HV 9105 15 N3 COMMUNITY TREATMENT OF JUVENILE DELINQUENTS in *.. INGHAM COUNTY, MICHIGAN Frank W. Hagerty NATIONAL PROBATION ASSOCIATION #! Mare the best to "XABAR 7" HREF= COMMUNITY TREATMENT OF JUVENILE DELINQUENTS in INGHAM COUNTY, MICHIGAN Report of a Survey by Frank W. Hagerty Field Representative NATIONAL PROBATION ASSOCIATION. 50 West 50 Street New York City March, 1937 HV 9105 M5 N3 3.10 FOREWORD II. I. ORIGIN AND PURPOSE OF THE STUDY. III. we Instelve The special study committee Reason for study Participation of National Probation Association in the survey Length of time Community needs - History of survey. IV. DETENTION . VIII. TABLE OF CONTENTS IX. A SOCIO-ECONOMIC GLIMPSE OF INGHAM COUNTY. Urban and rural population - Industry Resources School problems Source of delinquency - Relief status. VI. CASE WORK. COMMUNITY RESOURCES IN RELATION TO CHILD WELFARE Social Service Bureau Michigan Children's Aid Society The public schools - Boys' vocational school - Girls' training school - Starr Common- wealth Recreation Agencies and groups - Parent- Teachers Association Clinics - Police - Community cooperation. Ge V. THE JUVENILE COURT. A < K - County detention home - Staff Attitude of the chil- dren - Cost - Discontinuation of the home - Lansing Children's Home Personnel Cost - Detention in other counties in Michigan - Minimum detention. VII. JUVENILE COURT STANDARDS. < The juvenile court law - Lansing hearing room - Hearings Conditions of probation - Referee hearings - The county welfare agent. - • - Initial social study by investigator Same investiga- tion by county agent - Written interview Supervision records of two cases closed March, 1937 - Attitudes of probationers Comparison, boarding home investigations. G Kids - • T Staff - Chief probation officer Probation staff Method of selection - Clerical help Records and statistics Probation case work - Detention vision - Community aspects. Investigation Super- RECOMMENDATIONS (See also IX). The court - Detention Police Social Service Bureau Schools - Recreation Churches - Clinics Community organization. BRIEF STATEMENT OF RECOMMENDATIONS (See also VIII). · Page 3 7 10 19 30 39 66 72 85 1080 FOREWORD While many have always recognized the great social and financial im- portance of the problem of child welfare in Ingham County, the matter was lately brought into sharper focus by the specific difficulty of the deten- tion of children as presented to our County Board of Supervisors. About a year ago this board came to the conclusion that the detention home at Mason was unsafe and inadequate and should be replaced by other detention facilities. The discussion of plans for a new home brought out the pres- ent trend toward the use, whenever possible, of selected family homes rather than institutions for wards of the juvenile court. This in turn led to the consideration of the entire problem of juvenile delinquency, i.e., prevention of delinquency through discovery and correction of anti- social conditions in the community, appraisal of the extent and causes of delinquency, and the best practices in disposing of cases within the jurisdiction of the juvenile court. Conferences of interested people brought to light many significant facts. There are 32,060 children of school age in Ingham County and it is, therefore, obvious that the school system is the most important factor in the recognition and prevention of delinquency. The question is, what is being done through the schools, is their work adequate or can it be im- proved and extended? The police department, the churches, and various character building agencies encounter problem children at some time or other, but many of these agencies apparently have no contact whatever with those most in need of their services. The same question arose with regard to the juvenile court, whose contact with children comes usually after they are recognizably delinquent or antisocial. EU C P Many other factors have a bearing on the problem as a whole, but sufficient data have not been available. Those who studied the problem became more and more convinced of a vital need for doing a better job in Ingham County. It seemed, therefore, the part of wisdom to get a broad, comprehensive view of the problem and to determine the best possible methods of attacking it; also to get the benefit of the experience of other communities and the advice of persons and agencies who have inti- mate and expert knowledge of the whole field. Therefore, the Ingham County Social Welfare Council arranged with the National Probation Asso- ciation for a survey and report of conditions in the county. Frank W. Hagerty, representing the National Probation Association, conducted such a survey from March first to thirtieth, 1937, and his re- port of that survey embodying his findings, conclusions, and recommenda- tions is herewith set forth. The community interest which brought about this study is believed to be a most healthy sign of a community desire to take stock of existing conditions and intelligently to improve them whenever possible. The committee gratefully acknowledges the financial support of the following service clubs: Kiwanis, Rotary, Zonta, Business and Professional Women's, Lions, Exchange, Junior Service Leagues, Association of Catholic Business Women; and the generosity of the many people in the community who made this survey possible. April 15, 1937 William S. Cameron, Chairman Juvenile Delinquency Study Committee INGHAM COUNTY SOCIAL WELFARE COUNCIL Committee Members Mrs. H. R. Harvey Mrs. Ethel Phillips John Carton Dr. Josef Rozan Miss Dorothy Monfort George Kirkendall Miss Hilda Sheppard Wilber M. Seelye - 3- I. ORIGIN AND PURPOSE OF THE SURVEY Socially minded service club members and workers in private and pub- lic agencies in Ingham County, have become increasingly conscious of their obsolete machinery for remolding those young lives captured on the con- veyor of waste leading to the scrap heap. They are aware of pressing com- munity problems in relation to the prevention and treatment of maladjust- ments and delinquency in youth. They are rightly proud of their hospitals, schools, parks, paved streets, highways, and scenic rivers winding through pleasant maple groves. Hungry youth stood at the door of Ingham County's busy citizens for many years, but youth's opportunities had not been thoroughly examined as the books of a bank are examined for some reparable or unaccountable shortage. But the unhappy youngsters in their neglected homes have recently captured the imagination of this socially alert group. They became interested in giving these children the same expert attention in remodeling and rebuilding as had been given the physical aspects of their city planning. A plan was set in motion to cope with the tragedies of underprivileged boys and girls by a farsighted group of citizens, who, sensitive to the advantages of real social engineering for neglected children in communities with a high rate of deprivation and delinquency, asked for expert appraisal. The Ingham County Welfare Council realized that many of these children, bridled to bad social circumstances, would become juvenile court cases, and might ultimately be counted among the world's outcast and defeated unless modern methods could be employed for their welfare. They knew that once the stamp was set on malleable youth, once the threshold of the correctional - 4 · institution was crossed, such children would be stigmatized at least, forever scarred in some instances, and in still other advanced cases, blind and bitter struggle would forge them into armored, law-resisting gangs. Sporadic efforts to adjust problem boys and to correct existing bad practices in delinquency areas had previously lacked basic understand- ing of the problem, lacked also qualified leadership for adequate work of lasting value. The welfare council wanted to be informed through the find- ings and recommendations of an impartial objective survey of the situation, with special reference to the range of juvenile court function and activity. The committee The Ingham County Welfare Council, representing all the service clubs and welfare agencies, selected to direct the study, a steering committee of the following people: William S. Cameron, attorney, Mrs. Ethel Phillips, county register of deeds; Mrs. H. R. Harvey, city director of recreation; John Carton, attorney; Wilber M. Seelye, attorney; Dr. Josef Rozan, physician; Dorothy Monfort, executive secre- tary, Ingham County branch, Michigan Children's Aid Society; George Kirkendall, director of the Community Welfare Fund; Hilda Sheppard, exec- utive director of the Social Service Bureau. Miss Sheppard took a leading part in plans for the survey from the beginning, consulting with the exec- utive director of the National Probation Association as a preliminary move. Although the sponsoring committee described itself as a steering com- mittee only and not a representative one, in effect it functioned as an executive group. For this reason, including the judge of the juvenile court and also one of the county commissioners on the committee would have The judge and the commissioners have an immediate and been advantageous. intimate interest in the findings and recommendations of the study. chairman; the · 5 · Representation from the Social Service Bureau was somewhat disproportion- ate; it would have been better from the community angle to bring in more groups. Also, any possibility of criticism, on partisan political grounds, of the make-up of such a committee may be damaging and should be avoided. However, the committee as it was constituted, functioned with fine and intelligent support of the project. At the invitation of the committee, the field representative of the National Probation Association spent the month of March studying the work of the juvenile court and of other agencies encountering juvenile delin- quency. At the outset the committee contemplated a survey of "child wel- fare activities" in the county. It was later agreed to narrow this objective to a study of delinquency in the community, with emphasis on the juvenile court, but including the approach of other agencies to the problem. Delinquency areas, the facilities of various agencies and other resources of the community were investigated in the beginning of the study, but at all times the child known to the court or on the borderline of Sear court care was kept in view. Juvenile court cases are the fruit of a tree whose roots run deep into the community life. To spray the tree in an at- tempt to eliminate aphis infecting young apples does not produce a better quality of fruit. Lack of irrigation, cultivation and nourishment of the roots results in a dwarfed and withered product of little market value. Likewise no good survey and no probation system should fail to take into account the whole child and all agencies and individuals stimulating his behavior, directly and indirectly. Sources of information tapped included a sampling of public opinion in the county, the police, the churches, the schools, parent-teacher - 6- groups, recreational workers, club workers, social agencies, theatres, stores, the adult probation department, and most important of all, the judge of the juvenile court and his assistants. Court hearings were at- tended; the county agent, city, county and state police were interviewed. The itinerary included the Boys' Vocational School in Lansing, the Adrian School for Girls at Adrian, Starr Commonwealth for Boys at Albion, the Lansing Children's Home and the detention home at Mason. Addresses were made before various interested groups: the Zonta Club, the Home Makers' Club, the Business Girls' Club, the Parent-Teachers' Recreation Club, the annual meeting of the Women's Adult Recreation Clubs, the Ingham County Board of Supervisors and the Ingham County Welfare Coun- Conferences were held with the individual members of the steering committee and with the committee as a whole. At the close of the survey a brief oral report was given to a group of important people representing the different interests to which reference has already been made. William Cameron, as chairman of the steering committee, presided. cil. Social, educational, vocational and recreational workers marginal to this study range from the volunteer or the untrained employed worker to the professionally trained person, the latter group being very small. In between are some who may be characterized as untrained but alert reaching for knowledge; others as half learned; a few as poorly prepared for a part in the important job of social planning. Unfortunately there is some quackery and much unskilled effort in various types of public and private social work. Party factions aro solid, and a few individuals connive politically in their own interest. Yet the lay public and the profession- al group of Ingham County are receptive to suggestions and willing to try a long range program of constructive social engineering. In all groups genuineness of purpose has resulted in some progress, and a general good- fellowship abounds. chat - 7 - II. A SOCIO-ECONOMIC GLIMPSE OF INGHAM COUNTY Ingham County has a population of approximately 125,000 persons, more than double what it was fifteen years ago. It is a county with an average middlewest culture and the foreign population is relatively small. heavy exodus to the north peninsula occurs during the summer months. Al- though Lansing is the capital city, the legislative influx has not affected the local population materially, nor have legislators tackled local prob- lems except in connection with legislation directly concerning county needs. The farmers of this section are apt and intelligent, and have shown good spirit and resourcefulness in adjusting themselves and their crops to their land and to the type and quantity of products in demand. Through the depression, they have kept in good financial circumstances, in contrast to other farmers in the country. Their active 4-H and Future Farmers of Amer- ica Clubs, plus their use of the state college agricultural facilities, establish them as progressive groups. Peppermint, soy beans, beets, corn, grain, milk, butter, eggs, and wool are the chief products of farms in this old lake bed, paralleling Hogsback Ridge. The county has within its boundaries a red ribbon house, a second-prize winner in a national rural house-remodeling contest. The industrial group in the county numbers about 18,000 and lives in the less developed areas in urban centers needing civic improvements. Second hand cars of these workmen congest the streets at factory closing time. Modern refrigerators, gas stoves, radios and the like are average equipment in their small drab houses. Many new and expensive bicycles are ridden by boys of junior high school age. No second hand wheels are A - 8. available for those who cannot afford new ones. Theft of a bicycle is a frequent juvenile court charge. Many county wards are found in the industrial group. Some below aver- age "poor white" families have migrated to Ingham County from southern Indiana, Kentucky and Tennessee, and have squatted in a scattered shack town area. They are distinctive in their mode of living and separate culture, regulating their attitudes and habits according to their own traditions. Relief needs, while not acute, are high, with approximately 13,000 persons receiving aid. More child caring problems come from this subnormal underprivileged group than from any other. A The school enrollment through the senior high in the county is ap- proximately 24,000, ages five to twenty, inclusive. The school census for the same age group is approximately 32,060. The truancy rate is about 155 individual cases per month. Truancy is defined according to the ideas of the individual truant officer. There are 39 urban schools and 109 rural schools in the county. The Michigan Vocational School for Boys (the state correctional institu- tion) is practically in the heart of Lansing. The Sunday school en- rollment in the churches, centered mainly around the capital building, is only about one-third of the school population. and five hospitals serve the city of Lansing. The campus of Michigan State College in East Lansing is one of the most beautiful in the country. Under city auspices there is little adult recreation, and no planned Several large churches recreation for the children after school hours during the winter months. Wide awake idle boys will create their own recreation if the community provides none. Adequate recreational facilities are in operation during * *One full time man was added to the city recreation department during the survey. - 9 - the summer only, under separate park and board of education authority. Ten different merchants were interviewed, and the aggregate report was that 400 known thefts had been committed in a year in their stores. As many more were, no doubt, undetected. About 60 juveniles and 375 adults are on probation and parole under a so-called system of super- vision. An unfolding middlewest plainness and sincerity, and a slow exact- ness characterize the people. Most of the factory employes seem chron- ically fatigued. Alert parents, interested in the problems of their children, were discovered in meeting with several groups, parents sin- cerely eager to know how to go about training and disciplining their numerous off spring. This list of duties does not include supervision of court wards. The County board of supervisors pays for any supervision done by the county agent. Last year in Ingham County $400 was paid out for super- vision and $2000 was paid for investigation by the state. When a county has a regularly appointed probation officer there is no definite division of labor between these two. According to the deputy director of the State Welfare Department the judge may assign court work to either, but, "the fact that the state pays for the work if it is done by the county agent, while the county must pay the probation officer, means that the county agent is generally given the assignment except in larger counties where the combined work is too much for one person. The office of the county agent, on the first floor of the county courthouse in Mason, is shared by her secretary. It is adjacent to the offices of the two county nurses who have to go through the agent's office to get to their own. The county agent's office is equipped with two metal desks, an upright four drawer file cabinet, and a telephone. The hours are from eight to five, and the office is closed from twelve to one. Appointment of the county welfare agent has been subject to political interference. According to the probate judge who recently retired from office in Ingham County, he had no knowledge of the appointment of the pre- sent agent until the state commissioner of public welfare asked him, by letter, for his approval. The commissioner had in turn received a letter from the governor's office directing him to make this appointment. judge, therefore, describes the office as a political football. At the meeting of the Michigan Probate Judges' Association in June, 1936, a resolution was passed requesting that probate judges be consulted # This - 38 · beforehand as to such appointments. They also set down as a further policy that appointments should be on a probationary basis, for three months or more, during which time the applicant must have demonstrated her ability. This change, while it would give the judges a voice in the appointments, would not necessarily affect their political character. C · 39 · mission. ing pages. The present county agent not only has had no social work training but has not had supervision in her work which would to some extent com- pensate for the lack of training. Her work is therefore unprofessional and it is not difficult to understand her unwillingness to have it close- ly studied. The files of the probation department were not thrown open for in- spection and the records were almost inaccessible to the investigator. Supervision records of the entire number of active cases were carried by the agent in a brief case at all times. Furthermore, because of the obstructive attitude of the county agent it was difficult to get informa- tion from her sufficient to make an effective analysis. Other less direct and less desirable means were therefore employed. The field representative made a preliminary investigation in the case of Jack Harlow, at the request of the boys' counsel and with Jack's per- The substance of this investigation is reproduced in the follow- It is included in the survey report not as a model, but as in- dicating more thorough and significant case investigation than that done by the county agent in her role of probation officer. The more specific legal data regarding the offense and arrest, and other factual details which would appear in a complete report of an initial case investigation are not included. The emphasis in this write-up is on the child in his present critical condition. Names and addresses as given are ficticious. The complete report which was made on the same case by the county agent is appended for its significance as a contrast in case work technique. VI. CASE WORK Z - 40. Initial Social Study, Case of Jack Harlow The The offense Jack Harlow, age sixteen, broke into several gasoline stations and stores in an outlying business district in Lansing. total loss to the grocery store and gas station owners for candy, gum, cigarettes, money, and damage was approximately $100. Entrance was made at night and in most cases by breaking through basement windows. There is no history of previous arrest nor of commitment to any institution. Boy's story Jack says his first stealing was in his own neighbor- hood last July when he, with C. L. Clark, a nineteen year old boy on pro- bation in the circuit court, entered the residence of a Mr. Bluit and took some food and a cheap watch. C. L. had a pass key and the boys, noting their opportunity when the Bluits had gone for a ride in their car with the dog, quickly entered the home. Jack says he did not steal anything from that time until the present episodes in January and February, 1937, although he had frequently truanted from school during the interval. Jack says he has always gone with boys who truanted from school and ran away from home and who have been on probation or parole. He was a will- ing follower of these older leaders. Jack acknowledges C. L.'s pernicious and unwholesome influence. C.L. frequently boasted of his numerous escapades, some of which he carried out in Grand Rapids. He assured Jack that a lot of easy money was avail- able with very little work and little chance of getting caught. (C. L. was committed to the reformatory at Ionia for his part in the Bluit rob- bery). About the first of January, 1937, Jack was nervous, restless, and seemed unable to sleep so he got up, dressed, and went for a walk down the dark road alone, thinking of what C. L. had told him, about his truancy and the compulsory school law, about cigarettes, about Frances, his girl friend, and his lack of money. In the dark and quiet of the night he passed Rentner's store time after time. He was compelled by some uncontrollable impulse to break into the store and take a little merchandise. He broke into this store on three later occasions taking more merchandise and money each time, the total amounting to about $30. In the succeeding weeks Jack broke into several places. In the early part of February in pursuit of further excitement he entered a filling station through the window but did little damage. During the second week in February he broke a basement window to enter a large grocery store, taking four cartons of cigarettes. The loss was esti- mated at $10 by the owner. Carlos, a northside grocer, reported to the police about this time that his store had been broken into on several occasions, he thought by a different party each time as the method em- ployed varied. This was, however, Jack's work. Carlos reported the total loss to be $43 in cigarettes and merchandise, which was covered by insurance. The entire window, frame and all, in a store on Grand River, was pushed out in the process of entering the basement, entail- H 41 ing a replacement expense of about $3. The main part of this store was not entered or molested as the door leading to the street level was locked. Confronted with this information Jack said that the window was very low and already partly broken. The door to a bicycle shop on Grand River was slight- ly twisted in an effort at entrance, but no damage was done and the shop was not broken into. Jack burglarized a gas station by entering through a small window in the rear, back of the cash register. Three cartons of cigarettes, $1.50 in pennies, and a woman's watch were taken, as reported by the manager. Eight or ten offenses were thus committed in a relatively small area within the period of about three weeks. Attitude of the police The city detectives felt that Jack was a thoroughly bad boy and should be sent to an institution because of the num- ber of thefts he had committed single handed. This boy had given the police a lot of trouble. They had received a dozen different complaints and were unsuccessful in apprehending the guilty party earlier. One of the lieuten- ants at the desk informed the investigator that it was only necessary to look at the kid to see that he was a bad character. A great many cases are given another chance by the police after warning but because of this boy's atti- tude and the number of his offenses they thought he should be held securely in the county jail until his case was disposed of, and they requested that the prosecuting attorney ask the probate judge to waive jurisdiction and transfer the case to the circuit court for prosecution as an adult offender. - C Attitude of complainants None of the complainants in these burglaries urged that Jack be committed to the vocational school and there was little trace of vindictive feeling. Most of them wished the court to require re- stitution. The man whose window frame was wrecked felt that the repairs should be paid for by the boy or someone responsible for him. Mr. Carlos appeared more indifferent than resentful, and more inconvenienced than in- jured. His store is in an outlying neighborhood and the business of caring for his customers and making money interests him far more than assisting in the rehabilitation of a boy burglar. The manager of one store asked that the boy be placed on probation and made to report as well as make restitu- tion. This man is a long time resident in the community and has known Jack's family over a period of years. He considered the boy to be rather odd and in need of help. Several of the complainants expressed the opinion that another chance would not help Jack unless some one took an active interest in his wel- fare. Perfunctory reporting, they said, would be useless because they had known boys on probation of this type who later had to go to the vocational school or the reformatory. Mr. Rentner wanted to know what assurance he had that his store would not be broken into again if the boy was placed on probation and returned to the same environment, circumstances and temptations. Mrs. Rentner spoke of the need of a suitable playground in the neighborhood. One man suggested "a good sound whipping," another suggested the army or a CCC camp. C · 42 · - Neighborhood opinion During the course of the investigation shop- pers in the store, friends and neighbors who used the store for a sort of social gathering place, came into the conversation about the boy on their own initiative and through their interest in the general neighbor- hood problem. The characteristic opinion was that a boy once committed to the vocational school was lost and could not be reclaimed. Many re- sidents of this area were already thoroughly informed about the thefts of this sixteen year old school boy in their neighborhood and in spite of the number, the property damage involved, and the apparent boldness of the breaks, without exception they expressed a conviction that some- thing other than commitment to the vocational school should be the dis- position of this case. #1 Attitude of the boy Jack was so thrilled with the excitement of his adventure that he could hardly wait until he saw his name in the Lansing State Journal the day following the offense. He had come to anxiously await publication of the Journal and immediately purchased a copy to read about his escapade, but he had no pride in outsmarting the police. He did not feel that breaking and entering these stores was the act of a brave person but on the contrary, one that only a cow- ard would commit. His reasoning was that a brave person would rob in the day time, but a coward would work alone in the dark at night. J A The thought of repaying the injured parties never occured to him. He did not oppose the idea of restitution, but accepted it rather list- lessly. He was somewhat embittered toward the police. No violence was used toward him although strong arm methods were threatened if informa- tion was not immediately forthcoming. They threatened to send him to the reformatory for a long time. Jack says he is sure he will never steal again; he does not need to steal. The police misinterpreted in- formation in a personal diary which Jack had and the boy was accused of lying when he had made an honest effort to tell the entire truth. He had told the same story to each one of the detectives who question- ed him, and when they accused him of telling lies and threatened to abuse him if he did not tell the truth, it made him hate them and he guessed they knew more about what he had one than he did himself." He seems to have a weakness for the company of boys who have had previous court experiences and long records of truancy. This was es- pecially true of C. L. from who he had heard many very fascinating stories which inspired him to prove himself. He had looked for work for some time yet he was unemployed; his irregular school attendance reflected his lack of interest; his excessive use of cigarettes and regular attendance at Saturday night dances with a steady girl friend required some money. Chap Motive Jack could give no reason why he broke into these stores, and seemed rather puzzled when asked. The question worried him as he mentioned it three different times. Ch M - 43 The family Jack is living with his mother at 699 North Brook Street. She, Mary Dorster, migrated to the United States from Hungary at sixteen and was married two years later. Her husband, Jack's father, who was also born in Hungary, died in 1923 of pneumonia. About ten years ago the mother was married to Harry Digit, a carpenter, an in- cessent drinker and a man who made the home very unhappy by his quarrel- ing with the boys and fighting with his wife. About two years ago he secured a divorce but continued to live in the immediate neighborhood and visits Jack's ten year old half-brother. Jack and his brothers made some effort to accept this man as a father and have maintained some at- tachment in spite of their general dislike. M Maternal and paternal relatives of Jack's are all in Hungary or Roumania and according to Jack's mother none of them have died as a result of insanity or of an incurable chronic physical disease. This information could not be verified. - Jack has three brothers. Donald, nineteen, a recent graduate from high school, is unemployed. Conversation is difficult for him and when talking to someone he will shy away and intentionally look in another. direction. An effort was made while he was a junior in high school to provide lunch for him but he refused. Tad, fourteen, is in junior high school. He talks rationally and has a clear grasp of Jack's wrong doing. He says that an institution will make him worse because all of Jack's friends are that way when they come out. Harry, the half-brother, ten, is attending school. He is playful, seems normal and is very fond of Jack. A married sister, Helen, twenty-three, has no children and lives in another part of the city with her husband, a factory worker. Re- liable information has it that she and her husband spend a good many of their evenings in beer gardens since they bought a car. Both are interested in Jack's well-being and seem to talk intelligently of plans for his future, hoping that he will not be sent to the Boys' Vocational School. They wanted to have Jack live with them, but this does not seem to be a desirable plan. Jack's mother has worked as a charwoman for the past seven years and has had practically no time or interest for real home making. She is industrious and supports her family of five almost entirely on her $50 a month. She is a moderate smoker and drinks a bottle of beer oc- casionally. She says she is too tired to go to church on Sunday because of her long, hard hours six days a week. This mother is warmly inter- ested in the welfare of her boys but has little conception of how to meet the problems confronting them. She lacks insight and firmness in training and discipline. She says that Jack listens to her, but the behavior and attitude of Jack and his brothers indicate they do as they please. Jack has not learned to confide in his mother partly because he feels that she has a one-track mind. He has never felt close to her. 44- Home and neighborhood Jack's mother owns her home which was grant- ed her by the court at the time of the divorce. The small, box-shaped house has five tiny rooms. The rooms are inconvenient and poorly cared for. Cobwebs and greasy marks adorn the walls. The furniture is old and in need of repairs and the whole house is chronically in a condition of general disarray. Water for every use is brought by the boys from some distance away. The city-furnished coal is the only material aid the family have. What little cooking is done in the home the boys do them- selves. The mother brings home some cooked food during the week from the place where she works. The boys receive twenty-five cents each on Satur- day for doing the family washing and house cleaning. Jack does not like his home and would prefer a better neighborhood. He said it would take two years to buy a home from the profits of stealing. Jack says he pre- fers the county jail where he has been living in solitary confinement within gray drab walls to the small bedroom at home where he sleeps with one of his brothers. The jail cell is the larger room of the two. The boys are rather neglected in the home and there is little sociability or semblance of comfort. The neighborhood has no recreational facilities for energetic grow- ing boys. There are no sidewalks or paved streets for many blocks around. The home is situated on an unimproved lot immediately adjacent to the railroad tracks where black smoke from the railroad shops is a constant annoyance. - Boy's school life Jack Harlow was born June 5, 1920 (age verified by school records). He was a model student in elementary school, re- ceiving high grades and creating no trouble or disturbances which called for disciplinary action. As he advanced into junior and senior high school his marks became increasingly lower. His average grade in the elementary school was about 95, in the junior high school about 88 on a scale which provided a passing grade of 78, in the senior high school the quality of his work deteriorated to failure. His academic grades were materially affected by his repeated truancy which in turn was un- doubtedly caused in part by his poor socio-economic standing and home conditions. The school people were interested and worked intelligently with their meager facilities trying to adjust Jack in school. They had recognized his rebellion toward regular attendance and a regular order of things and were working diligently to try and help him overcome this unfortunate attitude and handicap. One high school teacher reported that he was making progress. Some of the school authorities were appre- hensive as to whether he would make an adjustment sufficient to keep him out of a correctional institution. Others knowing that the boy hated the thought of commitment and that he disliked any interference in his personal affairs, were hopeful that something might be done for him. Religion Jack went to Sunday school quite regularly when he was a smaller boy on Northrop Street. He liked that Sunday school and would return except that it is too far away. The Nazarene church is convenient - 45 but he does not like it. Just prior to the theft in which he conspired with C. L. he attended six revival meetings in succession alone. He said he was getting reformed or "being saved." His mother does not go to church nor does she especially urge her children to attend Sunday school or services. Etched in the gray paint above a small barred win- dow on the cellroom door was the commandment, "Thou shall not steal." This Jack had written and it was his own idea. Habits and general outlook Jack has shown an indifference to school authorities who have tried to help him. He is not interested in going back to school because he was very popular there and would be ashamed to try a comeback in the face of all his friends. He would be considered a big shot in the eyes of these truants and boys on proba- tion, but a coward by the students who have scholastic, athletic and social records of which they can be proud. (This is really a play for attention on Jack's part as investigation showed that these statements were not actually true. The boy is shy and seldom establishes con- fidence with older people or boys in good standing in the community.) The only school subject in which he has shown any interest is the class in personal and social problems, (a preference which might indicate a need and a desire to find himself.) He appears lackadaisical and apathetic in his manner, and answers all questions willingly and helpfully but hesitatingly. Previous to his arrest, he was in the habit of coming and going as he pleased at home. He would stay out all night and then inform his mother the following day of his whereabouts. He is dissatisfied and re- bellious about his home, but willing to return as it is the only home he knows. His eating and sleeping habits were irregular. He smokes two packs of cigarettes a day, "smokes them all short." He is of a restless, unstable nature and offers this partly as his reason for getting into dif- ficulty. He admits that he makes mistakes but he does not want to apolo- gize and become a sissy as a result, although he is willing to make amends in other ways. Because of his introverted, withdrawn personality it was impossible to gain his complete confidence and incidentally get his com- plete feeling about himself, in two interviews. He is a lone wolf type of boy, a difficult personality to work with, yet friendly. He dislikes anyone to tell him what to do, advise him how to do it, or suggest what he should do. Many things that he has done have been in an effort to get attention and achieve a station of importance. He wants to know how to live, behave and enjoy himself in the right way as other boys do. Mental and physical condition Jack's intelligence quotient, ac- cording to the school record, is 112, a rating of superior mental abili- ty. He has never attended any mental hygiene clinic, neither has he received any medical care. He apparently needs glasses as he has dif- ficulty in reading. The school provided him with a pair of glasses once but he lost them. Constitutional syphilis was suggested in Jack's case by his step-father. C Wate • 46 Work - industry Jack always had the desire to get some work in a grocery store as a general errand or delivery boy during school vacation. Later he hoped he might work himself into a job driving a light delivery truck. He said he would also like to work in a factory. He had thought of becoming a carpenter if his stepfather fulfilled his promise and got him a job. In the summer of 1936 he worked on a peppermint farm north of the city where his oldest brother was employed. He left after only a few days saying that he did not like farm work, it was too hard for him, the hours too long and the pay too small. He has had little oppor- tunity to work, although he claims he has been looking for work the past few months. Recreation Jack has played baseball frequently with older boys in vacant lots near his home. He did not belong to the Boy Scouts or the Y. M. C. A., nor attend school parties because he had no money. He did, however, attend dances at Pine Lake. He does not generally like group activities. Friends and associates This boy has only one or two friends, tru- ants and incessant smokers, free lancers like himself. Their interests are selfish, they have no respect for others' rights and property, no regard for school. Their habits are antisocial and their attitudes wrong in general. A common ground which drew them together was the poor cir- cumstance of their homes. Jack has been keeping company with Frances, a girl about his own age, for the past two years. They attended an out of the city dancehall quite frequently and usually were taken to the dance in an old car by C. L.'s father, who calls dances. There was considerable drinking and carousing at this place. However, this was no different from what Jack knew at his home and that of his girl. Both fathers drank excessively and frequently. Jack's excuse for going to Pine Lake was that they were too young to be admitted to any dancehall in the city, and besides the fees in the city were prohibitive. The girl is wearing an engagement ring and they expect to be married when they are eighteen. Analysis A sixteen year old high school boy committed in a few weeks a number of serious offenses, breaking, entering and stealing. Most of these offenses were committed alone. He had not been previously delinquent. This boy is the product of a twice broken home. In the background is a strained situation with a stepfather who drank and quarrelled con- stantly with everyone.. His mother has never understood him nor had his confidence. She has worked regularly out of the home since the boy was nine years old and he has been without the guiding and stabilizing in- fluence of parental care. He has lacked discipline from both parents. The home itself is untidy and disordered. g He shows the effect of influence by older boys, more experienced in delinquency, to whom he has been greatly attracted. ܚ · 47 · He has The boy is restless, unstable, introverted and difficult. been motivated in his delinquencies by his emotional needs, particularly for recognition and a sense of importance. This is indicated in his satisfaction over the newspaper notoriety he received. He is honest and truthful in answering questions. He has a strong religious trend at the present time as evidenced by his attendance at revival meetings. The motives in this child's delinquency are easily evident and trace- able chiefly to his lack of normal, affectionate, economically secure home life. Prognosis This boy is a good prospect for probation and will get along satisfactorily provided he is helped to secure the kind of employ- ment he wants, and provided some latitude is exercised regarding com- pulsory school attendance. Another requisite for success is intelligent planning in respect to recreation, friends, health (particularly the matter of possible venereal infection), good moral training and disci- pline. If he is simply allowed to drift on probation with only minimum requirements to meet and perfunotory reporting he may very soon revert to his listless habits and antisocial behavior. Recommendation Probation is recommended for this boy if it is ac- companied with intelligent supervision and real understanding of his un- derlying personal problems. He presents many real difficulties, and he will need the working-with procedure rather than the directing procedure in making an adjustment. T As he will soon attain the age of seventeen and his probation in the juvenile court would therefore expire in a relatively short time, it might be wise for the county agent to refer the case to the social service bu- reau which has a well qualified man working with problem cases of boys. This boy is good material to work with and society will profit as well as he if he is recaptured. This is part of the community's responsibility to him as a child needing care beyond what his mother can give. Prefer- ably this boy should be supervised by a well trained man probation officer. The foregoing preliminary investigation was made on a Saturday, be- tween 3:30 and 10 p.m. Jack was interviewed in his cell in the county jail for about an hour the following Sunday afternoon. The total investi- gation and preparation of the report, consumed no more than ten hours. During the course of the investigation many parties were seen, in- oluding some of the complainants in grocery stores and gas stations who revealed their attitudes regarding the particular offense and their op- inion of commitment for the boy as against probation. As the police angle . 48 child. is very important, the police were seen three different times on this boy's case. A complete search of the facts of the offense is primarily important to get at motives, habits and the working of the boy's mind. There is always a reason for such abnormal behavior and it is desirable to have full knowledge of the development of delinquent ideas in the tion of other information. It is no less important to have full information on the social his- tory, i.e., family and personal background, of the boy. The school people were interviewed at length regarding his attitude and conduct in school, his scholastic record, behavior and social progress. They were asked their opinion of his future. Although his stepfather had been out of the home for two years, he was interviewed at his boarding house in order that the investigator learn why the stepfather had employed counsel in the boy's be- half and might ascertain the extent of his interest and willingness to help. Each of his brothers was interviewed to discover their feeling for him, and their information about his outside activities. The investigator went to the mother for a broader knowledge of the boy's background, and verifica- Neighbors were interviewed indirectly and cautiously to try to learn something of the reputation of the family in the community. Some of this phase of the investigation was as a whole gleaned from the bystanders in the store who entered into the examination of facts uninvited. An equally important part was the interview with the boy, whose story and attitude in respect to the offense and his life as a whole is noted in the report and evaluated. The investigation and report of this one oase is probably typical of those of boys from fifteen to seventeen which may come to the attention - 49 more. of the juvenile court or ultimately to the circuit court. The offenses committed by this boy were numerous and though petty, very annoying to the police who received complaints almost daily for nearly three weeks. The first night after this boy's arrest he was detained in the city jail which he said was like a dungeon. He was then transferred to the Mason County Jail where he remained for three weeks in solitary confinement. There were toilet facilities in the cell and food was passed in to him through the small barred opening in the upper half of the cell door. According to the records of the county sheriff, about ten boys under seventeen are each year confined in the county jail in preference to the homes at Mason or Lansing. The police, in cases like this or where a felony may be charged in the case of a boy between fifteen and seventeen, recommend that the prosecuting attorney's office request a waiver of jur- isdiction to the circuit court which has criminal jurisdiction. The pro- bate judge may, after investigation and examination, grant or deny the mo- tion of the prosecuting attorney. In this instance the motion was denied by the probate judge before any kind of investigation was made by the county agent. The motion for waiver of jurisdiction was denied on the same day that the criminal complaint and warrant were filed. The judge informed the writer that he had talked to the boy and decided he was real- ly not a bad boy and would be all right if he stopped smoking so many cigarettes. The boy was advised to this effect and promised to reduce the number as soon as possible to the point where he would not be smoking any After three weeks in the county jail the boy was paroled in the cus- tody of his mother by the judge without bail and without reference to the P Gate - 50 - investigation of the writer. He was told at this time that he did not have to go home, necessarily, but that if he did run away and did not report back to court, the efficient state police with the help of the radio would be effective in returning him. Jack hitch-hiked home and was picked up by the police in Lansing and held until they learned that the probate judge had released him into the custody of his mother. boy informed the writer that the judge had talked to him about a week previous to the time of his release. It is possible that on investigation it might have been determined that the circumstances of this boy's offense and his background warranted an immediate waiver of juvenile court jurisdiction, detention in a secure place like the county jail, and final commitment to the Ionia Reformatory. On the other hand, it is equally possible that an investigation would re- veal, as it actually did, that this boy in spite of his numerous offenses might have been released immediately into the custody of his mother and allowed to stay at home rather than be exposed to the experience of three weeks jail confinement. He was sent to his home finally pending investi- gation and remained there ten days without running away. His detection and arrest carried some disciplinary effect, no doubt, but had the police investigated the case by seeing the boy's mother, or asking the juvenile court to see the boy's mother, in the first place, Jack's jail experience might have been avoided. The The county agent also investigated the case of Jack Harlow as part of her regular case work. Her report consists of a few sentences on a blank form of legal size used by the court for legal and social investi- gations of delinquent, dependent and neglected children. A copy of this - 51 - report, which is the entire information given the probate judge in such cases, appears on the following page. Jack was arrested in the middle of February. The report of the county agent was filed on the fifteenth of March, and the first hearing was held on March 18th. The report of the county agent in its meagerness and other inade- quacies speaks for itself. Not only are very few items given, but some of these, such as the birth of the boy, are not verified. mention of vital social and emotional factors which are a very important part of the delinquency picture. A phrase or two suffices for school record. Vague, general phrases such as "wrong," "inveterate smoker," "nationality, American," are used instead of more specific statements. Nothing at all is entered in the space for education, and only four words under the item information as to allegations in petition. Of course a blank of this type would never be used for an investi- gation report in a competent probation department. Even a summary of a longer report would be much more thorough and better organized than this. The report as it stands is typical of the work of the county agent in in- vestigations. One hundred or more cases were noted by the investigator in the court and the record room, but none were observed with fuller data than this. It is not to be inferred that all investigations are exhaustive and lengthy, as good judgment would dictate in some instances a much brief- er report than in the present case, but the quality and the point of view are of first importance. Organization of data and explanation of sources of the information are also important. Some evaluation and interpretation of the facts as found is also essential. There is no - 52 - Report of County Agent - Delinquent, Dependent or Neglected Child Juvenile Law 1907 and all Acts Amendatory hereto. News, Mason. Juvenile Division To the Juvenile Division of the Probate Court for Said County: In the Matter of STATE OF MICHIGAN The Probate Court for the County of Ingham 3. Mother: 4. 8. I, Betty Lawton County Agent for said county, do hereby certify and report that I have inquired into and made a full examination of the parentage and surroundings of said child and the facts and circumstances of said case, and find the same to be as follows, to-wit: 1. Age 2. 16 years on the 5th day of June Stepfather: Harry Digit 1923 Vermont Lane Nationality American Education Jack Harlow 6. 7. Information as to allegations in petition: Boy admits allegation true Recommendation: Dated this a delinquent Nationality American Home surroundings and conditions. The inother and stepfather were divorced about 1 years ago when stepfather employed an at- torney to defend him when he found him in trouble. Family not on relief but border line case. Mother does janitor work Masonic Temple during day and there is no one at home Child 5. History, general conduct and reputation: only a fair school his- tory and at present they haven't much faith in him. Always had wrong companions, choosing boys with delinquent tenden- cies. Has been inveterate smoker for years, which accounts for some of his restlessness. He is engaged to Frances negative type. day of GR A.D. 19 Hearing be held and probation until age 17 Cate A.D. 19 · 53 · Another boy was interviewed by the writer, fifteen year old Allen Harden, who was seen in the Lansing Children's Home. This report was requested by the county agent. She told the investigator about the pitiful case of a boy who had lied to her while looking her in the eye and who took the attitude of accepting relief when he showed no apprecia- tion for the clothes given to him by the county. Any person investigating the behavior and attitude of delinquents must expect to get such reactions from children, and through patience, training and understanding, evalu- ate these reactions to the best advantage of the child. Allen's mother died in the early fall of 1936, and after that there was no one to care for him. His hair grew long, his clothes became dirty, and his personal appearance shabby. He borrowed a bicycle without per- mission from Ted Maltin, who lives in the same neighborhood. Allen had previously been permitted to use a bicycle belonging to another of the Maltin boys. He admitted taking the bicycle to go to a football game, but said he intended keeping it only overnight. When he discovered that the police were looking for the wheel he hid it in the rear of a build- ing. He had had an accident because the bicycle was too small for him, and some damage was done to the wheel. Allen was having it repaired, and his teacher was helping him plan to earn some money for these re- pairs, which amounted to about $6. The police, however, had discovered the theft and threatened to file a petition against him and send him to the vocational school. Allen's nineteen year old brother, Wheeler, had served nine months in that school for stealing a car and running away from his father, who had beaten him unmercifully in a fight. Wheeler had told Allen of his unhappy experiences in the vocational school. Afraid he would be sent to the vocational school, he left home and made his way by gathering old rags and empty bottles, and selling them around the alleys and drug stores in Lansing. During this time he lived in box cars, but spent some days hitch-hiking to Grand Rapids and back, and covering "half the state of Michigan." He also slept in the Michigan Central station until he was "kicked out by the dicks." He said it took courage to get out on his own and sleep out nights like that, and take care of himself. M He came home and his return was reported to the police by the Maltin boy. This time the police threatened him with the reform school in no un- certain terms. The next day the police called at school to get the boy and he escaped through the side door because he feared they would send him "over the hill." -54- < He started for his aunt's in Detroit where he had been once or twice before. Although he did not know her exact address, he was sure he could find her place. On his way to Detroit he entered an unlocked car and drove several miles. He was not a good driver and was soon off the highway. The state police happened along, became suspicious, in- vestigated and arrested him. They jerked him out of the car, saying he was too young to beat up and too old to spank. The next day he was brought to Mas on where a petition was filed against him as a delinquent. He was given some clean clothes and a haircut, although he minimized this expression of interest in his wel- fare. He was taken, before the hearing, to a boarding home about seven miles from Mason. The county agent reminded him several times that he should not run away. Although he did not want to be reminded of this, it did make him think twice. He said he guessed he was a very careless boy. The night before he was to appear for hearing he did run away from the farm because the people there were too old, and he did not get along with them. They were about sixty years of age, and their furniture was about one hundred years old. He would not have run away from the farm had the people there been younger, or had there been another boy. He liked animals and used to raise chickens and jack-rabbits, but he liked the city better than the country. When he thought of going to court, he thought of the vocational school and what his brother had told him. He took about fifteen minutes to prepare to leave the boarding home. In the closet was a twenty-two rifle, which he placed on the porch out- side, with his hat and gloves. As he scampered out of the house with his new clothes the lights were turned on. Believing that he had been detect- ed, he hurried across the road, leaving gun, which should never have been left within his reach, his hat and gloves on the porch, ducked behind the fence until a car passed safely, and leaving all his personal belongings behind, started down the road for Lansing. Arriving there early the next morning, he returned to his scavenger home, the box car. Again he eked out an existence in the alleys gathering saleable rubbish. The Lansing police picked him up after three days. Because he had stolen a bicycle and an automobile he thought he would have to take his punishment, al- though he hated the place on Pennsylvania Avenue. If they treated him fairly there he thought he would come out all right, but if they didn't he was sure he would come out worse than he went in. Analysis Allen was getting along in school satisfactorily until the death of his mother. This unfortunate event, uninterpreted to him, left him lonely, perplexed and unwanted. The boy was attached to his mother and no one helped him to adjust satisfactorily to her loss. The sudden death of a parent is not un infrequent cause of delinquency among chil- dren. His father was neither suffioient as a bread winner, nor as a father. He was not much concerned about the welfare of his son. The police threatened Allen with an institution for which fear and dislike had been instilled into him by his brother. To escape the dreaded com mitment to the vocational school, he began to slink out of sight, earning Handy K - 55 - a living in the alleys in the day time, and sleeping in dirty, unheated places at night. For the past month the city had been a very exciting place for him. He was on his own resources, he had money, was ragged, unclean, free as the wind. In going to his aunt's at Detroit, he was looking for understanding, a home and security. The unsuitable board- ing home with old people was a hasty plan, and an unsatisfactory experi- ment. With real understanding of his interests and needs by younger foster parents the boarding home might have been a success. CORD During the two hour interview, Allen was friendly, likeable, frank, and it is not far-fetched to say that he would be a good risk under proper supervision in a suitable home, with people he likes. He can grow up to be a credit to those who have served him. Report on this boy by the county agent Mother dies in October, (no date given or reason) leaving a family of nine. Housekeeper provided by welfare commission. Father stays home very little. No supervision. Father uses money for other things drink. Relief case worker says he lies and cannot be trusted, despite good appearance. Boy has splendid record in school and community prior to mother's death. Bicycles seem to have been too much of a temptation. For the most part, the county agent's report consists of facts re- garding the offenses and thefts committed by this boy. Nothing is told about the boy's previous behavior, school is barely mentioned. vestigation is skimpy, incomplete and unsatisfactory so far as pertinent social material is concerned. A sufficient and adequate analysis of the situation is not possible on such a foundation. The limited information does not permit a fair prognosis of the child's future. In some instances waivers have been granted in cases on which no better investigations have been made, the cases thus going to the adult criminal court for trial. Although the county agent, as has been noted, carried with her all supervision records of current cases, the following case records, closed in 1937, were copied by the writer without permission or knowledge of the agent. All names, dates and other identifying data have been disguised. This in- - 56 · Harry Rollins Harry Rollins stole two bicycles, the radiator of a car, and some This chewing gum and candy. He was placed on probation for one year. period was later extended for six months without a return. Extension of probation should be seriously considered by the judge after review of the progress of the child and a report of new facts in the case. The supervision record of this boy is given in full as it appears in the case history, because it is typical of the superficial work done by the county agent in her capacity as probation officer. These sketchy notations do not in any sense constitute a supervision record. They give a minimum of information and nothing at all of the "inside history" of the boy himself. Dates, names and other items have been changed to prevent identification, otherwise the record is reproduced with inter- linear comments, exactly as follows: 6/1/35 6/5/35 7/2/35 8/9/35 Little trouble in school, boy getting along nicely. (No factual information in this statement, nothing which would lend itself to an analysis.) Report, but not school record. Report 0. K. (Nothing about the attitude of the boy, problems that he has faced in relation to his school, his associations, or his home.) Harry and mother reported. Truant officer reported that the boy was annoying in small things stayed out of school and used sore foot as an excuse. (Verification of information not indicated.) 8/16/35 Visited school and talked with teacher. - (No report of the interview between the teacher and the agent.) 8/23/35 Talked to Harry and mother. Savings account tried, no success. (No indication as to how the matter of a savings account came up. Was the idea imposed by the county agent or was it the boy's idea?) - 57 - GMA 9/4/35 10/4/35 11/13/35 11/18/35 12/23/35 12/29/35 1/14/36 1/28/36 2/3/36 4/16/36 Report, said he would start saving. (Has he been thinking of saving since the last report, or was he asked by the county agent what he had done about it?) Talked to probationer's mother and father about extension. (A desirable thing to talk with the parents regard- ing extension of probation, but no reflection of their attitude.) Called at probationer's home regarding failure to report. Not in. (It seems that reporting and school attendance are the main issues. Working on this basis is toying with the bubbles that come to the surface. No effort recorded to ascertain the basic problems for the adjustment and betterment of the boy.) S Interviewed teacher in school. Judge approved recommenda- tion to extend probation. Interviewed teacher in school regarding conduct and failure to report in November. Report, mail, says, "trying to be a good boy." (This is positive information and should be utilized, but there was no indication what was done with that good attitude.) Hospital report. Out of school eleven days. Teacher says boy better in school. (The boy has apparently improved, but it is not clear whether it is because of, or in spite of, the fact that his probation was continued.) Report 0. K. Made home visit. (What made home visit necessary? How was boy getting along with parents and vice versa, attitude, habits, etc.?) Extended probation six months after calling at school. (Why was probation extended - was judge consulted?) - 58 · 5/22/36 6/2/36 9/6/36 9/12/36 10/6/36 record. Continued improvement. Placed in safety patrol. (Did he like patrol duty whose idea, boy's, teachers or probation officer's?) Interviewed boy and teacher. Doing fine. Getting along fairly well. Called at school as boy failed to report. (Why did boy fail to report? Does county agent feel that perfunctory reporting is necessary as long as a boy is doing well? The agent expects the boy to report to her, but during the 18 months period the record indicates that the agent has only visited the home once. The boy may misinterpret this.) Boy reported O.K. havior only fair. "Y" thinks he can School grades not too good and be- The director of boy's clubs in the handle the boy if he is off probation. (It would be interesting to have noted here the reason for the attitude of the director of Boys' Clubs at the Y toward the case of this proba- tioner.) While there are notations to serve as a record of Harry Rollins in the county agent's book, no indication is given of the problems involved and what was done about them. No real thinking or planning on the part of the county agent is indicated. No attempt was made to account for missing facts, and the positive or negative factors of the probationer's personality. If a qualified agency should take this case for supervision, any time later, they would find little or no real help in this supervision The following is a chronological record of the supervision of another boy, Arnold Peterson, for a period of about a year and a half. 1/20/35 Placed on probation for a period of six months be- cause of truancy. He was disobedient and defied the principals and teachers alike. 59 2/5/35 3/7/35 4/21/35 5/3/35 5/4/35 5/18/35 6/3/35 6/19/35 7/2/35 9/2/35 Reported 0. K. (No report as to what was talked about at the time.) Reported by mail. (No indication that the boy was given permission. to report by mail.) Was told he must continue at school, make up loss of time or be brought to the probate office in Mason. Chose former and promised to make good. Thought he could leave school at the age of sixteen, hence dif- ficulty. (This is the first instance of the boy's own think- ing and feeling in relation to school.) Called school. Boy had not been back since vacation. Mother said boy ran away two days but returned, and would go to school. Called school and found boy returned and reinstated. Transferred to part time school. Boy not cooperative. Reported by mail. (Wonder what "not cooperative" means?) Interviewed boy, promised to be good and make up time. (Boy is apparently trying, but not getting much help except for being checked up.) Reported by mail. Boy working for Talked to teacher. Probation extended. laundry. (Very important changes have taken place in this boy's life leaving school, going to work, trying to meet his obligations of reporting. The record does not state what is being done to help boy ad- just. The pertinent information is carried in the county agent's head.) Reported by mail 0. K. Still working at laundry. Getting more pay. (Amount should be stated.) 10/6/35 Working. 10/16/35 Check boy at school. Boy O. K. - 60 - 11/2/35 11/22/35 11/24/35 11/31/35 12/6/35 Not reporting regularly at school. Question about job. (The school authorities show some latitude re- garding compulsory attendance of boys on part time or continuation status, especially if they are steadily employed and are close to the age of 17.) Teacher reported that the boy truanted. Checked with employer. Found that he had quit job without report- ing same to his teacher. He was told by teacher that if he had one more violation he would be sent to the Boys' Vocational School. (Here it appears that the employer was used only as a means of checking up and not as a help to adjust the boy in better ways of living and working.) Check with teacher. Boy not reporting at school as promised. (All during this record the boy has promised to report and failed and no new approach was tried. A diversity of methods of treatment should be employed when necessary in dealing with problem ohildren.) Mother reported the boy had run away. (What is mother's attitude and method of discipline? More facts needed about habits of boy, previous to his running away.) Boy reported by mail from Pennsylvania. (This is the last item in the record. Did the county agent know where the boy was staying in the other state, how he was getting along, whether he intended to come back? What did she intend to do about his leaving without per- mission? Was a letter written to the boy in Pennsylvania?) Further light on the probation work of the court was shed by inter- views with probationers and their parents. A boy living near the swimming hole in the park was placed on probation for a period of one year. He was discharged after nine months because of his good progress. During - 61 the nine months the mother said the county agent made no visits to the home. Her boy liked the worker. The mother is aged, sickly and con- stantly worries and prays. Many problems in this family inevitably re- lating to the boy call for home contacts of the most intimate and skilful type. Another boy in South Lansing has reported regularly every month to the county agent. He said he was asked such questions as how he was getting along in school and if he was a good boy, but that since the in- vestigation the county agent has not been to his home. Ralph a twelve year old boy in East Lansing, was placed on probation about five months ago. He goes to the show twice a week and gets home about eleven o'clock in the evening. His mother did not know whether or not the probation officer approved of this late hour. ported that another boy in the neighborhood had threatened to beat her boy up. She also presented a third problem, stating that Ralph insisted on going to an older married man's house. She told him not to go there, but it didn't seem to do any good. He didn't care about play but he was a good worker in the house. This case shows on superficial analysis a very definite need for home visits by the county agent or someone supervising this boy in relation to his family, recreation, associates, and his hours. Some kind of suitable plan should be worked out which can be accepted by him and his parents. The home of a boy living with his family in "Hell's half acre" was visited. The family are of low intelligence and the physical aspects of the home are unclean. Stories of neighbors are that the boy had been abusive to other children in the neighborhood but the family upheld his She re- · 62 · behavior. This situation appears to need very definite and close super- vision. Just the night before the writer left Ingham County, a representa- tive in the legislature and a doctor were interviewed regarding the case of a girl who was sent to Adrian School for the violation of her probation. This girl had had sex relations with boys at her home and elswhere. situation was detected and the delinquency seemed far advanced. The boys were placed on probation and a young man was committed to Ionia for several years. The girl was ultimately placed on probation, though she had been led to believe that she would not be brought to court. Her home circum- stances made progress slow and very difficult. She tried working but never had sustained success in her employment. She refrained from further sex relations but her mother was suspicious and reported her to the court more for her difficult personality problems than for suspicions of further sex experiences. She was taken to the detention home in Mason. The mother was surprised at this decision and even more so when the girl was committed to the school at Adrian. Her mother was not notified when the girl was picked up and she was lured to the probation office on a promise. The doctor thought her commitment on the assumption of a violation was a high-handed piece of business. The grandmother says that if the girl had had some in- telligent understanding she need not have been sent to Adrian. The repre- sentative in the legislature who knew the case said that the girl never violated her probation and she was surprised that they could send her to Adrian without justifiable grounds. Boarding homes Another function of the county agent is the investi- gation of boarding homes for children. The following two cases of boarding The - 63 home investigations by the Michigan Children's Aid worker were pulled at random from the files. The first was a report of a possible boarding home for licensing by the State Welfare Department investigated by the county agent. This report is decidedly skimpy, includes information not entirely pertinent, and some meaningless generalizations. The family was referred to as "the kindly American family"; health was described as, "general health - good." No indication was given of health examination results or source of information. The agent wrote that the motive of the prospective family in taking a child was companionship. Under the item recreation was written only, "farm and school activities"; under discus- anticipated no difficulties from past experience." sion, "Mrs. It was noted that this couple owned their home, had an eighth grade educa- tion, and that the upstairs was clean and airy. They wanted two boys from six to twelve years old, and the county agent recommends that the home be approved for two children. The above investigation is scrappily reported on a regular form supplied by the State Welfare Department. In contrast to this meager report, that made by the Michigan Chil- dren's Aid worker was three solid pages in length. It included, besides the factual information, evaluation of certain social factors as they pre- sented themselves in the investigation. The worker found the family thrifty and not in need of board money for income. Some history of the family was ascertained to reach the real reason for their wanting to take children. She discovered that the father was fond of "boyish boys" and wanted an outdoor boy. with. In addition to a very careful and exhaustive social investigation, which did not follow an outline form, the worker made visits to three { -64 outside references to determine the family's suitability to the task. Every juvenile court should have at least an accurate count of cases of every type coming into either the court or the proba- tion department. (See page 68.) It was impossible, from the figures available in the juvenile court of Lansing, to get an exact or adequate picture of the total volume of work done, irrespective of quality. Strangely enough, relatively few cases of delinquency come into the juvenile court from the 700 divorce and alimony cases active in the re- cords of the "friend of the court," although these cases involved 1100 children. No competent statistics are available as to the exact number, but the friend of the court is our authority for the statement that rare- ly is a child released from his supervision to that of the county agent No inference regarding standards of supervision for the work of either department can be dran from this. It is interesting to note that popular public opinion, which runs to the contrary on the question of children in divorce cases, is not sustained here. Partial figures which can be quoted will give an approximate idea of the annual case load of the probation officer, including dependency and neglect, as well as delinquency cases and investigations as well as cases under supervision. These may be summarized rather roughly as follows for the year ending March 31, 1937: Investigations, delinquent children Investigations, dependent children Investigations, neglected children Total investigations Statistics 75 85 20 180 The county agent states that to her knowledge no delinquency petition has been filed by the friend of the court. - 65 - Delinquent children, cases dismissed, warned or otherwise adjusted Delinquent children committed to institutions, (including some who failed on probation) Delinquent children on probation 19 19 90 In a recent published interview (March, 1937) the judge is authority for the statement that 129 wards of the court are currently under super- vision of the county agent. At that time the judge contemplated adding to this number the 46 wards of the court under supervision of the Michigan Children's Aid Society, making a total of 175. It should also be noted that the county agent has currently under supervision from 10 to 15 parole cases. These figures are supplementary to the data given above, and in- clude some cases already listed in these special categories. The rate of failure of probation cases is high in Ingham County. cording to the study of six Michigan counties made recently by Professor Lowell J. Carr* of the University of Michigan, only 65 per cent of juvenile probation cases in Ingham County can be called successful. Ac- What's Wrong with Juvenile Probation and Parole in Michigan, 1936 Page 32 - 66. VII. JUVENILE COURT STANDARDS A brief review of accepted juvenile court standards may at this point provide a background against which to set the work of the Ingham County court. First, on the legal side, the juvenile court should have exclusive original jurisdiction of children up to the age of eighteen, and concurrent jurisdiction from eighteen to twenty-one. The Standard Juvenile Court Law provides that jurisdiction acquired while the child is under eighteen, may be retained at the discretion of the court to twenty-one. If a child of sixteen or over commits an offense which in an adult would be a felony, jurisdiction may be waived and the case re- ferred to the criminal court. Ideally, a juvenile court should have jurisdiction to determine paternity, to grant adoptions and to decide all questions of custody or guardianship. The court should also have authority to deal with parents or other adults who by negligence or otherwise contribute to the delinquency of a child. Because the estab- lishment of a separate city juvenile court may result in insufficient provision for children outside the large center of population, it is generally accepted that the county makes the best unit of jurisdiction. Administration of dependency cases has been a disputed question almost from the beginning of the juvenile court, due partly to the fact that in the early period other case work agencies for children hardly existed, and the court was broadly conceived, in many jurisdictions, as having responsibility for all children in need of any kind of public The present trend is definitely away from this interpretation and toward restriction of court function to dependency cases compli- cated by legal questions involving custody or other consideration. De- pendent children should be primarily the responsibility of public or private case work agencies who may bring them directly into court when adjudication is necessary. care. S Staff The first essential in personnel for a progressive juvenile court is a judge chosen for his sympathetic understanding of children and parents. He should have insight into social problems involving chil- dren and constructive ideas regarding their treatment. He should have particular knowledge of child psychology and should familiarize himself with the social agencies and resources of the community in which he operates. • The chief probation officer is responsible for the administration of the department, the standards of probation work, and the outside con- tacts and policies in court-agency relationships. He interprets the work of the court to the community and has equal responsibility with the judge. He must hold his staff to the highest measure of efficiency by constant encouragement, criticism, required reading in the literature of the correctional field, and by staff conferences. He may hold infor- mal hearings and act as referee. - *A Standard Juvenile Court Law, revised 1933, National Probation Association -67- Men Probation staff The probation staff should be selected from train- ed and experienced social case workers who have the tact, resourcefulness, sympathy and patience necessary to understand and handle children. should deal with boys and women should supervise girls. A college degree is an essential foundation for probation work of high standard, with un- dergraduate work in biology and the social scienoes. Graduate work in a recognized school of social work is highly desirable, but good case work experience in an agency with high standards is an acceptable substitute. The Training in psychiatric social work is, of course, a valuable asset. probation officer has very real difficulties to meet in solving the prob- lems of children whose parents have already failed. Because of the im- portance of the job, special training of a person having natural aptitude is called for. The maximum case load for probation officers is fifty. C Method of selection It goes without saying that the probation staff in any court should be selected entirely for merit and professional quali- fications. The best way to accomplish this is by a system of competitive examinations conducted in an entirely non-political way by an examining committee competent to prepare questions for the written examination, and to conduct the oral examination which should follow. The latter includes personality rating and evaluation of recommendations and other credentials of the candidate. A good ratio for relative weighting of the examination is oral, 40 per cent, practical written test 30 per cent training and ex- perience 30 per cent. The chief probation officer can be selected on a competitive basis without written examination, rating being made on per- sonality, education, experience and credentials. As full protection against political interference in probation ap- pointments, security of tenure by civil service or otherwise should be provided for workers appointed on this selective basis. Adequate sala- ries, of course, help in the retention of qualified workers. No cate- gorical statements can be made as to the actual amount of salaries as local standards vary so widely, but we can say broadly that probation officers should receive salaries equal to those of the best paid social case workers in the community, and certainly not less than the standard for high school teachers. Salary of the chief probation officer should not fall below that of the leading high school principal. Competent clerical help is necessary to care for record keeping, telephone calls, appointments, and the minor details of office routine. - Clinical facilities A well equipped modern court should have facili- ties for physical and mental examination of children. Mental and physi- cal health has a vital bearing on a ohild's conduct. Defects of sight and hearing, glandular disturbances or congenital conditions may cause serious behavior disorders. The services of a qualified, professionally recognized psychiatrist are needed in the diagnosis and treatment of seriously maladjusted cases. This clinic need not be an adjunct of the court, but its services should be readily available for court use. - 68. Court and probation procedure The juvenile court, while retaining necessary legal authority for adjudication in matters pertaining to chil- dren, functions more nearly like a social agency than like a court. Since its approach to the problem of child delinquency is protective and correc- tional rather than punitive, it follows that procedure in the hearing of children's cases is informal (though without loss of dignity), entirely private, intimate and friendly to children, parents, and indeed to all concerned. - The swearing of witnesses is usually unnecessary, and the swearing of children as witnesses or defendants objectionable. No child should be ask- ed to plead guilty or not guilty, nor should a formal charge be read to him. The presence of the prosecutor or of defense counsel is not only superfluous but incongruous. The judge should have time and opportunity to see the child alone and the parents alone. Criticism of parents should never be made by the court in the presence of a child. So far as possible witnesses should be called in to testify and then excused so that they are not present when the child and his parents are questioned. Full records and statistics are essential in a good juvenile court. Case records are social histories, containing besides the necessary legal papers, full reports of the investigation and the progress of the child under the wardship and supervision of the court. The probation officer who thinks he can keep a full history of every child in his mind is un- aware of how much is lost without the written record. Not only is it im- possible for a worker to keep forty or fifty running histories with all details of incidents and relationships in his mind, but there is the fur- ther difficulty that, when a case is transferred, most of what he has in mind is lost and the child suffers by the necessity of repetition and the lack of information of the new worker. A full summary of the case should be sent to an institution if a child is committed, or to another agency if supervision is transferred. The pri- vacy of all records should, of course, be carefully guarded and they should be accessible only to authorized agency representatives. Gg. A statistical system, even though it is a simple one, helps the court to understand and interpret its own work, and forms the basis of an annual report which should present the work of the court to the community. It frequently happens that probation department records are so heedlessly kept that the chief probation officer does not actually know the number of active cases nor anything about the turnover, or the types of cases. Sometimes such elementary distinctions as sex, age, and reason for referral to court, are never tabulated. An annual report with statistios, interestingly presented and interpreted, with carefully disguised case histories, and with descrip- tion of the social methods of the court, will go far toward sustaining pub- lic opinion and supporting any effort for enlargement of staff and increase of salaries. Such a report is always acceptable to the press. GRAD - 69 - Probation case work Probation case work in a juvenile court does not differ essentially from case work in a children's agency. The in- vestigation which the probation officer makes as a preliminary to the hearing in a well conducted court, considers social data as far more im- portant than the facts of the offense. A study of the condition of the home, the standards of the family, and the character of the neighborhood, gives a social and economic understanding of the child's background. Other agencies known to the family must be contacted and their informa- tion evaluated. The child's own life is no less important, and his early development, personality, habits, school history, attitude toward family and friends, record of previous delinquency, if any, his religion, and recreational interests must be ascertained before the investigation is completed. C - Detention of children pending hearing or final disposition is one of the outstanding responsibilities of the court. An official detention home as an institution is not necessary though it may have distinct advantages in some community setups. Boarding homes, carefully selected and super- vised by the court, or preferably by a recognized outside agency have proved successful in many places. GAR Detention of children should be restricted along two lines. First, comparatively few children really need to be detained. Runaways from other counties or other states must be detained until they can be return- ed, otherwise they may continue their travels and get into serious diffi- culty. Occasionally emergency conditions in the home constitute a real menace to the child and he should be detained for his own protection. In rare cases of serious offenses, such as robbery with arms, the security of the public makes it advisable to detain the child pending investigation. Detention itself in occasional cases like these may have a salutary effect on an excited child. Detention as a routine procedure, however, as prac- ticed in many courts, is undesirable, futile and expensive. Prolonging detention is a temptation to the court when an institution with ample room is convenient. Detention frequently becomes a kind of in- formal commitment for discipline of the child. Judges often misuse a deten- tion home in this way. An institution for training calls for a different setup from that for detention only, and in fairness to the child the two should not be confused. Nor should a child be "parked" in a detention home for the convenience of the probation officer. This also is a temptation where the facilities are at hand. Determination of detention should be as far as possible on a selected case work basis, and unquestionably the length of detention should be as brief as possible, not as a rule beyond the few days necessary to make an investigation. No child under sixteen should be detained in any jail or police station, and such detention is a serious community failure. If it is deemed neces- sary by the court to hold a child over sixteen in jail, he should be kept in a part entirely separate from the adult section. - · 70 - Supervision is meaningless unless it reaches the boy's own feelings and attitude and that of his family in a sympathetic way, so that genuine changes, both internal and external, in the life of the child may be made. Routine reporting, either in person or in writing, accomplishes little. It may be that in the case of an accidental offender where the offense was mild and the boy or girl good material, the hearing and occasional brief contacts effect deterrence without intensive supervision. But such letting alone does not develop and build character, direot vocational interest nor plan recreational outlets. A lecture by the judge has never of itself cured a case of truancy. Moralizing by the probation officer or by any one else does not prevent continued undesirable sex practices. It is necessary to discover the root of the difficulty, to treat the causes by community facili- ties and a helpful personal relationship to the probationer. The home is generally the core of the problem which may center around death, desertion or divorce of the parents, poor health, crowded living conditions, unemploy- ment, discipline, late hours, poor recreation, lack of love and understand- ing, alcoholism, emotional and mental deficiency. It may be necessary in the interest of the child to place him for a time, or perhaps even permanently, in another home. His own, if it can be prepared to meet the need, is far the best solution. Every phase of the child's life may need to be reconstructed either directly or indirectly. The habits of a delinquent are often set and require a breaking down pro- cess before rehabilitation can begin. Unofficial or informal cases are those handled by the probation of- ficer without going to the court for disposition. Many courts take pride in diverting as large a group as possible from court on official hearing. Some are kept under informal supervision by the probation officer, others are referred after preliminary inquiry to the appropriate agency. The in- vestigation in these so-called informal cases should be usually as exhaus- tive as in court cases, but the treatment generally is neither so prolonged nor so intensive. M The community aspects of the work of the court are as important as the practices in individual cases. Actually the problems of the court spring from the mores of the community it serves, and it is there that the young clients of the court will ultimately return. Back of the responsibility of the juvenile court is that of the community, for preventive measures as well as for helping to give new life to young, unhappy boys and girls too often labelled delinquents. The principle of community participation was well stated by Norman Fenton, director of the California Bureau of Juvenile Research: "In the past it has been an unfortunate assumption regarding the treat- ment of juvenile delinquency that all that citizens are expected to do is to establish courts of justice, build institutions, and employ trained per- sonnel. When, as usually happened, juvenile delinquency continued to be a C - 71 - serious problem, the energies of the people were concentrated upon find- ing fault with these courts, institutions, and public officials. From a fundamental standpoint, the major error of democratic peoples in re- gard to the handling of many social problems, especially crime, has been their failure to realize that democracy, to succeed, entails community responsibilities on the part of its citizens which cannot be met by the delegation of authority, even to the most conscientious paid public of- ficials." G 72 first. cases. The problem before the people of Ingham County is to create an effec- tive program of coordinated effort which will reduce the expectancy of de- linquent behavior in problem children, juvenile probationers, and parolees. 1. The court In such a program the juvenile court must be considered Unquestionably the outstanding need of the court is trained, compe- tent probation service. Without this, no matter what other agencies may accomplish, the work of the court will be futile and ineffective. Two full time probation officers should be appointed, a man at $2000 to care for older boys, and a woman at $1800 to care for girls and younger boys. A woman is recommended for some of the younger boys to equalize the load as there are more than twice as many boys as girls. The man should be respon- sible for all the social work of the juvenile court, and this added respon- sibility accounts for the difference in salary. The county agent* is paid not on a straight salary basis but according to the time put in. She received as compensation in 1936, $2000 from the state at the rate of $2.50 for a half day, and $400 from the county. The state pays expenses for investigation and for transportation of children to the various schools; the county pays for supervision of county court VIII. RECOMMENDATIONS Supervision should not be given less time and a smaller proportion of salary than investigation - it is at least equally important. It has, * In April, 1937, the county agent whose work is described in this report was regularly appointed as probation officer by the Ingham County Board of Supervisors upon the recommendation of the juvenile court judge. G - 73 - however, been less difficult to get approval of expenses from the state than from the county. The high rate of failures in probation cases in Ingham County is no doubt directly traceable to the small amount paid for such care. This is a false economy, an expensive failure. One trained probation officer, no matter how efficient cannot carry the amount of work called for by this court. It would be penny-wise and pound-foolish for the county board of supervisors to employ only one good person and to expect miracles. No case worker can do an adequate job of investigating and supervising all the cases coming into this court. The maximum standard case load for probation officers is 50. This includes in- vestigation as well as supervision. There is a real chance of success in Ingham County if two well qualified juvenile court workers are appointed. To secure competent people it may be necessary to go outside the county or even the state, as Toledo has recently done by admitting qualified non- residents as well as residents of the State of Ohio to an open examination. 2. Detention The use of the Mason Detention Home should be disoon- tinued for the following reasons: 1. 2. 3. 4. It is a definite fire hazard and cannot be remodeled or repaired sufficiently or satisfactorily to meet fire de- partment specifications. Its barred windows and other devices providing the jail type of security do not meet good standards of detention practice. It is not centrally located as to population and is there- fore an additional expense to the county and an inconven- ience to the officials. It is not economical as it costs more to keep a child in the detention home than it does to maintain a county ward in a boarding home. 74 - 5. There will always be an unconscious desire and a strong tendency to get the maximum use out of the Mason Detention Home with its ample capacity of twenty-six. Overcrowding and long detention is far from the best interest of the child detained. A detention home for delinquents is not improved for the purpose of temporary detention when it attempts, as this home does, to care for dependent, ne- glected, crippled and mentally defective babies and chil- dren over long periods of time. Furthermore, the staff has been neither professionally trained nor adequate to handle these diverse types of cases. Therefore, the detention home should be discontinued in the interest of economy, safety, and good detention practices. arrangements than the Mason Detention Home should be the objective of the juvenile court and the Ingham County Welfare Council. The Lansing Children's Home is the most logical and practical next choice for detention care of selected delinquents. The State Department of Welfare made certain requirements as to the physical equipment of this home before they would license it and incidentally authorize its function- ing as a county detention home. But it is not available for detention use according to its governing board, the City of Lansing Welfare Committee. During March, 1937, it was used exclusively until the City Welfare Com- mittee raised the maintenance charge per child per week from $4 to $9. Such a fee was prohibitive, and the use of the Mason Detention Home was resumed with a new staff. After this happened (some weeks after the com- pletion of this survey) the Lansing Children's Home also returned, un- officially, to the old practice of accepting a few younger, harmless county delinquents for over night detention. Such practice is followed as a matter of convenience to state and oity police and the court. If the city and the county officials can come to some satisfactory - Other more suitable - K 75 K of running away. agreement as to the use of the Children's Home for temporary detention of all county wards, the arrangement would be a satisfactory one as it would provide homelike care under good administrative standards. The next logical move on the part of those most interested in provid- ing good standards in detention care is to cet about securing two separate residences for detention use one for boys and the other for girls. The Michigan Children's Aid Society would undoubtedly cooperate in searching for such homes and investigating applicants wanting to furnish them. It is fairly well assured that this agency would assist in the supervision of such a project. Detention in private families has been very successful in many places where it has been tried. Erie County, New York, (Buffalo) operates very successfully under a special arrangement whereby the children's society is subsidized by the county to supervise and care for children in detention. The juvenile court in the central district of Boston has satisfactory de- tention of the boarding home type. The boys are kept in a private subsi- dized family home with no barred windows or other devices providing the jail type of security. There have been only two attempts to escape in about fifteen years. These families, and especially the mothers, need to be adept in the understanding of behavior problems of children coming to them for short time care. In the Boston home the foster mother keeps a boy safe for the first night by the simple device of locking his clothes in a closet without attracting his attention. A light is left on above the bed and a row of boys' books on a bedside table keeps the newcomer occupied and distracts his attention from outside interests and thoughts A - 76 detention institution. When in Ingham county the selection of arrested children for temporary detention comes under the discriminating scrutiny of specially qualified police and competent probation officers, it will be necessary to provide for no more than five boys and two girls, at the outside, at any one time. This is computed on the basis of good detention practice in other communi- ties. Five of the seven delinquent children detained in the Mason Home in March, 1937, could very well have remained in their own homes pending dis- position by the court. Four other juveniles held in the county jail during the same month could very well have been otherwise cared for. If the two home plan is not practical at first for one reason or an- other, one home can be used with provision for segregation of boys and girls. A flat subsidy of about $300 per year, some provision for mainte- nance, and $1 a day per child seems adequate compensation for the person operating such a home. This is consistent with other well operated foster homes in Michigan, and is less expensive than the county operated type of C Good detention procedure should be faithfully instituted and conscien- tiously followed if the best results with the antisocial child are to be ex- pected. Definite objectives in Ingham County should be the material reduc- tion of the number of juvenile delinquents held in detention before hearing and of the length of the average detention period. The majority of formal petitions lodged for juvenile delinquency come through the police department. Much depends on their discretion as to whether, following his arrest, the child is freed after being warned; placed in the custody of his parents or guardians with instructions for them to appear in juvenile court with the boy the following morning; or kept in some - 77 kind of detention. Police function, to be sure, is first the protection of the community, and second the security of the delinquent child, but much harm can be done by mishandling of the arrested child and wrong decision as to taking him home or keeping him in detention. The fullest cooperation of the police with the court is required. A most careful though cursery anal - ysis of the facts at hand and of the type of child with whom they are deal- ing is necessary before a temporary decision can safely be made as to dis- position. It is difficult to set down rules of procedure for special disposition of arrested children prior to their appearance in court. Every case is dif- ferent, every situation is different, and needs study by specially qualified persons. However, runaway children from other counties, and older more con- firmed delinquents must be held where security is assured, but if possible not in a police station or jail. Out of a population of 120,000, roughly speaking, it should not be necessary to hold for security more than one or two children in the county jail in a year. Only a competent probation or- ficer with the assistance of the juvenile court judge should make these im- portant decisions. The deterrent effect of detention is inestimable. Harmful relation- J GEN ships are often established during long periods of detention, and other bad effects become evident after it is too late. Long "temporary" detention may be used deliberately as official punishment, presumably in a place more suitable than the child's own home, or it may be used because of lack of room in state institutions. Neither reason warrants the continuance of such procedure. Fear, dependency, hatred, antagonism and desire for revenge are a few outgrowths of long detention, results which are damaging to tho 78 - individual personality. Some Ingham County boys who had never been arres- ted were interviewed and their reaction to the home was a mixture of fear, contempt, indifference, and dislike. This is some indication of the re- sults of detention and the feeling and popular attitude toward it. Over- night detention in most instances, when it is felt necessary by the arres- ting person to hold a child, is sufficient. Boys who are habitual runaways should be held in the detention home temporarily but not for long stays either before or after court disposition. In most cases of arrest, taking the boy to his home, is sufficient. 3. The police The police department stands in an important re- lation to the court. It has many opportunities to make good boys bad or bad boys good and both are done to varying degrees, depending upon the in- dividual officer. It is not, however, the function of this department to place boys on probation as is done in some instances by the Lansing police Such cases, though seeming to need minimum care, should be re- ferred to a qualified person in the court to determine the extent of the problems and the need for constructive planning and treatment. The funo- ľ tion of the police is broader than the apprehension or the supervision of the individual delinquent. They have a responsibility for community work such as supervision of dance halls and beer parlors, enforcement of the law regarding selling of papers and magazines on the streets by children late at night, and reporting cases of begging, destitution or special need. They should be more attentive to the enforcement of these laws and ordin- ances, neglect of which tends to create additional delinquency. Adults who contribute to the delinquency of minors by selling cigarettes or liquor to children, or permitting them to be in undesirable places, or who buy stolen department. Cat - 79. goods, such as junk, from children should be relentlessly followed up by the police. 4. Social Service Bureau The Social Service Bureau should continue on a family case work basis with all active cases that come to the attention of the juvenile court because of delinquency of a child in a family. Selec- tion should be at the discretion of the Social Service Bureau, however. The judge should have the benefit of a report from the Social Service Bureau when the disposition of the case is an especially difficult one. Such ad- ditional information may be incorporated in or supplementary to the regular report, according to the probation officer's best judgment. The Social Service Bureau should make all complaints of their active cases of dependent, neglected, delinquent, crippled and mentally defective children to the probation department, and it should never be their function or responsibility to file formal petition to the court. The probation of- ficer determines the course to be pursued. He may carry the case as unof- ficial on his own record, or may file a petition for hearing and disposi- tion in the juvenile court. Of course, in the event that the probation officer desires to refer new cases to the Social Service Bureau, the intake supervisor of the bureau will accept or refuse the case on its merits, con- sidering problems, needs and prognosis in relation to their available ser- vice. It cannot and should not be an automatic procedure or line-of-least- resistance method on the part of the probation officer. The Social Service Bureau is a family caring agency and as such should not include within its scope any special departments such as a juvenile protective division although every family agency should be broad in its community point of view and actively concerned with recreation, health, - 80 - education and especially with abnormal behavior. Üne desirable goal of the bureau would be to cooperatively assist the court in determining its scope and rightful function, if necessary by investigation of their entire case load. Both have a common objective and both are indispensable, yet their work is separate and distinct. 5. The schools The schools need a trained visiting teacher. Such a person might be employed with good results in a high risk area where school problems with children are numerous. The visiting teacher is a social case worker in the school and many types of maladjustment in children come to her School failures, tardiness, absence, illness, and non-participa- tion are important danger signs. The over-aggressive child quickly becomes delinquent. So also does the seclusive lonely child who craves recognition in devious ways. School superintendents, principals, and teachers are cog- nizant of subnormal group needs in their schools. Chronic truants need visiting teacher-parent relationships, and those children showing early symp- toms of dissocial and antisocial behavior respond often to the home-child- visiting-teacher treatment method. The appointment of a trained visiting teacher will surely benefit the community socially and economically. it becomes necessary for the school authorities to bring children's cases into court, the first contact should be with the probation department where adjustment may be made without recourse to official court action. petition for court hearing is necessary, the probation department is the proper channel through which this action should be taken. attention. When If a C Some after-school, intramural programs should be inaugurated to in- olude the entire school population. Baseball, roller and ice hockey, touch football, handball, tennis, soocer and basketball are a few of the so-called G - 81 - "big muscle activities" which would fit in very nicely in an after-school, intramural program for girls as well as boys. More facilities to care for the physical needs of the children should be provided, such as dental care, glasses, school nursing, and free lunches. Such services should be so ad- ministered that the aggressive demanding type of child will not profit at the expense of the shy, proud, sacrificing type of child. 6. Recreation Recreation as provided by the park department is commendable but not adequate.* The city recreation department regretfully recognizes their winter program limitations for all children. The boys play on the streets near their homes unless they are chased away, in va- cant lots when weather permits, and on school grounds where they are ne- ither wanted nor permitted. Many boys work after school as vendors of papers, magazines, pencils, and some go to the theatre. Commercial types of recreation, particularly the movies, may create omotional problems for children. Broadly speaking, it would be well to have a city ordinance prohibiting attendance of unaccompanied children in the theatre after 7 p.m., and of all children under seventeen after 10 p.m. School children should not be admitted to theatres during school hours. This has been permitted in Lansing quite regularly. It is possible to se- cure the cooperation of theatre managers to this end. One fieldhouse, community house or improvised play center, whatever it may be called, should be provided in the same high risk area where the school should experiment with a visiting teacher. Such concentration would provide a comparison with less well equipped areas and would serve as a potential measuring rod of the changes in the rate of delinquency. Interested parents and children would come together in a common meeting S G * During the survey a second person was added to the recreation department so that Mrs. H. R. Harvey, director, now has a man assistant. - 82 andy place. If such a center cannot be made available the next best thing might be for the board of education to release and extend the use of one or two of their gymnasiums or playgrounds for after-school recreation to be supervised by the park department. Leaders might be secured by this depart- ment as they are in the summer from among Michigan State College upper class- men preparing to go into physical education, teaching or social work. field experience for them would be invaluable and this plan would benefit the county. Scouts and Y's should make an effort to extend their programs to in- clude a greater number of boys and girls. Many children do not participate because of wrong ideas of this type of character building agency. Because their clothes are frayed and they have no money for fees, or for transpor- tation to and from meetings or scheduled programs, they make no effort to join. The Churches could increase their following through church 7. Churches surveys in the community. Membership of young people should not be devel- oped through appeal to religious obligation primarily, but through social programs such as parties, overnight hikes and special functions for separ- ate age groups in connection with Sunday school. One community church in East Lansing made such an effort with profit to the people in the community. This has been a real example of church-community relationship where the church serves the greatest number and performs the most needed kind of religious education and service. 8. The clinic An adequate mental hygiene clinic should be added to community resources available to all agencies. Dr. George S. Stevenson, of the National committee for Mental Hygiene, division of community clinics, - 83 says that a community the size of Ingham County warrants a clinic composed of a psychiatrist, a psychologist and a psychiatric social worker. The purpose of a child guidance clinic would be to promote the mental health of the child and to educate the community regarding the importance of mental hygiene. All children presenting behavior difficulties should have a clinic like this within reach. The highest professional standards should be observed in selection of clinic personnel. 9. Community organization Finally, the community endeavor in any program of community-court cooperation should have its source in neighbor- hood organization, should be sponsored by strong local leadership in colla- boration with a representative committee from the Ingham County Welfare Special high risk delinquency areas can very well serve as prov- ing grounds to test such a plan which is consistent with preceding recom- Council. mendations. This committee might be known as the child welfare committee of the Council. Its function would be to stimulate interest, guide and administer the neighborhood projects in a coordinated effort with all available public and private resources including lay groups. The coordinating council* idea is meeting with favorable response and spreading rapidly over the country. After the child welfare committee assists in the operation of a prof- itable plan for the reduction of delinquency in one area, it can expand to other neighborhoods. These diverse projects can be tied and related as inter-neighborhood councils. person. Subcommittees, including lay members, should be headed by an active An example of lay interest was shown by the owners of the store broken into by Jack Harlow. (See page 41) These people were genuinely * Coordinating Councils, How shall they be organized? published by the National Probation Association. J Kenneth S. Beam, GOR - 84 interested in the employment, recreation and supervision needs of such boys, and gave constructive suggestions on how to reduce that type of delinquency. They were truly concerned about such children in their own neighborhood. Such citizen interest as this opens the way to neighborhood support of pro- With the jects for the prevention of delinquency under local leadership. coordination of community resources through the County Welfare Council and through special committees much real satisfaction will come to those active- ly engaged in a program to meet the special needs of disadvantaged children. Lansing is engaged in a plan to rezone the entire city. This will add to its beauty, be conducive to economy, sanitation and convenience. No less important, requiring no less time, effort and money, is social planning for the welfare of the community's children. - 85. A. Juvenile Court a C. Police D. Detention E. IX. Schools 1. 2. 1. 2. 3. 4. 1. 2. 1. 2. 3. Social Service Bureau 4. 5. BRIEF STATEMENT OF RECOMMENDATIONS 1. Accept supervision for delinquents in active family cases 2. Route oases to court through probation depart- ment 3. Eliminate juvenile protective division Employ two well trained probation officers Pay salaries - man $2000, woman $1800, maximum $2400 Discontinue use of the Mason Detention Home Use Lansing Children's Home if county and city officials agree Use private family homes if Lansing Children's Home not available Reduce amount and length of detention Discontinue probation work Enforce more strictly protective laws and or- dinances for children Route cases of delinquency through the proba- tion department Provide trained visiting teacher to serve in one school in a high risk area Inaugurate after-school, intramural recreational programs to include every student Provide facilities for adequate health examina- tions and follow-up Provide more adequate program for vocational guidance and placement especially for part time and continuation school children - 86 F. Recreation G. H. Churches Clinic 1. May 4, 1937 2. 3. 1. 1. Provide one play center in delinquency area under supervision of community program by Lansing recreation department Extend winter recreation programs using all avail- able space, equipment and personnel (see Schools, #3) Extend "Y" and Scout programs to the underprivi- ledged group I. Community Organization 2. Increase social programs for young people GAD Establish an adequate mental hygiene clinic avail- able to all agencies and schools 1. Develop neighborhood organization for delinquency prevention Coordinate community resources through Ingham County Welfare Council 50 West 50 Street New York City - W Frank W. Hagerty Field Representative National Probation Association Cook of seks - Bor 4-21-45″ La To renew the charge, book must be brought to the desk. TWO WEEK BOOK DO NOT RETURN BOOKS ON SUNDAY JUL 24 185 RADE STONE SEEN IGEN GOEDKUND DATE DUE VERANDER PREZIMENAREME REDE INGINERANGANYARISSA KASTMEANDA, 6.3 IS ASSINANTES AAAAABENERGYA