Sitting on a jury of one’s peers is something reserved for adults who are registered voters. However students at HHS will now have the opportunity. Adams County Teen Court is accepting applications for teens interested in being a volunteer.
“The teen court program is for first time juvenile offenders who have already admitted their guilt. Successful completion of the program results in the charges being kept off your record. The program aims to prevent further offenses and to repair the harm the offender has caused,” Teen Court Services Coordinator Patti Hinrikus said.
The Teen Court Program is made up entirely of teen volunteers. Volunteers must be between the ages of 14 through 19. The attorneys, the bailiffs, and the judges are all teen volunteers. The judges specifically will be Hastings College students.
No prior experience or knowledge is needed to volunteer, all high school students are eligible. Volunteers will be trained by Teen Court staff and the Adams county attorney.
“Volunteers and the teens going through teen court are expected to abide by the oath of confidentiality. Cases will not be discussed outside of court,” Hinrikus said.
The program focuses on restorative justice, meaning it’s more about repairing the damage rather than solely on punishment. That does not mean there won’t be punishments though, offenders can be assigned community service, letters of apology and restitution.
“The community service will be assigned based on the skills and interests of the offender. If they’re good at wrijojdting then they might need to write a piece for the local paper or work on a nursing home newsletter,” Teen Court Volunteer Coordinator Aimee Ostdiek said.
Adams County Teen Court will be the fourth teen court program in the state.
The offender will have certain requirements to complete in the three months needed to finish the program. The youth will also be assigned an appointed college volunteer who will be that offender’s personal mentor. The mentor and offender will meet at least twice a month for about half an hour at a time. During their meetings they will discuss how they’re doing with the completion of the program.
“Mentors will build a positive relationship with their assigned teen. They will be there for them and offer words of encouragement and help keep them on track with successfully completing their community service,” Ostdiek said.
Another requirement to complete the program is that the offender must serve as a juror twice.
Senior Macie Clawson is already excited to be a part of the Adams County Teen Court program.
“My mom actually told me about it. She saw it and the paper and texted me saying this is something you should do,” Clawson said.
Clawson is interested in pursuing a career in the field of law.
“I just have this very big love for law, I’m pretty sure it’s not normal but I have it,” Clawson said.
Clawson isn’t worried about the possible, yet unlikely chance of being retaliated against for being a part of the program.
“We’re there to help these people, the reason teen court has been so successful in other areas is that it brings recidivism rates down. I think that as long as we convey to the person that what we’re trying to do is help them, they won’t have anything to be angry about,” Clawson said.
Clawson hopes to gain something herself from being a volunteer.
“I love law, but I don’t know a whole lot about the specifics of law. Volunteering will help me learn more about law and it will also help me decide what sect of law I want to go into. I don’t know if I want to be in a courtroom or not,” Clawson said.
Clawson hopes to be chosen to serve as an attorney of any kind in the program.
Volunteer training will be on October 14, and the first hearing will be October 27. For the time being, two hearings are planned for each month. Students interested in becoming a volunteer can call (402)-834-3799, or pick up an application at 2727 West 2 Street, Suite 410.
