[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 88 (Tuesday, July 7, 1998)]
[Senate]
[Page S7608]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


      ANOKA POLICE DEPARTMENT JUVENILE JUSTICE ALTERNATIVE POLICE 
                  ACCOUNTABILITY CONFERENCING PROGRAM

 Mr. GRAMS. Mr. President, I rise today to congratulate the 
City of Anoka Police Department on its selection as a semifinalist in 
the 1998 Innovations in American Government Awards competition.
  As my colleagues may know, Innovations in American Government is 
considered one of the most prestigious public-service awards granted 
each year in the United States. This awards program is sponsored by the 
Ford Foundation, and administered by Harvard University's John F. 
Kennedy School of Government in partnership with the Council for 
Excellence in Government.
  Since 1986, Innovation awards have been given to those programs and 
policies that represent effective and innovative government 
initiatives. This year, the City of Anoka Police Department Juvenile 
Justice Alternative Police Accountability Conferencing Program has been 
selected as a semifinalist from among 1,400 applications submitted by 
federal, state, county, and city and town organizations. Later this 
year, the number of semifinalists will be narrowed to 25 finalists, ten 
of which will receive awards for $100,000 from the Ford Foundation. The 
remaining 15 finalists will each receive $20,000.
  At a time when juvenile crime is on the rise in my home state of 
Minnesota and across the country, I am pleased that the Anoka Police 
Department has been recognized for its unique and effective efforts to 
address this important public safety issue in our communities. 
Initiatives such as those implemented by the Anoka Police Department 
will help to ensure that the young first-time offenders of today do not 
become the career criminals of tomorrow.
  Through the leadership of Police Chief Andrew Revering, the Anoka 
Police Department developed a program in 1994 to address the challenge 
of rising juvenile crime and the increasing rate of repeat juvenile 
offenders. The Juvenile Justice Alternative Police Accountability 
Conferencing Program allows for specially trained police officers to 
facilitate and supervise meetings between first time offenders, so the 
offender can be held accountable for his or her actions such as minor 
theft, vandalism, assault or disorderly conduct.
  Under this program, the offender is required to admit guilt to the 
police, and with parental consent, he or she takes part in a police 
accountability conference. The Police Accountability Conferencing 
Program ensures victims of crime, offenders, and communities a right to 
participate in the process of determining how to address the 
consequences which result from criminal behavior.
  Through interaction with police and victims, offenders develop a 
greater understanding of the effect their actions have on a victim and 
his or her family. More importantly, this program has demonstrated a 
proven record of success since only a small number of those who have 
entered the Anoka Police Accountability Conferencing Program have 
become repeat offenders.
  The Anoka Police Department's success with this program has led many 
agencies in Minnesota and throughout the country to begin implementing 
similar programs. To its credit, Anoka Police have also educated and 
trained officers from Arizona, Colorado, California, Iowa, Indiana, 
Minnesota and North Carolina about the police conferencing program. 
Clearly, the City of Anoka and its Police Department have demonstrated 
exceptional leadership in fulfilling a local government's primary 
responsibility: to protect citizens from crime and its debilitating 
effect on communities.
  Mr. President, I am pleased to have shared the success of this 
innovative program with my colleagues in the Senate. I look forward to 
visiting this program in the future, and learning more about similar 
initiatives in Minnesota that will help to prevent crime and keep our 
citizens safe.

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