Washington Courts: Press Release Detail

King County Superior Court Judge to Participate in Capitol Hill Briefing

Superior Court of the State of Washington
for the County of King

King County Superior Court Judge Patricia Clark will present a congressional briefing on Capitol Hill, providing insight into the court’s experience as one of 10 national sites piloting the innovative Reclaiming Futures project. The briefing is set for March 15 in Washington, DC, and is sponsored by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation in conjunction with the Addiction, Treatment and Recovery Caucus and Law Enforcement Caucus. 

Sponsored by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, Reclaiming Futures is an innovative, 10-site national initiative geared toward providing a holistic approach to helping youth rise above a downward spiral of substance abuse and crime.  Judges, treatment providers, law enforcement agencies and others work together with families and youth to actively move them on to a brighter future.  A five-year, $21 Million initiative, Reclaiming Futures promotes new opportunities and standards of care in juvenile justice by bringing communities together to improve drug and alcohol treatment, expand and coordinate services, and find jobs and volunteer work for young people in trouble with the law.

The overall vision for Reclaiming Futures includes three key elements:

·         Design & implement an effective continuum of assessment, treatment and supports for every substance abusing child adjudicated in our court.

·         Provide supports for youth with substance abuse and mental health issues beyond their court and treatment system participation.

·         Redirect and invest both current and future funding for these youth based upon their needs, the success of our model and the will of our community.

As Chief Judge of the Juvenile Court, Judge Clark leads this effort at the  Seattle/King County site, where Reclaiming Futures serves over 100 youthful offenders with substance abuse and/or mental health problems and their families per year, totaling 400 over the course of the 4-year pilot project. 

Youth are selected from target communities throughout King County which contribute a disproportionate number of youth to the juvenile justice system.  Ten of the 100 participants each year will be youth returning to our community following long-term confinement and at least 50 of the 100 will be youth of color.

The major service components of Reclaiming Futures include 1) A comprehensive substance abuse and mental health assessment, 2) Advocacy Teams and mentors to provide community-based wrap-around supports and 3) Treatment Court services for youth with both substance abuse and mental health issues.

Along with Seattle/King County, the 10 project sites include Anchorage, Alaska; Chicago, Illinois; Dayton/Montgomery County, Ohio; Marquette, Michigan; Portland/Multnomah County, Oregon; Rosebud Reservation, South Dakota; Santa Cruz County, California; Southeastern Kentucky; and the State of New Hampshire. 

Other panelists presenting at the briefing include Laura Nissen, National Program Director for Reclaiming Futures, James Marks, Sr. Vice President with the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, and Tiffiney Henden, youth representative from Portland, Oregon.  

Access to a Webcast of the briefing will be made available online after 10:00 a.m. ET, March 16 at http://www.rwjf.org/newsroom/activitydetail.jsp?id=10163&type=3.  For more information on Reclaiming Futures, visit the project website at www.reclaimingfutures.org.

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