• An Alternative to Incarceration
    An Alternative to Incarceration

    PHMC's Forensic Services programs reduce recidivism and enhance community safety. We support about 10,000 justice-involved youth, adults and families each year.

    Programs
  • An Alternative to Incarceration
    An Alternative to Incarceration

    PHMC's Forensic Services programs reduce recidivism and enhance community safety. We support about 10,000 justice-involved youth, adults and families each year.

    Programs

Juvenile Treatment Court

Juvenile Treatment Court (JTC) sits within the City of Philadelphia’s Family Court. JTC supports non-violent adolescent offenders with substance use treatment as an alternative to incarceration. The goal is to motivate and support participants to complete the program and graduate, at which point their charges will be dismissed.

An interdisciplinary team, led by the presiding JTC judge and the JTC Review Team, manages the treatment program. 

Several entities comprise the JTC Review Team: Clinical Evaluation Unit (CEU) staff at PHMC, a dedicated Judge, Public Defender, District Attorney, School District Representative, Juvenile Probation Department and Family Court Juvenile Services staff.

Services

  • Behavioral health assessments (conducted by the CEU)

  • Based on the results of the assessment, PHMC evaluators refer participants to appropriate treatment. 

Once a participant completes the program, and they remain arrest-free for one year, they’re qualified to have their criminal record expunged. Failure to complete the treatment and related requirements may result in incarceration.

Referrals & Eligibility

  • The District Attorney refers participants to JTC. Once a juvenile is arrested, the District Attorney reviews their record to confirm legal eligibility.

  • JTC serves juveniles aged 14 to 17 years, charged with a non-violent offense, with a history of no more than two prior (and non-violent) offenses.

  • Must be a resident of Philadelphia. 

 

PHMC's Forensic Services programs support about 10,000 individuals each year.

We serve justice-involved youth, adults and families.

Manny* used his time in PHMC’s Forensic Services program to work on his housing, substance use, employment, and legal goals. Admitted to the Intermediate Punishment Program (IPP) as a non-violent offender and evaluated for chemical dependency, he benefited from the program’s behavioral health assessments, substance use treatment, vocational training, case management, and intensive probation supervision.

 

Manny achieved sobriety throughout the IPP program and has maintained it since, and recently completed both his treatment and the IPP program. He has started a new job at a plastic company, and is in a much stronger position with respect to his employment and housing stability.

 

*Name changed to protect identity.

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