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Queens DA details youth engagement and community programs
6:47:58
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145 sec
Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz provides an overview of Queens' youth engagement initiatives and community programs aimed at prevention and early intervention.
- Katz mentions launching a data story on their website showcasing various initiatives
- They hired a special education teacher to work with schools and parents
- The office conducts school programs on topics like fentanyl awareness
- Queens DA issued a $2.75 million RFP for youth programs throughout the borough
- Katz emphasizes the importance of community presence and building trust before youth enter the court system
- She mentions a specialized adolescent unit dealing with cases involving 13-17 year olds
Melinda Katz
6:47:58
And I'll try to be quick.
6:47:59
I know everybody is tired.
6:48:01
It's long.
6:48:02
You still have testimony to hear.
6:48:03
But I'd be remiss and it's part of the reason that people should read their testimony instead of doing it off the cuff like I did.
6:48:10
So just so everybody knows, today we actually launched a data story on my website.
6:48:17
There you can see all the retail theft, trespass affidavits that we have.
6:48:22
You can also see the ghost gun takedowns that we have.
6:48:25
It's all interactive on the web site.
6:48:27
And the answer to your question, you can also see all the community engagement that my office has done.
6:48:33
So first of all, we hired a special ed teacher actually to come in and talk to the junior high schools and the high schools and spends his days talking to parents who believe that their child might be on the wrong path.
6:48:44
And we try to help.
6:48:45
We try to go into the schools.
6:48:47
We go into the schools with a program that actually was created by Bridget talking about fentanyl and the risks of using fentanyl and why we should be careful about that.
6:49:01
So the youth group does all of these projects.
6:49:05
We go out to volunteer at basketball games and high school basketball games.
6:49:11
But we go into the schools, into the junior high schools, into the high schools and we talk about what our office has to offer.
6:49:19
The third thing besides the data and besides the community is that we do an RFP.
6:49:25
So we did a $2,750,000 RFP to go out to youth programs throughout the borough of Queens County.
6:49:31
It goes through the process.
6:49:33
It actually funds a lot of the not for profits that work with our youth.
6:49:36
But at the end of the day, I think the best thing about my job is to be able to keep people out of the courtroom.
6:49:41
And so being in the community, making sure that the first time our kids see us is not when we're in the courtroom.
6:49:48
To make sure the first time our kids see us is when we're in the community.
6:49:50
So there's that trust that builds as the DAs all have said in different ways.
6:49:55
And so we made it a real effort.
6:49:58
I mean I can talk about the adolescent unit that we have as well, like D.
6:50:03
A.
6:50:03
Gonzales talked about, which is we have a special unit that deals with our young people, 13, 14, 15, 16 and 17 years old.
6:50:11
And they have that expertise that they have developed through the years to try and steer people away that are already in the system.
6:50:19
But I consider my job well spent when I steer them away before they get in the system.