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For Immediate Release:  
For Further Information Contact:
February 25, 2005

Office of The Attorney General
- Peter C. Harvey, Attorney General
Juvenile Justice Commission
- Howard L. Beyer, Executive Director

 

Sharon Lauchaire
609-292-2288

 
JJC Training Academy Graduates 23 Juvenile Detention Officers
>> see list of graduates below

SEA GIRT - Twenty-three juvenile detention officers graduated today from the New Jersey Juvenile Justice Commission’s (JJC) Training Academy. Family members, friends and representatives from the county detention centers attended the ceremony.

This marks the fourth time the JJC has conducted training for county juvenile detention officers. In 1999, the JJC was authorized by the Police Training Commission to take over training duties that were previously provided by the State Department of Corrections (DOC). Prior to the creation of the JJC, the DOC was responsible for delinquent juveniles and officers received the same training, whether they were assigned to an adult facility or a juvenile facility. The JJC trains its own juvenile correction officers and juvenile parole officers under the auspices of the Police Training Commission.

“The New Jersey Juvenile Justice Commission is pleased to offer this unique training designed specifically for correction officers who work with juveniles,” stated Howard L. Beyer, Executive Director of the Juvenile Justice Commission who distributed certificates to the graduates. “As the single state agency charged to reform the juvenile justice system, its makes sense that the JJC provide training specifically tailored to help officers meet the challenges and the very different needs of juvenile residents as opposed to those of adult inmates. The JJC is proud of its Training Academy and the state-of-the-art curriculum that its staff has developed to teach officers how to maintain a safe environment for themselves, the juvenile residents and their colleagues. Ensuring that custody staff have the knowledge and the tools to do their jobs to the best of their abilities plays an important part in helping the juveniles in their care turn their lives around. I want to thank the New Jersey Detention Association, and its president, Gerald Bowden, for working with the JJC to make this project a success.”

The six week training course is held at the Juvenile Justice Commission/Division of Criminal Justice Satellite Training Academy. The training of juvenile detention officers is the result of a collaboration between the JJC and the New Jersey Juvenile Detention Association. The counties are charged $600 per officer to attend the training which includes an optional residential component for those officers who live a distance from the facility. The training includes first aid/CPR, use of Automated External Defribillators (AED), the history of the family court and juvenile justice system in the State of New Jersey, defensive tactics and techniques for responding to the unique needs of juveniles.

There are 17 county detention centers in New Jersey. On a daily basis, approximately 900 male and female juveniles are being held in detention awaiting court hearings and adjudication. In the course of a year, New Jersey detention centers process approximately 12,000 admissions.

The JJC is the single state agency responsible for providing juvenile correctional rehabilitation and parole services. The JJC cares for New Jersey’s high risk and increasingly vulnerable youth. The agency has a unique and pivotal opportunity to redirect the lives of youth in the Commission’s custody. The JJC operates 6 secure care facilities and 22 residential community homes and day treatment facilities. In addition, the JJC is responsible for the parole and transitional services for youth when they return home from the JJC’s custody.

“The Juvenile Detention Officer training program at the JJC Academy is the result of the tremendous effort of Mr. Beyer, Executive Director of the Juvenile Justice Commission, Mr. Cleary, Director of Training for the JJC and his staff, and the New Jersey Juvenile Detention Association. This is a major step in re-establishing a truly centralized training facility and philosophy geared for those professionals dedicated to working with juveniles,” said Gerald Bowden, President of the New Jersey Juvenile Detention Association. “This graduation further emphasizes the partnership that exists between the State and the Counties in providing a continuum of effort to change the behavior of juveniles who enter the juvenile justice system so that they may become model citizens rather than model prisoners. The State of New Jersey and its Counties continue to produce the best trained and qualified professionals to work with a difficult juvenile population.”

Michael Cleary, Director of the Training Academy added, “The collaboration between the JJC and the New Jersey Detention Association, and the directors of the individual detention centers is in the best interest of each organization. We have the same kids and the same goals of enhancing public safety and turning young lives around. Each graduating class produces a more cohesive system of juvenile justice in the State of New Jersey. The men and women graduating today are on the front lines of the effort. I am proud of your performance and congratulate each and every one of you.”

Basic Course for Juvenile Detention Officers

  • Jessie King - Atlantic Youth Center - Harborfields
  • Patricia A Garbien - Burlington County Juvenile Detention Center
  • Leao L. Price - Burlington County Juvenile Detention Center
  • Tamika A Sessions - Hudson County Juvenile Detention Center
  • Molly M. McCreary - Middlesex County Detention Center
  • Eriberto Perez - Middlesex County Detention Center
  • Yves C. Boursignot - Monmouth County Youth Detention Center
  • Jermaine A. Clay - Monmouth County Detention Center
  • Quaron A. Crenshaw - Monmouth County Youth Detention Center
  • Paris Y. Harely - Monmouth County Detention Center
  • Richard Jackson, Jr. - Monmouth County Juvenile Detention Center
  • Sara E. Grant - Morris County Juvenile Detention Center
  • Zakiyya A. Spencer - Morris County Juvenile Detention Center
  • Raymond L. Trujillo - Morris County Juvenile Detention Center
  • Robert E. Chadwick - Ocean County Juvenile Detention Center
  • Michele M. Patterson - Ocean County Juvenile Detention Center
  • Joe A. Criado - Union County Juvenile Detention Center
  • Lanita H. DiMondi - Union County Detention Center
  • Edward M. Melchionna - Union County Detention Center
  • Michelle C. Nascimento - Union County Detention Center
  • Leonard T. Spears - Union County Detention Center
  • Maureen E. Pester - Warren Acres Juvenile Detention Center
  • Ralph M. White - Warren Acres Juvenile Detention Center
The following graduates distinguished themselves and earned awards during the course of the training cycle:
  • Academic Award
    Sarah Grant - Morris County Juvenile Detention Center
  • Professional Development Award
    Jermaine A. Clay - Monmouth County Detention Center
  • Platoon Guide Award
    Richard Jackson, Jr. - Monmouth County Juvenile Detention Center

For more information visit: www.njjjc.com

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