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 </figure>KDOCTOPEKA - The Juvenile Justice Oversight Committee (JJOC, established under 2016 Senate Bill 367 (SB367) to oversee the implementation of reforms intended to improve the state’s juvenile justice system, has released its 2019 annual report.The report presented annually by the JJOC to the Governor, President of the Senate, Speaker of the House of Representatives and the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court is an assessment of the progress made in implementation of juvenile justice reform efforts. The report is also made available to the public at&nbsp;<a href="https://gcc01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.doc.ks.gov%2Fjuvenile-services%2Fcommittee%2F2019-annual-report%2Fview&amp;data=02%7C01%7C%7C70749d9092c14ec43d7108d78a28045a%7Cdcae8101c92d480cbc43c6761ccccc5a%7C0%7C0%7C637129777374916375&amp;sdata=hsDYdtnExSHuvLUeh7AgUmH1vWLqVqMmr7WPwpMPiOY%3D&amp;reserved=0">https://www.doc.ks.gov/juvenile-services/committee/2019-annual-report/view</a>“I would like to thank the JJOC for their continued stewardship of this essential work to implement these juvenile justice reforms,” Acting Secretary Jeff Zmuda, Kansas Department of Corrections, said. “Courts, local juvenile justice agencies, defense attorneys, prosecutors, law enforcement, educators, service providers, child welfare and KDOC have been steadfast in their work to ensure that Kansas improves the effectiveness of the juvenile justice system, and this report reflects successes in that effort.”Three years into reform of the juvenile justice system, Kansas has established statewide standards to reduce disparate outcomes, prohibited out-of-home placement for lower-level youth, focused intensive system resources on the highest-risk young people and provided for sustaining effective practices through a process of oversight and reinvestment in evidence-based services in the community.“Of the many improvements to our state’s juvenile justice system, I am most encouraged to see the continuum of resources that now focus on serving kids and their families in the community, instead of removing them from the home and hoping the family can change,” Deputy Secretary Hope Cooper said. “The system is improving as a result, as is reflected in the JJOC’s annual report.”Several factors motivated state officials to craft the SB367 juvenile justice reforms. They recognized that filling beds in out-of-home placements with lower-risk children was out of step with research showing that residential commitments generally fail to reduce — and can even increase — the likelihood of re-offending. Limiting out-of-home placement to only those youth posing an immediate risk of harm to others or themselves would help focus intensive system responses and resources on the children who need them most and assist in breaking the cycle of incarceration. And reinvesting resources in evidence-based programs would better serve children, families and communities, and ensure more consistent practices, across the state.The Kansas Department of Corrections (KDOC) has three members on the 21-person JJOC, which is made up of representatives from the legislative, judicial and executive branches of state government and local officials.

Report sees progress after Kansas juvenile justice changes