Teen Court is a collaborative program between NW Youth Services and Whatcom County Superior Courts designed to deal with 2nd time youth offenders. Teen Court is based upon a philosophy of Restorative Justice in which: 1) the offender is held accountable 2) the victim is made whole and 3) the offender is restored to their community.
These are real cases and are heard by a jury of youth peers who then determine the consequences. Over 160 volunteers are involved including attorney mentors, as well as teachers and students from 11 participating schools. Student volunteers fill the following roles in court : advocates, bailiffs, clerks, jurors and even judges.
Aside from reducing the recidivism rate for youth offenders, the intent of the program is to give teens the opportunity to weigh the effects of criminal behavior in the community and have a voice in determining the community’s response to that behavior. Teen Court offers a civics lesson unlike anything students could ever experience in a classroom. The courtroom becomes the classroom. Youth are given a sense of responsibility and know that what they say and do is going to affect a real person’s life.
The goals of Teen Court are:
- Integrate the philosophy of Restorative Justice
- Equip non-lawyers with knowledge and skills pertaining to the legal system.
- Teach offenders and student volunteers about the laws that were broken, the consequences and how due process is observed by the court process.
- Volunteers acquire respect for the rights of the offender and the victim
- Teach volunteers and offenders about concepts of justice, power, equality, property, etc.
- Teach student volunteers about importance of civic engagement
- Offenders and volunteers acquire an appreciation for proper response to societal conflicts through the assignment of appropriate consequences
- Volunteers learn about the discipline of confidentiality
Court runs every second Wednesday October thru June on the 3rd floor of the Whatcom County Court House. Start time is 5:30 for participants and 5:50 for Observers.