Kids are getting out of school for the summer, and Hamilton County's Juvenile Court system wants to head off problems.
“Because what I’m not going to have is … kids walking around saying ‘There’s nothing for me to do. Nobody cares about me,’ ” Administrative Judge Kari Bloom says. “Which is what we hear — a lot.”
Bloom says the new pre-trial orders for kids will include getting a library card, getting a membership at a rec center or YMCA, and bringing their last report card to court.
“We’re calling it 'The Summer of Discovery.' Discover what’s in your neighborhood. Discover what’s around you. Find the goodness that’s happening.”
Bloom says she isn’t ordering anyone to read, or swim or work out; just to visit those places to see what opportunities are available.
She says the Summer of Discovery is also meant to identify and address the reasons the child got in trouble in the first place.
Bloom says if there are costs or other barriers, the court will help.
“If you come to us and tell us transportation is the issue, we will help you with that, at the court,” she says. “Finances should not be a reason that a child cannot achieve or be rehabilitated.”
Bloom says it's not a diversion program. She says it has the support of the prosecutor's and public defender's office, and police.
“All of us talk all the time about education being the pathway up and out. All of us have experienced the benefits of education, the hurdles that it takes to get an education, and we’ve probably been helped by a mentor here or there,” she says. “We should be doing that for all children, and I am going to make sure we’re doing that for children that come before the court.”
She expects to reach between 100 and 150 kids. Those who are bound over, held in detention or accused of violence will not be eligible.
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