Law Enforcement Report: CA's After-School Programs Leave Out High School Students During Prime Crime Hours

1/29/2004

From: Robert Kaplan of Fight Crime: Invest in Kids California, 510-836-2050 ext. 305 or rkaplan@calfightcrime.org

LOS ANGELES, Jan. 29 -- Due to insufficient funding, California is unable to meet the enormous demand for after-school programs for high school students, denying the state's most at-risk teens the supervision and guidance proven to keep them away from crime, according to a groundbreaking study released today by Fight Crime: Invest In Kids California, an anti-crime organization of over 260 sheriffs, police chiefs, district attorneys and victims of violence.

Citing new data from every California county, "California's Next After-School Challenge: Keeping High School Teens Off the Street and On the Right Track" finds that this problem has disastrous consequences for California's youth, public safety and taxpayers.

The report pulls together evidence that after-school programs cut teen crime, drug use and other risky teen behaviors and improve academic achievement. A previously unreported study of a San Francisco after-school program finds youths who did not attend the program were two to three times more likely to be arrested than participating teens.

Currently there is a severe shortage of available programs because California's sole dedicated high school after-school funding source only serves students at three percent of high schools-that's one out of every 34 high schools or only a few thousand out of more than 1.7 million public high school students.

Los Angeles County Sheriff Lee Baca and Los Angeles Chief of Police Bill Bratton spoke today at James Monroe High School in the San Fernando Valley, where despite promising results, the extensive LA COPS after-school program was recently forced to close when the high school's federal grant ran out.

"Even though high school teens commit most juvenile crime, California fails to provide them with the support they need to keep them out of trouble," said Sheriff Baca. "After-school programs are proven to deter teenagers from crime and increase the likelihood that they will become successful, productive adults."

"An after-school program is an extremely powerful anti-crime weapon," said Chief Bratton. "California and the federal government must commit the resources to keep teens off the streets during the crucial after-school hours. It's a matter of public safety."

According to California's Next After-School Challenge, the nation's first report to focus on after-school programs for high school teens, data from California's largest cities shows that the after-school hours of 2 to 6 p.m. are the "prime time" for violent juvenile crime. Even though constructive after-school alternatives are proven to reduce criminal activity, the report reveals that few are available for teens; for example, a new survey of California's poorest neighborhoods finds 65 percent of high schools close their computer labs and 73 percent close their libraries within one hour after school lets out.

California is already a leader in providing programs for younger children. Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger's Proposition 49 will significantly expand after-school options for California's elementary and middle school children once the economy recovers. Yet, high school-age teens commit four out of five juvenile crimes.

"Do we want to pay to help these kids now or do we want to pay far more to incarcerate them later?" asked Los Angeles County District Attorney Cooley in a prepared statement. "High school after-school programs are plain common sense-they pay for themselves by saving lives and taxpayer dollars." A study cited in the report finds that one particular after-school program was five times more cost-effective at preventing serious crimes than the "Three Strikes" law.

In California's Next After-School Challenge, law enforcement leaders and crime survivors call on public officials to continue expanding access to after-school programs for teenagers. The only dedicated source of high school after-school funding is administered by the State and relies entirely on federal dollars. Senate Bill 481 (McPherson-R), sponsored by FIGHT CRIME: INVEST IN KIDS California, would guarantee that high school programs will always receive at least six percent of federal after-school spending. Without this measure, dozens of programs statewide could be forced to close their doors to teens. The bill passed the State Senate and is currently pending in the State Assembly.

"Public safety is the number one concern of government," said Barrie Becker, Fight Crime: Invest In Kids California state director. "The report sends a clear message to state officials: prioritize public safety and keep California teens on the right track to success and away from lives of crime."

The report also recommends increasing federal after-school support and, in time, establishing the first state-level source of funding for after-school programs for teens.

Fight Crime: Invest In Kids California is a bipartisan, nonprofit anti-crime organization led by more than 260 sheriffs, police chiefs, district attorneys and victims of violence. Its mission is to take a hard-nosed look at the research about what really works to keep kids from becoming criminals and then put that information in the hands of policymakers and the public. Among the strategies proven to be effective are early care and education programs for preschoolers, after-school programs, youth mental health services and child abuse prevention programs.

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LOCAL DATA AVAILABLE: California's Next After-School Challenge includes: -- County-specific accounting of high school after-school funding -- Profiles of more than 35 promising programs across the state

Please contact Robert Kaplan (510-836-2050 ext. 305 or rkaplan@calfightcrime.org) for more information or to arrange interviews with local law enforcement officials. Visit http://www.fightcrime.org/ca for a copy of the report.

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............of High Schools...CCLC (03-07)................Profiled in Report

Alameda Co..........72.......2...........3...........5

Alpine Co............4.......0...........0...........0

Amador Co............6.......0...........0...........0

Butte Co............29.......1...........3...........0

Calaveras Co........15.......0...........0...........0

Colusa Co...........11.......1...........9...........0

Contra Costa Co.....63.......3...........5...........1

Del Norte Co.........7.......0...........0...........0

El Dorado Co........20.......0...........0...........0

Fresno Co...........86......10..........12...........2

Glenn Co............18.......0...........0...........0

Humboldt Co.........25.......2...........8...........0

Imperial Co.........18.......4..........22...........1

Inyo Co.............13.......0...........0...........0

Kern Co.............56.......0...........0...........0

Kings Co............19.......0...........0...........0

Lake Co.............19.......0...........0...........0

Lassen Co...........17.......0...........0...........0

Los Angeles Co.....386.......8...........2...........6

Madera Co...........24.......0...........0...........0

Marin Co............19.......0...........0...........1

Mariposa Co..........7.......0...........0...........0

Mendocino Co........34.......1...........3...........0

Merced Co...........27.......1...........4...........0

Modoc Co............11.......0...........0...........0

Mono Co.............13.......0...........0...........0

Monterey Co.........33.......2...........6...........0

Napa Co.............15.......1...........7...........0

Nevada Co...........13.......0...........0...........1

Orange Co..........105.......5...........5...........5

Placer Co...........26.......1...........4...........0

Plumas Co...........11.......0...........0...........0

Riverside Co........98.......4...........4...........1

Sacramento Co.......83.......0...........0...........1

San Benito Co........4.......0...........0...........0

San Bernardino Co..112.......1...........1...........1

San Diego Co.......140.......6...........4...........4

San Francisco Co....28.......3..........11...........6

San Joaquin Co......43.......0...........0...........0

San Luis Obispo Co..25.......0...........0...........0

San Mateo Co........31.......0...........0...........2

Santa Barbara Co....25.......0...........0...........1

Santa Clara Co......82.......2...........2...........1

Santa Cruz Co.......22.......1...........5...........1

Shasta Co...........32.......0...........0...........0

Sierra Co............9.......0...........0...........0

Siskiyou Co.........24.......2...........8...........1

Solano Co...........29.......0...........0...........0

Sonoma Co...........44.......1...........2...........1

Stanislaus Co.......41.......1...........2...........1

Sutter Co...........14.......0...........0...........0

Tehama Co...........12.......0...........0...........0

Trinity Co..........10.......0...........0...........0

Tulare Co...........45.......1...........2...........0

Tuolumne Co.........18.......0...........0...........0

Ventura Co..........43.......2...........5...........3

Yolo Co.............16.......0...........0...........0

Yuba Co.............14.......0...........0...........0

Totals............2266......66...........3..........46

For more information, visit http://www.fightcrime.org/ca or contact Rob Kaplan at 510-836-2050 ext. 305 or rkaplan@calfightcrime.org.