prevention programs like sports and other educational recreational activities,” he said.