Mat-Su Youth Court changes the lives of students on both sides of bench

MAT-SU -- A tube of black lipstick and bottle of black nail polish first introduced Devin Warburton to Mat-Su Youth Court.

Last October, Devin, who was then 15, rode his bicycle to a Carrs store to buy the items for his sister, who wanted to use them during Spirit Week's "Day of the Dead" at Wasilla High School.

Devin didn't buy the polish and lipstick, however. He stole them. A store employee noticed and alerted the loss-prevention officer, who confronted Devin after he left the store.

Devin opted to allow the "lawyers" and "judges" of Mat-Su Youth Court to decide his theft case. He received a term of community work service and, a few months later, decided to participate in Youth Court in a different capacity -- by taking its training course and working as one of its apprentice, or "shadow," attorneys.

"Youth Delivering Justice" is the Mat-Su Youth Court's motto, but the participants are doing much more than delivering justice, they are changing lives.

Devin is now as much a part of the Youth Court student bar association as the members who have been there for four or five years."It seemed easier than any other community work service that was available," said Devin, who made his way up to second-chair defense attorney and hopes in the future to attain the prestigious position of presiding judge.

"I enjoy the whole thing, especially representing people, and it is something I can do without getting in trouble," he said.

Youth Court has changed the lives of many young people around the Valley. In a study of 82 Youth Court defendants, only five youths committed another offense later. That is a recidivism rate of only about 6 percent.

The national average rate of recidivism is 6 to 9 percent for defendants who come through Youth Court, so Mat-Su is on the low end of the average.

The recidivism rate for youths who are not prosecuted is considerably higher, and even higher than that for youths who are not caught at all.

Devin is not the only defendant to have seen the error of his ways. There are currently a number of other members of the Mat-Su Youth Court who first came through Youth Court as defendants rather than as shadow attorneys.

Mat-Su Youth Court takes all kinds of cases. The majority of the cases are theft, such as shoplifting.

Most shoplift from the larger stores such as Fred Meyer, Wal-Mart, and Carrs. A few will get caught in Anchorage, shoplifting from places such as Nordstrom, but because of their being residents of the Valley, Mat-Su Youth Court takes their cases rather than having them handled by the Anchorage Youth Court.

Even fewer people shoplift from the smaller stores such as the In-and-Out Deli in Palmer. There are a number of reasons for this. The biggest reason is that the larger stores carry more items that are of interest to teens.

Boys tend to shoplift food most often, though sometimes they will take shoes, pocket knives, or clothing. Girls tend to take makeup and clothing, but sometimes will take food or other items. The most common clothing items taken are lingerie.

Another reason that shoplifting is more common in the larger stores is that they are a lot less personal. People don't shoplift from the smaller stores many times because they can see the people they are affecting, and they can see that it is people they are hurting, not just a business.

Other offenses that come through Youth Court are marijuana charges. The three types of marijuana charges Youth Court handles are possession of marijuana, possession of paraphernalia and possession of marijuana on school property.

Another offense Youth Court takes is assault. The assaults range from biting, slapping to punching or paint-balling someone. There are also a few cases of criminal mischief, such as breaking windows or vandalizing public or private property.

Other Youth Courts handle other offenses, such as fraud, but the offenses accepted are up to the discretion of the Youth Court. Of all the offenses, none shows a higher re-offense rate than any of the others. If someone re-offends, they are most likely to commit the same offense again.

It is highly unlikely for someone to come through Youth Court on one charge and choose to violate the law again with a different offense. If someone is brought through on a charge of marijuana possession, then it is highly unlikely that if they re-offend it will be on a charge of assault, but rather, it would most likely be another charge involving marijuana, either possession or possession on school property.

"I think that a lot more kids should be in Youth Court, because it's fun, and if they really commit to it then it is a good way for them to stay out of trouble," Devin said.

Youth Court is indeed a great way for students to stay out of trouble, but it also requires a lot of commitment from the student members, who come from grades eight through 12.

Members of the bar association are required to participate in at least two court sessions a month if there are enough cases to go around, plus one bar meeting a month. There are also various fund-raisers year-round, such as car washes, coupon drives, bake sales and mock arraignments.

The state, Mat-Su Borough and cities within the borough help pay for Youth Court, along with donations and the $50 fee each Youth Court defendant pays in order to have his case decided. Cutbacks in funding have trimmed Youth Court's yearly funding to $150,000.

At the moment, Youth Court is going through some funding problems, and any donations would be welcome.

In August, members of Mat-Su Youth Court will wash cars in the parking lot of the Wasilla Police Station. The car wash will be held from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday, Aug. 21. Car washes will be done on a donation basis, but Youth Court requests a donation of at least $5.

Another fund-raiser in the works for Youth Court is set to take place at North Star Speedway. During the races, every Saturday through Sept. 4, numbered tennis balls will be sold in the gift shop. In between the races, a truck will drive around the track with a trash can on the back of it.

Anyone who has purchased a ball can try their hand at getting their ball into the trash can from the stands. Anyone whose ball lands in the can will win a prize.

All proceeds from the sale of the balls will be given to Mat-Su Youth Court.

In the months of October through December, Mat-Su Youth Court does a coupon fund-raiser at Carrs. During these months, Youth Court members hang manufacturers' coupons on the products represented. When someone buys a product with a coupon on it, they can either use the coupon for their own savings or donate to Youth Court the money they would have saved.

Training classes for new members of Youth Court are held approximately twice a year, once in the spring and once in the fall. The next class will most likely be held sometime in September or October. There are no set dates yet, but those who contact Mat-Su Youth Court office can get more information on the classes and about the program.

Those who are not able to participate in the classes because of prior commitments may participate in classes that are available in take-home video form.

Anyone with questions about Mat-Su Youth Court, how to donate to Youth Court or Youth Court training courses, may contact the Mat-Su Youth Court office at 373-9045.