San Jose police credit a new crime-fighting tool in helping troubled kids stay out of juvenile hall.
Police have been resorting to Project 95122, a collaborative effort between officers, school leaders and prosecutors. The idea behind the project is to not send students home for a week where they can get into more trouble, but to keep them in school where their issues will be addressed.
Instead of citing or arresting a teenager for minor crimes like marijuana or alcohol possession, officers have the option to refer the student to the 95122 project.
"Instead of just citing them and sending them to juvenile hall, we give them counseling," Officer Anthony Kilmer said.
A study by the Burns Institute found that 23 percent of arrested teenagers in Santa Clara County were from the area near Overfelt High School, in the 95122 zip code.
The project appears to be working.
"Students aren't being cited or arrested in the same quantity," said Vito Chiala, Overfelt High School principal. "This partnership and focus on the 95122 zip code is really making a difference."
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School administrators have also scaled back their suspensions by 70 percent over the last year.
