Tribal Youth Intervention Program

The Nooksack Indian Tribe (NIT) is a Federally Recognized Indian Tribe which consists of approximately 1,869 members in and around Whatcom County, Washington. Under this project, the Nooksack Youth Intervention Program (NYIP) will be implemented to hold juveniles accountable for their actions and reduce recidivism in the community. The project will serve approximately 268 Nooksack Tribal youth and will encompass juvenile offenders from ages 12 through 17. The NYIP will focus on 1) hiring a prosecutor to handle the juvenile caseload, especially the violent offenders; 2) enable the prosecutor to attend Juvenile Justice training so that he may address drug/alcohol abuse, gang and other violent crimes effectively; and 3) establish and maintain programs to enable the court to be more effective and efficient in holding juvenile offenders accountable and reducing recidivism. The tribal court will track and collect court data e.g., documents, dockets, and statistics to include a record of court dispositions as part of their evaluation process. CA/NCF