Correctional Boot Camps: A Tough Intermediate Sanction - Chapter 11. The Development and Operation of Juvenile Boot Camps in Florida MENU TITLE: Juvenile Boot Camps in Florida Series: NIJ Report Published: February 1996 10 pages 21,892 bytes The Development and Operation of Juvenile Boot Camps in Florida by Elizabeth S. Cass, Ph.D., and Neil Kaltenecker Elizabeth Cass is a researcher with the Florida Department of Juvenile Justice, where she is conducting an outcome evaluation of each of the juvenile boot camps operated by the State of Florida. Neil Kaltenecker is Program Manager of P.A.C.E. Center for Girls/Leon, a nonprofit dropout prevention program in Tallahassee, Florida. He played a leading role in the development and implementation of juvenile boot camp programs while employed at the Florida Department of Health and Rehabilitative Services. Florida operates more juvenile boot camps than any other State in the United States. An important aspect of these programs is the partnerships local and State governments have created to promote community involvement and the utilization of local resources. The six camps currently operating in Florida are run by county sheriff's departments with oversight by the Florida Department of Juvenile Justice. Boot camps target youths with a history of serious offenses. The program is designed to "shock" the youths into compliance by strict military-style discipline. This chapter provides an overview of the development and operation of these boot camps, with special emphasis on the State's first program in Manatee County. Drill instructors in the program receive more than 200 hours of training in boot camp procedures. Boot camps have an aftercare component that differs from county to county but generally includes a postrelease day program in the community for several months after graduation from the boot camp itself. Although Florida has only recently employed boot camps as a method of dealing with juvenile delinquency, it currently operates more such camps than any other State. As of December 1994, juvenile boot camps were operating in six counties, and three additional camps are scheduled to open in 1995. Juvenile boot camps in Florida were developed through partnerships between the State and local governments. Each of the six camps currently operating was created through the collaborative efforts of the Florida Department of Juvenile Justice (DJJ) and local county sheriff's departments. General guidelines for operating these programs are established by Florida statute and further defined in the State's administrative rule, but otherwise each locality is given the flexibility to develop a program that makes use of local resources and involves the community. Statutory Origin In 1989 the Florida statute pertaining to juvenile justice (F.S. Chapter 39) was revised, authorizing the creation of juvenile boot camps. The camps were to target "deep-end," more serious offenders, in contrast to adult boot camps, which are typically designed for first-time, nonviolent offenders. To be eligible for boot camp placement, the statute stipulated that juveniles be between the ages of 14 and 17 at the time of adjudication and have been committed to the custody of the State for either (1) a capital, life, first-degree, or second-degree felony or (2) a third-degree felony with two or more prior felony adjudications, of which one or more resulted in residential placement. The statute intended the programs to be an "intensive educational and physical training and rehabilitative program for appropriate children," which would require juveniles to "participate in educational, vocational, and substance abuse programs and to receive additional training in techniques of appropriate decisionmaking, as well as in life skills and job skills. Postrelease community supervision is mandated, and the camps' residential and aftercare components must last at least 6 months. An administrative rule was promulgated by the State to govern the operation of boot camps. It set minimum standards for policies and procedures and serves as the foundation for State oversight of boot camp programs. The State's low per diem funding of boot camps has not covered all of their operational costs. Therefore, local communities have had to supplement that funding. With the involvement and financial backing of local communities, programs could be designed to best suit the juveniles in that area. To illustrate this process, this chapter focuses on the development of the State's first boot camp in Manatee County, which has served as a model for the State's other programs. Development of the Manatee County Boot Camp In September 1992, discussions between the Florida Department of Health and Rehabilitative Services (HRS) and the Manatee County Sheriff's Office led to the creation of the first boot camp for juveniles in Florida.1 At that time, Manatee County Sheriff Charlie B. Wells was building a boot camp facility for the county's adult jail population. With the support of the Manatee County Commission, he agreed to change the targeted population to juveniles to help ease burgeoning residential placement problems in Florida's juvenile justice system. A program model for a new juvenile camp was developed by a group consisting of local and State HRS officials, Sheriff Wells, and his staff. The design made use of paramilitary structure and discipline but also emphasized education, personal accountability, and positive social values and behavior. An operational contract was negotiated in which the State paid $56 per youth per day to the Manatee County Sheriff's Office--approximately half the State funding rate of other high-risk residential programs. The sheriff's office supplemented the program's budget by providing meals, medical services, and a computer laboratory. This type of collaborative partnership between State and local governments became the model for boot camps subsequently opened around the State. Staffing. The program's drill instructors are members of the Manatee County Sheriff's Office who previously worked as correctional officers in the county jail. In addition to the 411 hours of training required to become a State-certified correctional officer, they received 200 more hours of training in boot camp procedures. In 1994, the juvenile justice statute was modified to provide for the development of statewide boot camp staff training. The statute now requires all boot camp staff having direct contact with juveniles to complete a minimum of 200 hours of State-approved training, including training in counseling techniques, basic cardiopulmonary resuscitation and choke-relief, and the control of aggression. Furthermore, it requires that all training courses be taught by certified instructors of the division of Criminal Justice Standards and Training of the Florida Department of Law Enforcement who have prior experience in a juvenile boot camp program. Counseling techniques must be taught by staff who have at least a bachelor's degree in social work, counseling, psychology, or a related field. The development of a statewide course will help address staffing problems faced by boot camps that need to replace instructors after initial staff training has already taken place. Selection of youths. Florida's juvenile boot camp programs were originally designed to be high-risk residential programs. Unlike many boot camp programs for adults, placement is not voluntary. The process of placing youths in camps begins when a juvenile court judge commits a youth to DJJ custody. After a judge orders placement at one of four levels of restrictiveness (designated as nonresidential and low-, moderate-, and high-risk residential programs), DJJ assigns youths to specific programs. For youths who are ordered into a moderate- or high-risk residential program, one option is boot camp. Florida's juvenile justice statute requires that all youths sent to boot camp be screened to ensure that programs admit only those juveniles who have "medical and psychological profiles conducive to successfully completing an intensive work, educational, and disciplinary program." Programs exclude youths with a history of psychiatric illness or suicidal tendencies, youths currently taking psychotropic medications, and those with abnormal electrocardiograms, asthma, or other physical problems that would make boot camp placement inappropriate. Although not dictated by statute, currently boot camps accept only males. Manatee County Boot Camp has a capacity of 30 juveniles. Consistent with a military model, youths enter the program as platoons of approximately 15 members. While grouping inmates in platoons is an appropriate form of military organization, it produces certain complications for the State's juvenile justice placement system. New platoons typically enter camps every 2 months; some youths face a waiting period between disposition of their case and entry into the boot camp. Because supervision is necessary during this period, the State must provide temporary residential or nonresidential placement. The Boot Camp Experience at Manatee The first day of camp in the Manatee County program is designed to "shock" the juvenile offender into compliance. The day begins when hand and leg cuffs are placed on the youths and they are transported from the local detention center to the Manatee County Jail. Once offenders are inside the jail compound's gates, their hand and leg cuffs are removed and they are driven to the boot camp grounds. The van is surrounded by drill instructors who bang on the outside of the van and demand that the boys exit the vehicle and line up. The new arrivals are frisked and marched to a classroom where they receive military-style haircuts. The rules of military conduct are explained, including requirements that each recruit begin and end every sentence with "Sir" or "Ma'am" and excuse himself when passing others. Failure to perform this ritual is the most common reason for admonishment during the first day. The response of drill instructors to noncompliance is swift and loud, but abusive or derogatory speech is prohibited. Pushups are used to punish recalcitrant inmates. Each recruit is assigned a room and a uniform. (The camp's living quarters are made up of single rooms to increase staff control and to decrease recruit interaction.) Youths spend the remainder of the first day reviewing the recruit handbook. A drill instructor reads the handbook out loud while encouraging recruits to ask for clarification and questioning them to make sure they understand. The first week of the program is designed to keep offenders off balance and confused. The expectation is that the shock of the new environment will cause the youths to question the behaviors and beliefs that led to their placement in the camp. They can then begin the process of changing their view of themselves and the world. After a week of orientation, the Manatee County program's demanding schedule begins, including training in military-style conduct and the basics of military drill. Youths begin each day at 5 a.m. and end it at 9:00 p.m. Inmates spend the largest part of each weekday--6 hours--in school. Three and a quarter hours are devoted to physical activity that includes physical training, drill and ceremony, the obstacle course, and upkeep of the camp. One hour is devoted to group counseling sessions conducted by a private psychologist contracted by the camp. Youths also spend 1 hour each day in their rooms, where they are expected to read, write letters, or do homework. A silence rule is imposed with the exception of school, counseling, and, as necessary, during work details. No television sets, radios, or newspapers are available in the camp. The program's residential phase is designed to last 4 months. Inmates who in the commander's view have not progressed in that time can be held for a longer period. During this segment of the program, youths advance through a series of phases designated by colored hats. Progress is tracked through a daily contact record book in which drill instructors record the positive and negative behaviors of each recruit. If a recruit's progress is deemed satisfactory, he receives a new hat at the end of the month and is accorded the privileges associated with the next program phase. In the first phase youths are not permitted visits or phone calls except in an emergency. In the second they are allowed a 5-minute telephone call and a 1-hour visit with family members each week. Youths who complete the program on time attend a transition ceremony on the boot camp grounds to mark their accomplishment. Family and friends are invited to attend, and each recruit receives a certificate indicating that he is a graduate of the camp. The transition ceremony is viewed not as an ending but as the beginning of a new life outside the camp in which the lessons learned there will be put to use. Programming Differences Among the Camps Although the Manatee County pilot project was emulated by other Florida counties, each of the State's boot camps has modified the model to meet local conditions. The Leon County Sheriff's program, for example, has incorporated a second residential phase called the "Community Transitional Program" that gives juveniles more privileges and responsibilities. Youths are also permitted to participate in community service projects. Pinellas County's program is called a "preparatory school" and is less regimented than the State's other boot camps, with time scheduled each day for recreational activities. The school is conducted without a strict military atmosphere and does not use some of the program's military protocol. Postrelease Community Supervision After graduating from boot camp, all youths are assigned to a day treatment program. Assignment is generally contingent on the location of youths' homes, and services are provided by a variety of private agencies. This section provides a general description of services that can in fact vary from program to program. Youths attend day treatment for 6 to 9 months, depending on their needs. Typically, boot camp graduates are picked up from home early in the morning and transported to the aftercare facility for supervised activities throughout the day and evening. Youths are returned home by approximately 9 p.m. A curfew is enforced, with violations sometimes resulting in electronic monitoring. During the day program's first few months, youths attend school at the aftercare facility. Nonschool hours are filled with group and individual counseling and recreational activities. As youths progress through the program, they earn unsupervised and unstructured time by demonstrating positive behaviors and eventually return to their local high schools or begin full-time jobs. During the first 60 days following their release from boot camp, youths can be returned to custody for failing to abide by their aftercare programs' rules and regulations. This option, contingent on an administrative hearing, is intended to give aftercare providers a means to manage behavior once juveniles leave the highly structured boot camp environment. Returning youths to boot camp is viewed as a way to refresh instruction and demonstrates to other youths that noncompliance in aftercare carries consequences. However, because offenders enter boot camps as platoons and progress as a group (with some progressing in "hats" faster than others), the return of graduates to camps has caused logistical problems. Some camps have elected to create separate platoons for these individuals; others have assimilated them into their newest platoons. Both approaches have proved less than ideal-- the first produces a manpower drain and the second disrupts existing platoons. Statistical Profile of Juvenile Inmates Between March 29, 1993, when Florida's first camp opened in Manatee County, and August 31, 1994, 262 youths were placed in boot camp programs around the State.2 Youths ranged in age from 14 to 18 at entry, with a mean age of 16. Overall, 59 percent of youths were black, but programs varied tremendously in this regard, from a high of 81 percent to a low of 49 percent. Of the 262 juveniles admitted to the five boot camps, 94 percent successfully completed their programs. Boot camps varied in the rate at which youths completed the program, from a low of 87 percent in Martin County to a high of 100 percent in Bay County. Of the average of 17 recruits who did not graduate, nearly two-thirds left within the first 30 days. Inmates not completing their programs did not drop out in the traditional sense; the decision to leave a boot camp is not voluntarily made by recruits. The major reason for noncompletion was poor screening. Undetected medical problems were the most frequent cause for removal. A small number of youths were removed for assaulting drill instructors or attempting to escape. Of the youths completing their programs, preliminary data indicate that 16 percent were returned to boot camps due to disciplinary problems in aftercare programs. The additional time they spent at boot camps varied widely, from 2 to 206 days, with an average of 66 days.4 One issue of particular interest to DJJ officials is whether returning juveniles to boot camps ultimately improves their chances of successful reintegration into the community. Twenty-five percent of recruits were convicted of a violent felony against a person. Pinellas County had the highest percentage of violent felons (31 percent), while Bay County admitted no youths who had committed violent felonies. This variation across programs reflects the disparate placement strategies applied throughout the State. Inmates' histories of delinquent behavior were also examined. Recruits averaged 23 previous referrals to DJJ and 12 previous adjudications in juvenile court.6 It is clear that juveniles placed in Florida's boot camps had extensive histories of delinquency, and 73 percent previously had spent time in a commitment program. For the majority of youths, assignment to boot camp was not the first attempt by the juvenile justice system to change their behavior. The Continuing Development of Florida's Boot Camps During the 1993-94 session, State legislators made a number of important changes to Florida's juvenile justice statute that directly affected juvenile boot camps. The most important change concerned boot camp eligibility. After October 1, 1994, the statute stipulated that eligible juveniles were those who had been committed to the department for "any offense that, if committed by an adult, would be a felony, other than a capital felony, a life felony, or a violent felony of the first degree." This modification simultaneously excluded some offenders who had previously been eligible for boot camp placement-- the most violent felons-- and broadened the pool of eligibility to all other felons. A second statutory change authorized the creation of low- and moderate-risk residential boot camp programs. Moderate-risk programs now require juveniles to stay 4 months in boot camp and 4 months in aftercare, whereas low-risk programs require 2 months in boot camp and 2 months in aftercare. Finally, the new statute increased the minimum incarceration period for boot camps classified as high-risk residential programs to 4 months in boot camp and 4 months in aftercare. The Florida Legislature also appropriated funds to implement a total of 12 programs across the State. Decisions as to which counties will operate camps are made at DJJ's central office in Tallahassee, and priority is given to proposals that include significant local participation in funding and to those that provide facilities. Three boot camps are currently under development, including one contract in Volusia County held by the State Attorney's office. A 40-bed facility for young women in Polk County is scheduled to open in 1995. Future Evaluations The statute authorizing the creation of juvenile boot camps in Florida directed DJJ to collect information on criminal activity, educational progress, and employment placement for all boot camp participants. Results in these areas are to be compared to results for youths placed in other types of juvenile programs operated by the State. DJJ's Bureau of Research and Data is currently collecting data for this evaluation. Notes 1. As of October 1, 1994, responsibility for juvenile justice programs was transferred from Health and Rehabilitative Services to the newly created Department of Juvenile Justice. 2. An additional 17 youths were placed in a Pensacola, Florida, boot camp operated by the Private Industry Council. The program closed within 2 months due to operational problems. These youths are not included in this analysis. 3. Polk County Sheriff's Office opened a boot camp on September 30, 1994, and accepted a platoon of 20 recruits. It is the only program in Florida designed for platoons of 20. 4. Some recruits were returned to boot camps on multiple occasions; these figures represent the total additional time recruits spent in those programs. 5. Data were available on only 228 of the 262 cases. 6. Data were available on only 189 of the 262 cases. References Florida Statutes, Chapter 39.057. Juvenile Boot Camp Program Manual. Palmetto, Florida: Manatee County Sheriff's Office, 1993.