Youth arrests decline in Kootenai County

COEUR d’ALENE — Half as many youths were arrested in Kootenai County last year than in 2020, according to a new report from the Idaho Department of Juvenile Corrections.

J.D. Storm, juvenile corrections liaison for Districts 1 and 2, presented the report to Kootenai County commissioners Tuesday.

Youth arrests have dropped steadily since 2020, from 839 that year to 653 in 2021 and just 400 in 2022.

“COVID played a little part of that,” said Bryan Alexander, Kootenai County Juvenile Probation director. “But I think the other part is the movement with juvenile justice to do more preemptive intervention prior to juveniles coming into the system.”

Another factor, Alexander said, is that many status offenses are now treated as infractions. Status offenses are infractions that only apply to youths under the age of 18, such as running away, curfew violations and certain alcohol violations.

“That is one of the big things that’s changed,” Alexander said.

Last year, 75% of the 468 charges filed against juveniles in Kootenai County were misdemeanors. Felonies made up 18% of charges. The remaining 7% of charges were status offenses.

Boys made up 64% of all juveniles who were arrested last year.

Nearly 55% of all juveniles who were arrested in 2022 were between the ages of 14 and 16. Youths aged 11 to 13 comprised about 18% of arrests and 17-year-olds made up about 19%.

Intake into the county’s juvenile diversion program increased slightly between 2020 and 2022, with 261 youths participating last year.

The diversion program is a voluntary alternative to the court process. The prosecutor’s office may refer eligible youths to the program, giving them the opportunity to participate in the program rather than face prosecution.

“Any juvenile’s first-time offense will typically go through diversion,” Storm said.

The program may include, when applicable, community service work, apology letters, restitution and courses to help address drug and alcohol issues, anger management and other social, emotional and family concerns.

The Kootenai County diversion program has a 75% success rate, according to the Idaho Department of Juvenile Corrections.

Storm said the county’s success rate for juvenile probation has hovered between 97% and 99% for the last three years.

“If you look at those three years, it’s a pretty astounding number,” Storm said. “It shows Bryan (Alexander) and his crew’s good work.”

Commissioner Bruce Mattare said he’s toured the juvenile detention facility and commended the efforts of staff.

“It’s very troubling to see these young kids have to be in that situation, but I was also very impressed with how well that facility is being run, so thank you,” Mattare said. “I think you’re doing a good job.”