Harvey County spends more on juvenile justice per case than McPherson County even though the two share a court district.
During a review of the community corrections comprehensive plan for the district on Monday, Commission Chairman George “Chip” Westfall asked Community Corrections Director Janet Cagle why Harvey paid more for juvenile offenders than most other counties. Specifically, he said when commissioners went to out-of-town conferences, Commissioner Randy Hague typically asked commissioners from other counties what they were spending.
“The answer I’ve been getting is that really it’s the county attorney that’s driving the costs for juveniles,” Hague said. “Ours is more strict than some of the surrounding counties.”
Westfall asked Cagle if the county could get state funding for some of the expenses.
Cagle said ankle monitors would reduce some of the expense. Instead of the county spending $150 per day to house a juvenile at detention center, he or she could remain at home.
Westfall asked why McPherson County didn’t seem to have the expenses that Harvey had. Cagle said juvenile intake was up to the county attorney, who determined if a youth was an offender or a child in need of care. A county attorney also could send a juvenile into a diversion program. “Man, our taxes could go down if everybody behaved,” Hague said.
(Read more: Newton Now)