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Thursday, October 8, 2009

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Program helps keep youths out of more trouble

By RENEE RICHARDSON

Senior Reporter

While Melissa Meger slept in a hotel in south Brainerd, a large rock was smashed through her car with such force it broke the driver's side window and dented the inside of the front passenger door.

The damage to Meger's car was believed to be one of 30 to 50 vehicles or more broken into by three boys during the first few days in May in Brainerd.

Two of the boys did not have prior convictions and they were referred to an area program that works with juveniles so that they face the people they harmed. The goal is to keep youths from reoffending.

"When I was stealing your belongings I did not feel bad, but meeting some of the victims face to face brought me to earth and made me think what if it happened to me. ... I can say this will never happen again, this is my lesson and I have learned it," one of the boys wrote in a handwritten apology letter to a victim.

The Crow Wing County attorney's office referred the two juveniles to the Lakes Area Restorative Justice Project. The nonprofit organization is funded by donations from the community.

Volunteers sought

The Lakes Area Restorative Justice Project is a nonprofit organization that works with youths involved in minor offenses, such as thefts, and brings them face to face with people they harmed by their behavior.

Volunteers, who work in pairs and have mentors, donate about five to 15 hours per case and work on about three to four cases each year.

Volunteers must be 18, have their own transportation and must complete 22 hours of training along with four ongoing training sessions each year.

The next three-day LARJP training is 4-9 p.m. Oct. 16, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Oct. 17 and noon to 6 p.m. Oct. 18 at Brainerd High School.

For more information, go online to www.larjp.org or call Stephanie Haider, LARJP director of volunteer services, at (218) 562-4926 or e-mail to stephhaider@aol.com.

Through the program, two of the boys agreed to a contract - to complete 55 hours of community service, to pay about $300 in restitution and to write letters of apology. The boys also met face to face with groups of their victims and other community members. One such group session earlier this summer had 30 people in attendance.

John Newhouse, Lakeland Mold president, attended one of the sessions for the first time, representing the city's business community.

"It was impressive based on the whole objective of the program bringing victims and perpetrators together," Newhouse said, adding the process was a way to show the juveniles they did more harm than just smashing windows as they harmed victims' sense of security. And, Newhouse said the process was a way to give those boys a second chance.

"I was impressed by that," Newhouse said. "I was impressed also quite honestly by the way the victims conducted themselves. Not one of them expressed any sort of vindictive response. They all felt, I think, if these kids could learn from this mistake their job was to be part of that educational process."

Stephanie Haider, of LARJP, said one crime victim drove to Brainerd from the Twin Cities just for the meeting in order to tell the boys about his CD collection they robbed from him and to impress upon them to take this opportunity to stay out of trouble.

Meger, a nurse from Mankato, was staying in Brainerd to take part in the annual Bataan Memorial Death March. The previous day, she marched 20 miles in combat gear to honor veterans forced to march 55 miles as prisoners of war in the Philippines in 1942.

At 6 a.m. on a Sunday, Meger woke to a knock on her door at the Red Roof Inn as law enforcement notified her of the car break-in.

"I could barely walk with the blisters on my feet and my stiff legs and back," Meger wrote about the incident. "Outside I found my driver-side window smashed, glass all over the ground and the power cord to my Garmin GPS system dandling out my broken window. A rock the size of a cantaloupe had been thrown through my driver-side window and was on the floor of the passenger side."

The damage to Meger's car was nearly $4,000, including the replacement of the passenger side door dented by the rock.

Some critics may feel the LARJP process is too lenient with young offenders. Newhouse said that wasn't his impression. Facing the group is intimidating, embarrassing, Newhouse said, and if the boys don't follow a contract they agree to they are back to the justice system. Newhouse was so impressed with the program he joined the LARJP board.

He said the boys appeared genuine, during what at times was an emotional session, and in their desire to work to repair damage they caused. Two high school age boys took part in the circle as alumni of the program.

"They encouraged the boys to use this opportunity to get straight," Newhouse said.

RENEE RICHARDSON may be reached at renee.richardson@brainerddispatch.com or 855-5852.

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