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Lycoming County District Attorney's Office proposes Juvenile Justice Center

Newswatch 16's Mackenzie Aucker explains how exactly it'll help.

WILLIAMSPORT, Pa. — The future of juvenile justice in Lycoming County was unveiled inside the Lycoming County Commissioner's conference room in Williamsport. Rendering details what a new Juvenile Justice Center would look like, incorporating new ideas impacting not just the kids but also parents and guardians.

"We have to help the parents or grandmother. A lot of the times, the grandmother is raising these kids, so this has to be a family project when it comes to the counseling, and I'm dead serious about if you don't show up, we're going to send the sheriffs after you," said Lycoming County District Attorney Tom Marino. 

The idea came from Lycoming County District Attorney Tom Marino. He tells us there's an increase in children carrying guns since originally taking office back in 1992. He says he's seen juvenile crime rates quadruple. Lycoming County Sheriff Mark Lusk says juvenile crime is something that needs to be tackled now before it's too late. 

"We better do it differently, or we're gonna lose a whole generation because this generation's going to create the next generation, that's going to be as bad or worse as this generation," said Mark Lusk, Lycoming County Sheriff. 

Officials say right now, a common issue with the juvenile justice system is their record follows kids throughout their lives. They say they're looking to change that. 

"In talking with juvenile probation, one of the things I didn't know, I just assumed that it was this revolving door and how many times they do get a kid once, and it's like that's the only time the kid is in the system because they get them young, they get them the help, they get them on the right path," said Lycoming County Commissioner Mark Mussina. 

According to the Pennsylvania Juvenile Court Judges' Commission, the Commonwealth currently has 513 detention center beds licensed by the state's Department of Human Services. But, there are not enough workers, and only 366 beds are operational. About half of those are designated by the courts for children from the Philadelphia area, leaving just 15 secure beds to serve 60 counties across Pennsylvania.

The project would cost approximately $60 million in grants and federal and state money. The center will have 160 beds, separating boys and girls. The juvenile center will also be staffed with psychiatrists, psychologists, and counselors.  

"And people who have a background in dealing with troubled kids, what the programs are going to be like, the educational aspect of it, the chores that these kids are gonna have to do," said District Attorney Tom Marino. 

The project would take a while to get up and running. The next step is a feasibility study.

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