Teen Court Celebrates Successful Year

By McKenzie Martin

Friday morning I had the pleasure of emceeing the annual breakfast for Colorado Springs Teen Court. My neighbor Linda Lynch is the Program Director and she asked me to be a part of the celebration.

Turns out I was amazed at the role that Teen Court plays in our community. Teen Court is a unique and highly successful approach to juvenile crime. In Colorado Springs, the program provides an alternative to the regular Municipal Court sentencing for first-time misdemeanor offenses committed by young people between 11 and 18 years of age. The teens are sentenced by their fellow peers. Last year in El Paso County only 6-percent of those who went through the program re-offended. I think that number is pretty impressive.

Friday the program celebrated it’s 15^th anniversary. Local judges, lawyers, police officers and case managers also help out, giving their time to help the kids who volunteer to be part of  Teen Court and also the defendants. I think programs like this one deserve more recognition for the critical role they play in helping turn lives around, young lives who are the future of this community.