Public Access To Juvenile Records In Kansas.

Four years ago, as part of sweeping juvenile justice reform in Kansas, juvenile offenders' court records became more accessible than ever before -- some say most accessible in the country. In 1997, following passage of the Juvenile Justice Reform Act, the state created the Kansas Juvenile Justice Authority (KJJA) under the leadership of Commissioner Albert Murray. It also made several changes to its juvenile offender code, one of which was to open juvenile offender records to the public. Another change was minimum and maximum sentencing, and a prescribed aftercare period mandated for violent, chronic and serious offenders, which lengthened juvenile offender sentences.

As a result, the minimum age for classification as a juvenile offender was reduced from 12 to 10. For certain types of violent crimes, children as young as 10 could now be tried as adults and waived into the adult criminal justice system. Also, additional sentencing options were incorporated into the code, such as short-term (24 hour) secure placement in locked settings called sanctions houses and a new type of sentencing -- extended juvenile jurisdiction.

In extended juvenile jurisdiction sentencing, a hearing is held in juvenile court to determine whether a juvenile is eligible for the extended level of sentencing in which both an adult and juvenile sentence may be imposed. When the court determines a juvenile meets the criteria for such sentencing, the adjudication hearing is held. If convicted, the juvenile receives a juvenile sentence with conditions he or she must meet to successfully complete the terms of the sentence, and an adult sentence. The adult sentence may be waived if the offender successfully completes the terms of the juvenile sentence. If he or she re-offends or somehow violates the terms of the juvenile sentence (fails to remain drug-free or attend school, etc.), the adult sentence immediately becomes effective, regardless of the juvenile's age.

Juvenile Accountability

When the juvenile crime rate rose in Kansas, as it did nationwide during the early 1990s, the state Legislature demanded a more open juvenile justice system in an effort to hold juveniles more accountable for their actions. Several measures to enhance accountability were established:

* Parents of offenders younger than 18 now may be assessed the cost of certain services, such as probation and out-of-home placement services. Juvenile offenders 18 and older, can be assessed the costs;

* Courts now may order families to attend counseling together;

* Parents' health insurance policies now may be accessed to pay for their child's care while in state custody. Kansas previously paid for drug treatment and medical care expenses for juvenile offenders because most insurance policies did not cover these costs while a juvenile offender was in state custody.

* Hearings for juvenile offenders 16 and older are open to the public.

* Official file records for juvenile offenders are open to the public.

The message to juvenile offenders was that their crimes would not quickly be dismissed or forgotten.

Which Files Are Open?

Kansas law states, "The official file shall be open for public inspection as to any juvenile 14 or more years of age at the time any act is alleged to have been committed or as to any juvenile less than 14 years of age at the time any act is alleged to have been committed except if the judge determines that opening the official file for public inspection is not in the best interest of such juvenile who is less than 14 years of age."

Not all juvenile records are open. Personal history files, including reports and information the court receives, are privileged and only may be seen by the parties' attorneys and juvenile intake and assessment staff, or by order of a district court judge.

Who Asks for Juvenile Records and Why?

KJJA primarily receives requests for information from members of the media who are interested in high-profile juvenile cases. Also, the agency has received requests from citizens who wanted to know whether a particular juvenile had been in the juvenile justice system and if so, of what he or she was convicted. However, those are rare, with only two such requests during the past four years.

Mainly, requests are for information about a specific juvenile offender in a high-profile case or for interviewing male, and especially female, offenders in custody who have committed violent crimes.

To respect the integrity of the programs within the juvenile correctional facilities, KJJA instituted a policy that allows juvenile offenders access to the media and also protects them from being treated as crime-of-the-week news commodities. Before KJJA staff give approval for a media interview, the juvenile offender must demonstrate good behavior and progress in his or her correctional program. KJJA staff who work with the particular offender, as well as the superintendent, must agree to the media access. The offender's attorney then is alerted to the pending interview. There must be parental consent to interview minors. (Offenders who have turned 18 since being admitted into the system may give their own consent.) Also, KJJA staff may be present to monitor and record the interview.

Media interviews are not meant to give juvenile offenders attention but, rather, are an opportunity for them to discuss the issues they think should be addressed to reduce juvenile violence. Interviews also inform the public of the agency's juvenile correctional programs and services. Arranging media interviews takes a great deal of time, including many phone calls and meetings and paperwork. The policy's first real test resulted in two juvenile offenders being interviewed for The Kansas City Star about the state's juvenile correctional facility system. Obtaining consent from the juveniles, staff, parents and attorneys took weeks, but after considering several youths as prospective interviewees, two participated in the hour-long interview. The resulting feature article won the Kansas Correctional Association's 2000 Media Award.

Kansas also has committed to increasing public access to juvenile offender information, by completing a $6 million system that will link the courts, community case managers, juvenile correctional facilities, educational providers and other stakeholders. The new information system will not only maintain better juvenile records, but it also will allow faster, easier access to information.

More States to Follow?

It is important to note that Kansas often is seen as "representative" of nationwide trends. What happens in Kansas in terms of government, collective thinking and ultimately policy, is representative of a wide breadth of people who stand on middle ground, respecting moderation and common sense. It seems reasonable, then, that the trend in Kansas toward open access to juvenile offender information and greater accountability on the part of juveniles will be followed.

In fact, reports from the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention note that more states have made substantial changes with juvenile records, such as greater identification of juveniles, during the past five years, while others are considering making juvenile records available to the public. With such changes, public information officers will have to carefully strike a balance between protection of juvenile offender privacy and the public's right to know.

Denise Casamento Musser is public information officer for the Kansas Juvenile Justice Authority.