Community justice reaps benefits in Deschutes County

Published 12:00 am Monday, August 31, 2015

For the past nine years, Jim Smith has been overseeing graffiti removal and other community service projects as a supervisor for the Deschutes County Community Justice Department.

The department supervises adult criminal offenders on parole or probation as well as a juvenile justice program for youth offenders.

Smith said the community service, although court ordered, is also repairing harm and allowing offenders to make amends with the community.

“It’s an effective tool to hold people accountable,” Smith said. “But it’s a bigger piece to actually provide meaningful opportunities for those offenders to give back to the community.”

Smith recalled an instance where juvenile offenders were tasked with building a wheelchair ramp for a man whom they had stolen from, an example of the type of atonement the program can provide.

Two days a week, adult crews are sent out into the community to perform the tasks, and two days a week, juvenile crews are sent. The crews are supervised at the work sites by the community justice department.

Last year, crews built three wheelchair ramps for seniors and disabled people. Some of the community service projects include reducing fire fuels, roadside litter patrol, weed abatement and barbed wire removal.

Forty-six juveniles completed about 1,000 hours of community service last year while working at 20 different sites.

Smith began working as a probation officer in Humboldt County, California, after attending Humboldt State College in Arcata.

In Deschutes County, Smith started at the juvenile detention center and then became a probation officer. He has been working for the county for 25 years.

“One of the most enjoyable aspects of my job is the ability to work with community partners and build those relationships and assist victims,” said Smith.

For example, one of the first graffiti removal projects involved a small mural that had been defaced.

“We went out and helped them repaint it. … The satisfaction you get by helping people is a really neat part of my job,” Smith said.

As a caseworker you only deal with offenders, Smith said, but as a supervisor he gets to make connections with the community.

“This has allowed me to do all the best aspects of probation work and also work with victims in the community,” Smith said.

Smith said the department’s primary goal is to protect the public while helping juveniles avoid getting deeper in the system.

Community service is an opportunity to connect youth with resources and involve them in volunteering projects after leaving the program, Smith said.

Last year, work crews removed about 2.1 tons of abandoned barbed wire fencing from all over the county, cleaned up 107 graffiti sites and collected nearly 3,000 pounds of litter. They also did fire fuel reduction for 21 homes in Deschutes River Woods.

The graffiti removal program began in 1987. Smith said there are common spots that are targeted and the program can address quickly.

A graffiti hotline exists for property owners to inquire and seek help with removal, 541-385-1720.

— Reporter: 541-617-7820, tshorack@bendbulletin.com