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The Putnam County Youth Court invites AARP Seniors to their "Mock Trial"
A very special presentation was given by the Putnam County Youth Court on October 21, 2006 for the local AARP Senior Citizens. Eleven high school students from Putnam County schools assembled with the group's coordinating adults Barbara and Adriene to conduct a "mock trial", to illustrate how the program operates. Youth Courts are designed to intervene and prevent crime, and there are more than 1,109 Youth Court programs operating in 49 states and the District of Columbia.
The "Mock Trial" was set up at Guideposts in Carmel, NY to enlighten AARP members as to how first-time offenders in the county between nine and sixteen years old have the opportunity to be judged and sentenced by their peers, and be able to turn their lives around and rebuild relationships in a positive way. All referrals come from the Putnam County Probation Department. This is voluntary for the offender and his/her parents, otherwise the offender would be seen in Family Court. In the Youth Court the judge, prosecutors, defense counsel, clerk , and bailiff are all local young people, ages between twelve and nineteen.
In this "mock trial" a young man was arrested for illegally entering a building. The defense presented its case, the prosecution answered, and the boy's "father" was heard. The judge
determined the boy's guilt and he was sentenced to 25 hours of community service. In the case of a young person being judged guilty by this court, sentencing could be any or all of the following: performing between one to fifty hours of community service, writing an essay on the consequences of the crime, and writing a letter of apology.
The AARP members had an interesting question and answer session after the presentation and they enthusiastically applauded the students and praised the project. "Why don't the schools conduct such a program?" was a question. "My grandson is in Patterson, and I wish he had this opportunity to know about the justice system", was another comment. "I never heard about this program; more people should know about it."
Thirty-nine students from all over the county applied this year to join the program. All potential members of the court must take ten weeks of training given by professionals in the justice system. This training is held every fall and applications are accepted all year round. A program such as this teaches young people to respect the rights of peers and enhances their civic knowledge and sense of responsibility. For more information about the court, call (845) 225- 6316 ext.1122.
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