[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 33 (Tuesday, March 12, 1996)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1855-S1856]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. KOHL:
  S. 1604. A bill to improve the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency 
Prevention Act requirements regarding separate detention and 
confinement of juveniles, and for other purposes; to the Committee on 
the Judiciary.


               the juvenile jail improvement act of 1996

 Mr. KOHL. Mr. President, I introduce the Juvenile Jail 
Improvement Act of 1996.
  We face a growing and frightening tide of juvenile violence. And that 
tide is threatening to swamp our rural sheriffs. It is increasingly 
common for rural sheriffs to face a terrible dilemma every time they 
arrest a juvenile--they either have to release a potentially violent 
juvenile on the street to await trial or they have to spend invaluable 
time and manpower chauffeuring the juvenile around their State to an 
appropriate detention facility. Either way, the current system makes 
little sense and needs to be changed.
  Let me explain how this dilemma works. In most rural communities, the 
only jail available is built exclusively for adults. There are no 
special juvenile facilities. But sometimes, the community can create a 
separate portion of the jail for juveniles. However, under current law, 
a juvenile picked up for criminal activity can only be held in a 
separate portion of an adult facility for up to 24 hours. After that, 
the juvenile must be transported--often across hundreds of miles--to a 
separate juvenile detention facility, often to be returned to the very 
same jail 2 or 3 days later for a court date. This system often leaves 
rural law enforcement criss-crossing the State with a single juvenile--
and results in massive expenses for law enforcement with little benefit 
for juveniles, who spend endless hours in a squad car. Such a process 
does not serve anyone's interests.
  And that is not all that rural sheriffs face. Even qualifying for the 
24-hour exception can be a nightmare. That's because juveniles can be 
kept in adult jails only under a very stringent set of rules. Keeping 
juveniles in an adult jail is known as collocation. It can only be done 
if there is strict sight and sound separation between the adults and 
the juveniles as well as completely separate staff. For many small 
communities, making these physical and staff changes to their jails is 
prohibitively expensive.
  So sheriffs faced with diverting officers to drive around the State 
in search of a detention facility may chose to let the juvenile free 
while awaiting trial. This prospect should frighten anyone who is aware 
of the growing trend in juvenile violence.
  Today, I am introducing legislation that is designed to cure this 
problem. My legislative solution is simple, straightforward and 
effective. It extends from 24 to 72 hours the time during which rural 
law enforcement may collocate juvenile offenders in an adult facility, 
as long as juveniles remain separated from adults. It also relaxes the 
requirements for acceptable collocation. After taking a hard look at 
how the collocation rules have worked--and in what ways they have 
failed--this legislation comes to a reasonable compromise, and, as a 
result, it has the support of the Badger Sheriffs Association.
  Mr. President, one of our most important goals is assuring that any 
changes to these rules does not sacrifice the safety and welfare of 
arrested juveniles. In addition to the growing fear about juvenile 
violence, we have witnessed a growing anger and frustration at 
juveniles. That frustration should not lead us to forget the painful 
lessons we learned many years ago about abusive and dangerous treatment 
of delinquent children. Twenty years ago, we learned about kids who 
were thrown in jail where they were victimized and abused by adult 
prisoners; or where, without proper supervision, they committed 
suicide; or, where, guarded by people who only had experience with 
adult prisoners, they were disciplined savagely. When we give in to the 
temptation to just throw juveniles in jail and teach them a tough 
lesson, we are often ill rewarded. So even as we loosen these 
collocation requirements, we must bear in mind that the juvenile 
justice system still has as its principle goal rehabilitation, not 
harsh retribution.
  My conversations with administrators, sheriffs, and juvenile court 
judges have led me to conclude that we must

[[Page S1856]]

bring greater flexibility--and less redtape--to the Juvenile Justice 
Act. It is my hope that this legislation--which offers greater 
flexibility while retaining important protections regarding the 
separation of juveniles from adults--will meet with strong support from 
the Senate.
  Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the full text of this 
bill be printed in the Record.
  There being no objection, the bill was ordered to be printed in the 
Record, as follows:

                                S. 1604

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``Juvenile Jail Improvement 
     Act''.

     SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

       Congress finds that--
       (1) current Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act 
     rules and regulations concerning the separation of adults 
     from juveniles during short periods of detention or 
     confinement have proven unduly burdensome for rural law 
     enforcement;
       (2) altering requirements concerning the length of stay 
     permitted in a State-approved portion of a county jail or 
     secure detention facility, while retaining the separation of 
     juveniles from adults, would diminish these burdens without 
     harm to juveniles;
       (3) the requirement of completely separate staffing during 
     these short stays also creates large burdens yet yields 
     little benefit for juveniles; and
       (4) experience with shared staff indicates that juveniles 
     are not harmed by the use of shared staff, so long as the 
     staff members are appropriately trained and certified, and 
     juveniles do not have regular contact with adults.

     SEC. 3. CLARIFICATION OF CONTACT RULES.

       Section 223(a)(14) of the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency 
     Prevention Act of 1974 (42 U.S.C. 5633(a)(14)) is amended--
       (1) by striking ``1997'' and inserting ``2001'';
       (2) by striking ``pursuant to an enforceable State law 
     requiring such appearances within twenty-four hours after 
     being taken into custody (excluding weekends and holidays)'' 
     and inserting ``and permit the detention or confinement of 
     juveniles in a State approved portion of a county jail or 
     secure detention facility for up to 72 hours''; and
       (3) by striking ``such exceptions are'' and all that 
     follows through the end of the paragraph and inserting the 
     following: ``such exceptions--
       ``(A) are limited to areas that are in compliance with 
     paragraph (13) and--
       ``(i) are outside a Standard Metropolitan Statistical Area; 
     and
       ``(ii) have no existing acceptable alternative placement 
     available that is easily accessible;
       ``(B) permit the same staff members to oversee both 
     juveniles and adults only if such staff members have been 
     properly trained and certified to supervise juveniles; and
       ``(C) ensure that juveniles have no regular contact with 
     adult persons who are incarcerated because they have been 
     convicted of a crime or are awaiting trial on criminal 
     charges;''.
                                 ______