JUVENILE DRUG COURT HELPING PEOPLE, NEEDING HELP ITSELF

ST. CHARLES TOWNSHIP -- Fresh from a two-month stint in rehab, the
teenager had a good outlook.

"I've learned I was an addict and I was not only hurting myself but
others in my life," he said. "Drug court has been better than I
thought it would be."

He told 16th Circuit Judge Wiley W. Edmondson that he feels ready to
move on with his life in a positive way. The teen said he was
looking for a job and planned to enroll at a local community college
in January.

Two weeks later, he missed a drug test and had yet to find a job.

Edmondson told the teen he could not miss any tests and would be
sanctioned in the future. But, he also told him that he would find a
job soon and anyone who didn't hire him was losing out on a good employee.

"I don't want him to feel bad for himself," the judge said later. "I
don't want him to get discouraged. You have a kid who just got out of
rehab, you don't want that."

The daily struggles of teens in the Kane County Juvenile Drug Court
play out every week in Edmondson's courtroom. Edmondson handles each
case with a bit of tough love, when necessary, lots of encouragement
and sensitivity.

Edmondson said a high percentage of children involved in juvenile
court, according to various studies, found they have poor
self-images, he said. The result is children who do not think they
can succeed in school so they don't even try or get into trouble, he said.

"Anytime I can say something positive to a kid or find something he's
accomplished and comment on it, I try to do that to make them feel
better about themselves," Edmondson said.

"The juvenile court's basic concept is protection of the community,
rehabilitation of the juvenile, including the development of specific
competencies. What Juvenile Drug Court does is really emphasize the
rehabilitation and development of competencies," Edmondson said.

Juvenile Drug Court coordinator Katie Studt said the program, which
has 26 teens enrolled, tries to find the right mix of encouragement,
incentives and sanctions.

"It is a lot better for the kids and it works better," Studt said.
"Anything we can turn into a positive, we try to do. These kids have
so much to deal with outside of court. If we give them any positive
encouragement, you can see a smile come on their face."

The Juvenile Drug Court needs encouragement of its own.

This month, its main funding source -- a three-year startup grant --
expired, Studt said.

Sixteenth Circuit Court Chief Judge Donald Hudson has worked on
finding a new revenue source by instituting a $5 fee on every guilty
plea filed in the court system. The fee is then split between the
Juvenile Drug Court, the county's adult drug court and other
programs, Studt said.

Additionally, an advisory board has been formed to help with
fundraising for the Juvenile Drug Court, she said. The advisory
board is awaiting its federal nonprofit status so it can begin taking
in donations and holding events, said Studt, who also is looking into
additional grants.