'TEEN COURT' HAS THE LAST WORD

It's a court where teens rule. They are the prosecutors, defense attorneys,
clerks and bailiffs. But most importantly, they are the jury that decides
what punishment fits the crime.

At the new "teen court" in Blue Island, students from Eisenhower High
School will sit in judgment of their peers.

Blue Island police, the Cook County state's attorney's office and
Eisenhower High School are teaming up to start the court, which works much
the same way as peer juries in other suburbs.

It's the first time the state's attorney's office has been involved in the
start-up of a teen court. The court will help the office adapt to a new
juvenile justice law that calls for a "restorative and balanced approach"
to justice, said Assistant State's Attorney Rich Stake, who helped form the
program.

The goal is to divert juvenile misdemeanor cases--such as damage to
property and possession of "very small amounts" of marijuana--from the
courts while giving teens a meaningful punishment, Stake said.

"Studies show this works," Stake said. "Kids pay more attention to their
peers than a principal or judge."

Matteson Police detective Richard Walsh can vouch for that. He oversees
Matteson's peer jury, and in 2 1/2 years, just one student who completed
the program was re-arrested, he said.

The program is designed for first-time offenders. Police make an arrest,
then decide if the case is eligible for teen court. Teens and their parents
must agree to participate, and a teen must admit guilt before heading
before the jury for sentencing.

Before imposing a sentence, up to 12 jurors will get a chance to question
the student about why he or she committed the crime. That, officials hope,
will lead to solutions.

Community service will be the most common form of punishment because it has
the most impact, officials said.

Eisenhower students who will serve in the court said their peers will
listen "because they don't like an adult telling them what to do," said
junior Gaby Becerra, 16, of Blue Island. Eisenhower is starting its own
teen court for school violations based on the same system as the police court.

Judith L. Nelson, program coordinator at the Southwest YMCA's Network for
Counseling and Youth Development in Alsip, who developed the program for
Blue Island, has worked on similar projects.

"You see kids blossom. They gain self-confidence," Nelson said. "The whole
peer element is what empowers these kids."