Needs Assessment   (continued)

Today, there are more juveniles than ever who are incarcerated. Black youth, in particular, have high rates of commitment to institutions. Seven of ten youths in secure confinement are minority juveniles, more than double their representation in the nation's youth population, (Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, 2003). Black youth are 48 times more likely than white teens to be sentenced to juvenile prison (Justice Department). In Louisiana Blacks make up more than 80 percent of those imprisoned on drug offenses (Bureau of Justice Statistics). Locally, Louisiana puts young African-American offenders in prisons at a rate of 56 percent above the national average. This is in spite of decades of research proving that incarceration is the least effective and most expensive means of treating delinquent behavior(Juvenile Justice Project of Louisiana Fact Book, 2002). .Instead of receiving the support and community-based alternatives that would better serve their needs, these non-violent youth are placed in violent juvenile prisons that fail to provide effective counseling and treatment and fail to incorporate their families in their rehabilitation. A recent report by the Annie E. Casey Foundation found Louisiana judges have too few options when making sentencing and treatment decisions. They often have to decide between probation and incarceration, with nothing in between( Juvenile Justice Project of Louisiana). Addicted to the Lifestyle is directed toward youth who are caught up or on the verge of being caught up in the lifestyle of the thug/drug culture. A study conducted by the Office of Addictive Disorders said AOD Administrator Drew Levin "only five percent of young persons who use drugs actually become addicted the program would definitely fill a gap in substance abuse services" Safehouse is the only program that offers such a treatment modality. While others have conducted research supporting this approach, Addicted to the Lifestyle is the only implemented intervention.

This program targets youth between the ages of 9 and 21. It is our experience that youth are being recruited into the drug industry at increasingly young ages.