The drop in juvenile crime in Multnomah County has mirrored the falling juvenile crime rate in most jurisdictions across the country. In 2000, Multnomah experienced a total of 4,078 juvenile referrals, which included 2,538 property crimes, 1034 personal offenses and 401 drug offenses. By 2010, each of these categories had fallen dramatically: the total number of juvenile referrals was 2,337, which included 1,556 property crimes, 564 personal crimes, and 153 drug related offenses.
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Multnomah County Advances in the Struggle against Juvenile Delinquency
From 2001 through 2010, the proportion of juvenile offenders in the population of youths aged 10 to 17 also fell sharply. In 2001, the referral rate was 59.7 per 1,000 juveniles and delinquents constituted 4.5 percent of the population. In 2010, there were 39.6 referrals per 1,000 youths and juvenile offenders constituted only 3.0 percent of the entire youth population. The juvenile recidivism rate was also sharply improved from 2000 to 2009. In 2000, there were 1,214 or 37.9 percent of the juvenile delinquents who were involved in repeat offenses. By 2009, only 741 or 31.1 percent of juvenile offenders were later involved in another offense.
In 2010, the number of youths who were sentenced to probation totaled 462, with 254 assigned dispositions. Another 112 were diverted to Youth Correctional Facility commitment, while 634 were assigned to a detention facility. A total of 104 youths remained under parole supervision during this period.
Education and Other Requirements for Juvenile Probation Officers in
Multnomah County
The starting salary for juvenile probation officer jobs in Multnomah County, Oregon range from $51,323 up to $63,162 per year. The minimum requirements for those interested in becoming Multnomah County juvenile probation officers:
- Graduation from an accredited college with a bachelor’s degree in
- Child psychology
- Counseling
- Social work
- Criminal justice
- Two years of professional case management or counseling experience with delinquent or mentally ill adolescents
- Possession of a valid driver’s license
- Ability to pass a background investigation which includes fingerprinting
Oregon’s Juvenile Justice Training Academy
The skills required to succeed in this position include:
- Establish and nurture relationships with juveniles, families and community leaders
- Use word processing and database applications
- Provide counseling to youths
- Recognize signs of drug or alcohol use
- Generate reports and recommendations for court officials
- Testify in courts
- Design and implement customized treatment plans
- Investigate the activities of probationers
- Utilize risk assessment tools to identify risks and needs
- Use verbal and written communication to effectively inform and notify others
Oregon mandates that all new juvenile probation officers attend the Oregon Juvenile Justice Training Academy prior to active field service. Following certification through the basic training program, new officers will remain under the close supervision of a senior juvenile probation officer for up to a year. In subsequent years, officers must receive ongoing skills training totaling 40 hours per year.