Page 3 - Florida Sentinel 10-25-16 Online Edition

Feature
HOPE Meeting Set To Tackle Youth Arrests And Lack Of Affordable Housing
Over 350 peoplefrom 21 di- verse congregations through- out Hillsborough County will gather at HOPE’s 28th Annual Convention on Monday, Octo- ber, 24, 2016, at 7 p. m.
HOPE leaders will meet to celebrate progress on Civil Ci- tations for children and press for a funded Housing Trust Fund. The event is at Corpus Christi Catholic Church at 9715 N. 56th Street, Tampa, 33617.
HOPE’s three-year drive to reduce youth arrests has re- sulted in a recent pilot whereby local law enforce- ment officials may now issue non-arrest Civil Citations to children caught for the first time with misdemeanor mari- juana.
Last year only 32% of chil- dren in Hillsborough County eligible for Civil Citation Pro- grams received them.
Therefore, about 1,000 chil- dren were arrested in the County for a first time misde- meanor last year; 70% of these arrests were for misde- meanor marijuana posses- sion.
Hillsborough was the only county not giving Civil Cita-
tions to children with a small amount of marijuana of 59 Florida counties that offer Civil Citations.
Children who receive Civil Citations are twice as likely not to reoffend; it saves $4,000 per child. The Chief Judge Ronald Ficarrotta and the Public Defender Ju- lianne Holt committed to 1,000 people at HOPE’s April Nehemiah Action that they would support efforts to give Youth Civil Citations to chil- dren caught with misde- meanor marijuana possession, and will be pres- ent to give status reports.
On a state level, nearly 10,000 children in Florida were arrested for first time misdemeanors last year.
Representative Ross Spano (R) will attend the HOPE Convention to commit his sponsorship of a House bill to ensure that all children in Florida receive equal access to the state’s successful Civil Citation program.
All Hillsborough Legislators and Legislative Candidates have been invited to state their support for the bill; Lisa Montelione (D), Jose
REV. BERNICE POWELL JACKSON
...Pastor, First United Church, and HOPE Civil Citation Com- mittee Chair
Vazquez Figueroa (D), and John Houman (R) have in- dicated they will attend.
“We are excited that all Law Enforcement can finally give our children Civil Citations in- stead of arrests for misde- meanor marijuana offenses. We’ll be watching for success. Yet, it’s not equal justice when only 40% of children across Florida are getting Civil Cita-
tion programs! By requiring civil citations be issued for most first-time misde- meanors, we will decrease the arrests of our children and help them be productive citi- zens,” said Rev. Bernice Powell Jackson, Pastor of First United Church, Chair of HOPE Civil Citation Commit- tee.
HOPE leaders will also build urgency at the Conven- tion around the County’s housing crisis: 74,000 fami- lies with incomes of $30,000 or less pay 50% or more of their income for housing; 122,645 people are on the verge of homelessness.
To resolve this crisis HOPE launched an initiative in 2013 to create a Housing Trust Fund with a local, designated public funding source. County Commissioner Victor Crist, who brought this plan to the May 4th Board of County Commission Meeting, will be present to report on his ef- forts.
County Commission Dis- trict 6 Candidate Pat Kemp (D) will attend and be asked to support the establishment of the Trust Fund. County Com-
mission District 6 Candidate Jim Schock (R) has also been invited.
County residents will also share stories about heart- wrenching experiences with housing and other problems in the county; stories surfaced in small group conversations involving 400 people over the past month.
Delegates will also vote on a new issue to research for ac- tion during the next year.
Under consideration for vote are discrimination, eld- erly care, and health care.
“We’ll make decisions and do something powerful about these problems. That is who we are and what we do as peo- ple of faith”, says Fr. Bob Schneider, Pastor St. Stephen Catholic Parish, Co- President of HOPE.
The Hillsborough Organi- zation for Progress and Equal- ity (HOPE), is a countywide community organization com- prised of 21 diverse congrega- tions from different racial, cultural, economic, and reli- gious backgrounds through- out Hillsborough County. www.HillsboroughHOPE.org.
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