Restitution & Community Service is a component of Haven House Services that allows court involved juveniles to perform supervised community service to earn money or hours. Youth can be court ordered to either pay money back to their victims, do a specific amount of hours, or both. Youth can earn a maximum of $250 towards their restitution by performing monitored community service. Sometimes their restitution fine is greater than $250, so the youth must pay the remaining balance out-of-pocket.
What is the first step? During an intake session, youth along with their guardian(s) are informed of the rules and guidelines of the program. A coordinator reviews the court ordered dollar amount or hours required to complete their obligation. Also clear expectations are given to the youth and their guardian(s) to help facilitate a successful experience while participating. The youth and guardian(s) are informed of situations that would lead to being terminated and the consequences that could follow. An agreement is signed by all parties present at the intake that documents the review of rules, the start of services, and court requirements relevant to the program.
Where is community service done? Primarily youth in the program report to the Haven House Services administrative offices on Saturday and are then dispersed to various work sites in the Wake County area. However, some youth and their families find that this arrangement does not work for them. In these cases, the program staff tries to help locate individual placements in the community. In both situations, the youth are monitored/ supervised by adults while performing their community service. Saturday Work Groups meet early in the morning at the administrative office. Upon arrival the youth are met by Team Leaders and are given an orientation as to what they will be doing. Groups are divided and then report to their assigned work sites for the day. Common work sites for youth and Team Leaders include the Food Bank of NC, Various Wake County Greenway Trails (trash patrol), Retirement Communities, Tammy Lynn Center (wash vans), Garner Road YMCA, and the Salvation Army Thrift Store.
How is credit for community service recorded? For each full day a youth completes in the program they receive either six community service hours or $25 towards their monetary restitution. In the situation where restitution is being paid, at the end of the month a youth’s participation is calculated and a payment is given to the Clerk’s Office. In turn, the Clerk’s Office mails a payment to the youth’s victim(s). The youth’s court counselor is notified of each deposit and the remaining balance. At the end of the work day, the Team Leader and youth complete a Behavior Report on their work effort. This serves as documentation for their attendance and behavior. A copy is given to the youth’s court counselor after each Saturday to help them monitor the youth’s progress.
Haven House Services
(919) 833-3312
www.havenhousenc.org
Reporting Hours:
Summer Hours: 7:30 a.m. - 2:30 p.m. (May - September)
PICK UP TIME - 2:30 PM
Winter Hours: 8:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m. (October - April)
PICK UP TIME - 3:00 PM
