Chapter 10: Chemically Dependent Adolescent Latino Offenders: Restorative and Social Justice as Alternatives to Incarceration

Latino adolescent substance abuse and the need for treatment are of growing concern. Research indicates that Latinos are more likely than non-Latinos to need treatment for substance abuse and are less likely than non-Latinos to receive treatment (e.g., Falck, Nahhas, Li, & Carlson, 2012). Further research shows Latino youth having disproportionately high contact with the juvenile justice system, and that they would benefit from greater access to communitybased preventive services and alternatives to detention (Moeller, 2011). Intervention and treatment options as alternatives to incarceration have shown great promise (Holleran Steiker, 2009). Across the country, treatment-oriented juvenile drug courts and recovery programs have shown the capacity to provide therapeutic experiences as a response to substance abuse and as an alternative to incarceration. The increased use of restorative justice principles within the juvenile justice system have been demonstrated through the implementation of drug court and recovery programs (Schetly, 2009). The restorative justice models emphasized by treatment-oriented drug courts and recovery programs promote social justice through an attempt to reintegrate offenders back into the community and go against traditional educational policies at the federal, state, and local levels, which tend toward retributive justice. This chapter examines Latino adolescents, substance abuse, treatment options, the degree to which those options are restorative, and implications for social justice leadership.