KIDS GOING THROUGH DRUG COURT WITNESS AUTOPSY

JEFFERSON PARISH - Although the sun wasn't yet up, the 12 kids enrolled in
the 7th Ward drug court waited on Hammond's City Court steps at 5 a.m. for
a short drive over the Spillway to view an autopsy at the Jefferson Parish
Coroner's Office.

By the time the bus lumbered into the city, the pink sun was just barely
visible on the horizon.

The kids were more awake and began to talk some about what might be in
store for during today's field trip. Most napped on the way to Harvey. Some
watch the featured movie "Dr. Doolittle."

Most didn't seem concerned about the autopsy. They wanted to get things
over with so they could go home, most said. The kids ranged in age from 12
to 17.

At the Jefferson Parish Coroner's Office, Charlene Lauricella, director of
sexual assault services and the Empathy and Awareness Program, greeted the
sleepy group.

The program, she said, is the only one like it in the country for kids. She
researched the Internet and found a similar program in California, but it's
for adults.

The Hammond kids were on the field trip because they are enrolled in Judge
Grace Gasaway's yearlong program aimed to help kids who find themselves on
the wrong side of the law.

When kids find themselves in Gasaway's courtroom, they have two choices to
make. They can go directly to Florida Parishes Juvenile Detention Center to
serve their sentence or they can participate in a 12-month program aimed to
encourage them to change their bad habits, Director of Juvenile Services
Rob Carlisle said Friday morning.

The kids who are enrolled in drug court were found guilty for offenses like
possession of marijuana, Xanax and other prescription drugs and must attend
court several times a month. There are three phases to the program. Phase
one requires a juvenile to go to court five times a month. Once they've
reached phase two they go to court three times a month, and phase three is
just once a month.

There is just a short window of opportunity to help these kids, he said.
The ones in the program have a good shot at bettering themselves. Although
17 kids were originally expected to attend the autopsy, only 12 showed. The
consequences for some of those kids doesn't look bright. One will be going
directly to serve his sentence at the detention center.

"Some kids would rather spend the 30 days in jail," Carlisle said. The kids
in the program who fulfill its requirements are given a second chance.
Their records are wiped clean if they participate.

For example, 17-year-old Ponchatoula student is volunteering her time
reading to kids at the Ponchatoula Community Center. For every week she
does so, a week is knocked off of her one-year sentence.

"If you send these kids straight to detention," Carlisle said, "what can
you threaten them with later? It's almost a badge of honor."

In this program, the kids make decisions concerning their futures. There
are incentives and motivations to encourage them to make the right decisions.

The program requires kids to join in on a "creative spotlight," where each
brings to court a thing they have made. For one or two students, it was a
birdhouse.

Another requirement is attendance on field trips like the one Friday.

The Empathy and Awareness Program started with a look at the different
choices teens will have or be faced with and the consequences of their
actions. A film showed how life can change in the split-second it takes to
make a bad decision.

An examination of the short- and long-term effects of alcohol on the human
body was given. The kids mentioned that marijuana never killed anyone. But
in the film they watched, they learned differently. When a 16-year-old
smoked a joint one afternoon and took his two cousins on a ride that
evening, a fatal accident occurred. Now, that 16-year-old faces two charges
of vehicular homicide. He is no longer the victim of an accident, but the
cause for the accident because of the drugs present in his bloodstream.

"How many of you would kill your best friend?" Mark Goldman, forensic
investigator, asked the group. No one responds.

"Well, this kid did because they were smoking crack," he said. "They've
been best friends since kindergarten, and he passed the pipe the wrong way
so his best friend shot him."

After several presentations, it was time for the autopsy. The kids were
told they will experience a smell.

"Today's victim is from Winn Parish," Lauricella told the group.

"I'm not going to preach to you the right or wrong way or try to scare you.
That person in the morgue today is dead," Goldman said. "He has a mother
and a father, a sister and a brother. Right now, somebody is making funeral
arrangements. You're here for a reason. If we do make an impact on you,
then we've done our job. I guarantee you won't forget today."

The kids walked down a smelly hallway into a garage area where they were
told to put on a medical hat, gloves, gown and footies. Finally, they put
on a surgical mask and were led into the autopsy room where a man was lying
naked on a steel gurney.

They inched forward for a better look. A surgical incision was made into
the man's stomach.

Two kids left the room. The skull was then opened and the skull cap was
removed. From the stomach, the autopsy team quickly removed the liver,
stomach and various other organs.

The kids watched silently. Once the autopsy was over, the kids were led out
to remove the protective clothing.

One kid admitted that the autopsy was pretty nasty and would probably give
her nightmares.

Another said the autopsy wouldn't stop him from doing what he wants to do.

Although the autopsy was disturbing, most of the kids said it wouldn't
change their actions.