Addressing the Mental Health Needs of Justice-Involved Youth

While overall rates of youth involvement with the justice system have declined over the last few years, youth.gov estimates that 2.1 million youth under the age of 18 are arrested in the US annually, with approximately 1.7 million cases going through the juvenile courts. Around 65% – 70% of the justice-involved youth in these cases have a diagnosable mental health disorder. Struggles with mental health can affect the behavior, academic performance, and social relationships of adolescents. Their actions are, more often than not, tied to a history of trauma and emotional or behavioral difficulties; justice-involved youth experiencing mental health issues need support.

Acknowledging the Mental Health Needs of Justice-Involved Youth

Youth involved in the justice system who struggle with mental health issues often have a difficult time considering the consequences of their actions. They may also struggle to temper their emotions. Though youth may become involved in the justice system due to dysregulated mental health, there are often other motivators as well. Factors such as poverty, experiencing homelessness, or struggling with addiction can influence adolescent behavior. Risk factors of youth involvement with the legal system also include high levels of anxiety and stress. Additionally, people of color are disproportionately likely to become involved with the justice system due to racial profiling and other discrimination, according to a feature from CNN. Moreover, many BIPOC adolescents struggle with higher rates of mental health struggles. However, BIPOC individuals also often face a lack access to the necessary services due to institutional discrimination and stigma.

When it comes to mental health concerns, even very young children can show early warning signs. In fact, half of all mental health disorders show their first signs before a person turns 14 years old, according to statistics from the World Health Organization. Additionally, three-quarters of mental health disorders begin before the age of 24. Unfortunately, children and adolescents do not always receive the help they need quickly enough. They also may not get the diagnoses, treatment, case management, or support services appropriate for their age and developmental stage. It is important to remember that youth are still developing their executive functioning and coping skills throughout adolescence. In fact, the brain is not fully developed until age 25! (UMC Rochester) What all young people need, regardless of how they may behave, is support in a safe environment.

How Families and Communities Can Help

Family and community can play a significant role in the recovery and rehabilitation of justice-involved youth. However, this influence has the potential to be positive or negative. Neglect, substance abuse, and physical or sexual abuse from family members are all risk factors for delinquent behavior. The most effective adolescent treatment focuses on family functioning alongside community involvement for youth.

Support mental health initiatives in schools

As adolescents spend most of their productive time in educational settings, schools offer a unique opportunity to support youth. Schools provide the opportunity for identification, prevention, and intervention processes that serve students where they are. School-based mental health initiatives such as our Children First program remove many barriers to mental healthcare. These include scheduling conflicts, transportation problems, and stigma, by allowing students to access the needed mental health services during the school day.

School psychologists, counselors, social workers, and nurses can also identify students who are at-risk. Utilizing these programs and individuals will help minimize the school-to-prison pipeline in the long run.

Work with professionals

A large number of youth need professional mental health services now more than ever, as The Conversation’s feature on mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic points out that younger people are at the highest risk of poor mental health outcomes, and may lead to involvement in the legal system.

Remote options give at-risk youth more access to these professionals. Fortunately, there has been a surge in psychologists trained to help justice-involved youth. More universities opening up their forensic psychology programs to be available online may attribute to this surge. As Maryville University’s online forensic psychology program highlights, those who study this field are well-versed in psychotherapy, corrections, and rehabilitation, which qualifies them to work with minors and their families. By bringing a specialized psychologist onboard, there is a higher chance of seeing an overall improvement for juveniles. This also decreases the likelihood that they will become re-involved with the justice system.

Establish family meal times

It may seem like a simple thing, but having regular family dinners can benefit teens. As noted in our article on Family Ties, recent studies link regular family dinners with lower rates of substance abuse, teen pregnancy, and depression, plus higher grade-point averages and self-esteem. Gathering for dinner is the most reliable way for families to connect and talk to each other.

For dinner ideas, explore recipes from Women’s Bean Project, an excellent resource on healthy, hearty, and filling dishes to serve at the table while supporting justice-involved women. And if the issues are more serious than you can handle on your own, don’t hesitate to get help from a therapist at Maria Droste Counseling Center.

Among other services we offer are individual counseling for children, family therapy, and counseling for children at their school as part of the Children First Program.

If you feel that your teenager is struggling or needs someone to talk to, contact Maria Droste Counseling Center’s Access Center at 303-867-4600 to speak to a counselor. You can also email intake@mariadroste.org.

Written by Alicia Tyler