The SHIELD Program
The SHIELD program is designed to accomplish two primary goals. First, it uses the contacts that police officers make in the course of their normal duties to identify youth who they think are likely to become involved in violent behavior, substance abuse, and gang activities. At-risk youth are identified as those who are exposed to family risk factors such as domestic violence and other criminal activities in the home. Second, SHIELD provides youth with services that are tailored to meet their individual needs by using a multidisciplinary team of representatives from the community, schools, and service agencies. The primary mechanism that supports these goals is the youth referral process. To illustrate how the SHIELD program represents a change in traditional law enforcement activities, consider the following scenario:A 911 emergency operator answers a call from a woman in panic. The caller states that her husband has just beaten her and is still in the house. A patrol car is dispatched to the scene. Officers find a bruised and shaken woman waiting in her front yard with her 12-year-old son and 5-year-old daughter. The youth witnessed the abuse but were not physically harmed. The officers learn that the husband is currently intoxicated and has a history of abusing his wife.A typical law enforcement response to such a situation is to apprehend the husband, assess the woman’s need for medical attention, and determine the extent to which the welfare of the children was compromised. In cases where officers find evidence of child endangerment, Child Protective Services (CPS) may be asked to intervene. CPS may determine that home conditions pose a significant threat to the children and take steps to remove them from the home. However, this action is generally reserved for only the most serious cases. Because of legitimate concerns about the potential negative effects of removing children from the home, many children are left in homes where violence and criminal behavior are common. Police frequently have few alternatives when family risk factors exist but CPS determines that the children’s welfare is not compromised to the extent necessary to remove them from home. The SHIELD youth referral process gives officers a procedure for providing assistance to youth who are exposed to family risk factors. In the scenario described above, the responding officers would be required to do little more than their normal reporting to initiate the SHIELD referral process. The names and ages of the two children would be included in the police report as standard procedure because both were witnesses to the offense. The officers would be required only to determine which schools the youth attend and mark a box on the police report form that indicates a potential SHIELD referral.
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