Philosophies of Service
RYS believes in advocating for those who have been sexually abused and for the community at
large. Our treatment, which focuses on accountability and interrupting patterns of abuse, promotes the best interest of those who have been abused and of the community in general.

Entrance Criteria
JSOP youth must be court-ordered into treatment. To be admitted into our program, adolescents must be:

Under age 17 at the time treatment begins.

Court-ordered into the program.

Charged with a sex offense or have a substantiated sex abuse allegation.

Deemed appropriate for community-based treatment based on RYS’s initial JSOP assessment.
In addition, appropriate housing must be available to handle the risk involved. The household must
not have potential victims living there and must have enough supervision to ensure the safety of all household members and the community.

Interventions / Services

Assessment
A thorough psychosocial assessment is used to determine appropriateness for community-based treatment. The psychosocial assessment, which will prompt a written recommendation to be sent to the referral source or court, will determine acceptance to JSOP.

Group Therapy
RYS provides group therapy that is both educational and process-oriented. These sessions are generally 90 minutes long and occur weekly. Group therapy is led by master’s-level clinicians designated as program leaders.

Parents’ Night
JSOP requires that parents and/or caregivers participate in a monthly 90-minute group session with the youth. This is an educational process that allows the adult to be aware of a youth’s progress. This also is led by master’s level clinicians designated as group leaders.

Individual Therapy
JSOP therapists provide weekly therapy to supplement the group sessions.

Family Therapy
RYS recognizes the importanceof the family’s involvement in treatment. Both biological and foster parents (when applicable) are invited to participate in JSOP treatment.

Progress Reports
RYS provides monthly progress reports to the referral agent and to the judge who ordered treatment. An internal utilization review every three months assesses JSOP’s effectiveness, and a case review every six months reports the youth’s current status in the program to the referral agent.

The Program
Since 1994 Regional Youth Services has offered a treatment program for adolescent sex offenders.
JSOP centers around weekly group therapy sessions for youths, one session monthly when
parents join their children, and individual therapy provided on a weekly basis.

Therapy
JSOP follows the Association for the Treatment of Sexual Abusers (ASTA) model. We incorporate invitations to responsibility, solution-oriented therapy, and relapse prevention. Through these therapy models, adolescents can learn to take responsibility for their actions, recognize the cycle of abuse, understand how they chose to sexually abuse another person, develop coping skills that will reduce their risk to the community, and prevent further sex offenses.

Referrals
Referrals should include a complete history of sex offenses and all other offenses, psychological and psychiatric assessments, victim statements, and police reports. If accepted into JSOP, a treatment contract will be made. RYS retains the right to refuse treatment to those who are deemed to be too high a risk for community-based treatment.

Requirements
RYS charges an assessment fee of $150 for outpatient clients. There is no charge for youth who reside in RYS’s foster homes. RYS expects support from the referral source or judge when a member of the program is noncompliant with the treatment tasks or attendance. Group members must accomplish the following tasks (in keeping with the Association for the Treatment of Sexual Abusers model) to reach program completion and community safety goals:

Offense Story
Must describe in detail the sex offense(s) using language of ownership.

Life Story
Identifies areas of their life that may have influenced their decision to offend.

Cycle of Offense
Identifies and charts their pattern/cycle of thoughts, feelings, and behaviors that may lead to the decision to sexually offend.

Victim Empathy
Develops in the clients an understanding of the impact of the sex offense on the person they abused.

Relapse Prevention Plan
Directs participants to write a detailed plan of action to assist them in preventing a re-offense, including an awareness of their offense cycle.

Restitution
Directs participants to make amends to the person they abused, their family, and/or the community.

Timing and Follow-up
Each task should be completed within six months of the time it was begun, and the program should be completed in two and a half to three years. Task and program completion are highly dependent on the client’s level of commitment and motivation as well as his or her abilities. As clients complete the program, RYS will coordinate with the referral agent and their family the discharge planning that includes recommendations for follow-up services.