Image of Sean Goode, Choose 180 Executive Director

Choose 180 Director’s past helps him connect to youth facing struggles

Zero Youth Detention

The Choose 180 Program was started with initial funding from the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s office in an effort to reduce the flow of youth into the juvenile justice system. When a first or second time juvenile offender commits a low-level misdemeanor, King County prosecutors have the option to send them to a 180 workshop in lieu of filing charges against them.Continue reading Choose 180 Director’s past helps him connect to youth facing struggles

Image of Rimon and his mother, both part of the first King County Juvenile Court felony case to be resolved through a peacemaking circle

Peacemaking circle pilot shows new path for juvenile justice

Zero Youth Detention

Two years in jail for 15-year-old Rimon would be followed by a lifetime of notifying future employers and landlords that he was a convicted felon. Two years in jail and the legal process along the way would cost taxpayers somewhere around $200,000. And two years in juvenile detention could turn a teenager hard and bitter.Continue reading Peacemaking circle pilot shows new path for juvenile justice

Image of Stephanie Trollen of King County PAO Juvenile Unit; and Jimmy Hung, senior deputy prosecutor and chair of the PAO juvenile unit

New domestic-violence intervention reduces juvenile detention stays

Zero Youth Detention

Before the Family Intervention and Restorative Services (FIRS) program launched this year, the King County Prosecuting Attorney Office’s options for helping families coping with domestic violence were too limited. Under the FIRS model, parents can now access an array of social services without formally pressing charges against a child or teen.Continue reading New domestic-violence intervention reduces juvenile detention stays