Clark commissioners high on center to help troubled children, families

By Jackie Valley

Tuesday, April 19, 2016 | 5:10 p.m.

A one-stop shop where troubled children and their families can receive resources and service referrals could be open as soon as September.

Jack Martin, director of Clark County’s Juvenile Justice Services, said the department is pursuing interlocal agreements with partner agencies such as the Clark County School District, Metro Police and city of Las Vegas to make the long-planned Juvenile Assessment Center a reality.

“A child is not raised in a vacuum, and we all know that,” Martin said during the Clark County Commission meeting Tuesday. When a child enters the assessment center, “everybody that touches that child will hopefully be wrapped in resources.”

A Metro Police building at Mojave Road and Washington Avenue that’s currently used for training would house the proposed center. The center would serve as a bridge of sorts, linking children in crisis or those who have interacted with law enforcement to appropriate services.

Children and teens referred to the assessment center would receive evaluations to determine their needs — perhaps help with homelessness, mental health issues, drug abuse or family violence. The center’s staff then would provide the children and their families with resources, service and treatment referrals, and whatever follow-up was deemed necessary.

The department hopes that if the community can intervene earlier and help these at-risk children and teens, it will prevent them from escalating further into the criminal justice system, Martin said.

Last year, Juvenile Justice Services handled 13,197 referrals — down 6 percent from the previous year. The assessment center, he said, could keep that number trending downward.

The department has applied for federal funding to help support the assessment center, which it estimates would cost $750,000 per year if operating from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Mondays through Fridays.

The commissioners expressed broad support for the center; several urged the department to ensure stable funding for it going forward.

“I feel extremely strongly that we need to see this one open as quickly as possible and then look for a second one,” Commissioner Susan Brager said.

The proposed center is modeled after others already operating across the country, Martin said. Some cities similar in size to Las Vegas have multiple assessment centers, strategically scattered throughout their jurisdictions to reach more children and families, he said.