Escambia County to Expand Juvenile Civil Citation Program

An article that appeared in the Pensacola News Journal on September 8 was great news for JUST Pensacola, UUCP, and anyone concerned with justice for juvenile offenders in Escambia County: the State Attorney Ginger Bowden has drastically expanded the list of offenses eligible for civil citations rather than criminal charges and arrests. This has been a goal of JUST Pensacola for the past two years, and during this past summer’s Nehemiah Action, State Attorney Madden was challenged to make this a priority.

The expansion increases the number of offenses eligible for citation from 18 to … well, everything, with a few exceptions. Beginning June 6, 2021, all misdemeanor offenses and municipal ordinance violations became eligible for civil citations for juveniles. The exceptions are offenses involving fire-arms or deadly weapons, dating or domestic violence, criminal behavior that is sexual in nature, ani-mal cruelty, and DUI. Kids can now get up to three civil citations before arrest becomes mandatory. This is an increase from the previous limit of one.

Expanding the civil citation program will keep young people out of jail and out of the criminal justice system, which makes them less likely to re-offend. UUCP member and Social Justice Ministry Team co-Chair, Paula Montgomery, was quoted several times in the article in her dual role as a member of JUST Pensacola and of the League of Women Voters Juvenile Justice Committee. An example: “Young people make mistakes and do things that they shouldn’t do, and if a child gets arrested for vandalism or something like that, that arrest will im-pact not only them but also their families potentially with housing and food stamps…” To read the full article, go to https://bit.ly/3hYYqNI