Tribal Juvenile Accountability Discretionary Program - Healing to Wellness Courts

The Justice Department's grant-making components have created a streamlined approach for federally recognized Tribes, Tribal consortia, Alaska Native villages and corporations, as well as authorized tribal designees to apply for Fiscal Year (FY) 2016 funding opportunities. The Coordinated Tribal Assistance Solicitation (CTAS) serves as a single solicitation for existing tribal government-specific grant programs administered by the Office of Justice Programs (OJP), the Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) and the Office on Violence Against Women (OVW). The CTAS solicitation is designed to assist tribes with addressing crime and public safety issues in a comprehensive manner. The CTAS grant-application process was inspired by and developed after consultation with tribal leaders, including sessions at the Justice Department's Tribal Nations Listening Session in 2009, and has been updated based on continued tribal consultations and listening sessions. The Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) provides awards under CTAS Purpose Area 8--Juvenile Healing to Wellness Courts. The overall goal of this program is to enhance the capacity of tribal courts to respond to the alcohol-related issues of youth under the age of 21. This can include the development of a new juvenile healing to wellness court or enhancements to an existing tribal healing to wellness court.

A Juvenile Healing to Wellness Court (JHTWC) at Standing Rock Reservation will be built into an already established Juvenile Court system to address substance abuse and healing of Tribal youth. The JHTWC strategy for building substance abuse treatment capacity in the juvenile justice system will be to bring together existing models, best practices, tested education and training curricula, technical support functions, and key stakeholders. The JHTWC will provide a clinical and judicial screening process to identify low risk juvenile offenders between the ages of 12-21; any service provider dealing with youth facing substance abuse issues may refer to the JHTWC. The planning, implementation and operation of the JHTWC will be a coordinated effort among the Tribal Court Staff, Service Providers, Community and Key Stakeholders with a focus on early intervention and healing. Activities will include graduated sanctions, incentives and rewards, treatment and rehabilitation, trauma informed healing, traditional practices, intensive supervision and constant interaction with the court. The program will be evaluated and modified to better meet the goals and objectives of this project and to ensure effectiveness and efficiency.

CA/NCF