Cook County Commissioner Earlean Collins and Co-sponsoring Commissioners Endorse Crisis Intervention Centers

Commissioner Earlean Collins and a group of co-sponsoring Cook County Commissioners endorsed the creation of Crisis Intervention and Behavioral Health Centers in the Criminal Justice Committee of the Board of Commissioners on July 22, 2014.

These Centers represent a novel approach to reducing crime in the metro area as well as overpopulation at the Juvenile Temporary Detention Center through therapeutic, trauma informed treatment that addresses the root causes of violence.  The text of the approved resolution is attached.  Commissioner Collins is available to discuss the anticipated impact of the new Crisis Intervention Centers to crime reduction in the Chicago area.

PROPOSED SECOND SUBSTITUTE TO RESOLUTION #14-3727

(formerly Item 323682)

PROPOSED SUBSTITUTE RESOLUTION

CRISIS INTERVENTION AND BEHAVIORAL HEALTH CENTERS Submitting a Resolution sponsored by Earlean Collins.

WHEREAS, the County of Cook is a home rule unit of government as defined in Article VII, Section 6(a) of the 1970 Constitution of the State of Illinois, and as such may exercise any power and perform any function pertaining to its government and affairs; and

WHEREAS, there is a growing body of evidence that underscores the urgent need for bold action to find effective solutions to reduce violence, suicide and other antisocial behavior problems among youth and break the cycle of gun violence in our communities which begins at earlier ages and impacts larger masses of innocent people each year; and

WHEREAS, it has been proven that the most effective ways to break the cycle of violence is to begin at earlier ages with proper diagnosis and intervention strategies that will determine the root causes and proper treatments prior to more serious acts of violence; and

WHEREAS, the trauma informed model program has been accepted as one of the most best case practices for diagnosing trauma related behavior; and research has shown that there is a direct correlation between traumatic experience, antisocial behavior, teen suicide rate, youth violence, academic failure and low self-esteem; and

WHEREAS, a recent Northwestern University study concluded that 2/3 of males and ¾ of females detained at the Cook County Juvenile Temporary Detention Center (JTDC) have some form of mental illness; and

WHEREAS, according to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), Chicago’s teen suicide rate has been the highest in the nation since June of 2012.  The U.S. suicide statistics indicate that mental illness, trauma, and substance abuse has a direct correlation with the juvenile suicide rate.  On average, a young person (age 15-24) dies by suicide every two hours.  Suicide is the third leading cause of death for young people (15-24), and the fifth leading cause of death for young people aged 5-14.  Most of the recent mass shootings on our school grounds have usually ended with the perpetrator committing suicide; and

WHEREAS, substance abusers have easy access to the flow of drugs in economically depressed communities which have few job prospects and in which the residents have exhausted all legal mean to meet their basic needs thus making it easy for the sale of drugs to become the primary economic engine for survival; and

WHEREAS, it has been nationally accepted and proven that early identification and intervention programs have better results for behavior modification problems than to wait until children get into more serious problems at a later age; and

WHEREAS, according to a Project NIA report, Chicago Public School (CPS) students are the human lifeline that feeds the JTDC.  In 2012, 84% of CPS student arrests were for minor crimes.  Minor offenders are often given disciplinary suspensions.  Students who are suspended are three times more likely to drop out of high school by the 10th grade and males who dropped out of school are five times more likely to be incarcerated than their peers with diplomas.  While blacks represent only about 42% of CPS students, they accounted for a staggering 75% of school-based arrests in 2012; and

WHEREAS, the school system affords the greatest opportunity for early identification of children who are experiencing academic and/or social difficulties; and children of working parents or guardians who are expelled from school for extended periods of time without supervision are prime targets for gang recruitment and other criminal activities; and

WHEREAS, the critical need for establishing the Crisis Intervention and Behavioral Health Centers is to afford an opportunity for children to receive professional assistance for behavior modification, crime reduction, academic achievement and improvement of self-esteem to overcome anger, hurt, and to learn how to cope with past traumatic experiences.  The centers will provide a safe haven and services for those in need as an alternative to incarceration for those who commit minor crimes.

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the President and the Cook County Board of Commissioners support the development of Crisis Intervention and Behavioral Health Centers and efforts to seek State Capital Funds and Federal matching funds to develop the Centers; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that Crisis Intervention and Behavioral Health Centers serve as an alternative to taking those who commit minor crimes to jail; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the JTDC Advisory Board shall work to identify suitable places for the Crisis Intervention and Behavioral Health Centers to be developed and to submit a report on site selection to the Board of Commissioners by October 31, 2014; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the JTDC Advisory Board shall seek input from community stakeholders and participants in the consortium of wraparound service providers including hospitals, universities, professional behavioral health specialists and social workers. The Board will explore the development of the treatment model and enhancing essential service capacity in areas of greatest need.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that JTDC Advisory Board can make recommendations on policy for early identification and treatment of trauma related illnesses of children.