Town Inducts New Youth Court Volunteers To Life-Altering Program

SOUTHOLD, NY — Pride and excitement filled the Southold Town Justice Court Thursday night as the second group of youth court volunteers were sworn in by Justice Eileen Powers.

The Southold Town Youth Court offers teens in grades nine through 12 in the Southold, Greenport and Mattituck-Cutchogue school districts the chance to serve as judges, lawyers, and other legal positions — a place where young people charged with non-violent offenses, such as graffiti, are given the chance to be tried by their peers.

Volunteers, said Southold Town Youth Bureau Director Lynn Nyilas, participate in a 12-week training program based on curriculum provided by the American Bar Association, and follow written curriculum provided by attorney Emily Fialkowski, "who lends her law expertise through volunteering her time for our trainings."

The students began this year with a Saturday training focusing on an introduction to youth court, learning about the principals of restorative justice, building a sense of community with each through icebreaker activities, and understanding and learning about the various roles in a courtroom, Nyilas said.

The students then continued with their training on Thursday evenings in the Southold Town Justice Court.

In New York State, youth courts are recognized as programs, not formal courts, Nyilas said. Youth courts are sentencing trials that are run entirely by the respondents’ peers. The Town of Southold's youth court is run as a youth judge model, meaning that the courtroom judge is a student, not an adult, she said.

"The goal of youth court is to use the restorative justice model to have the youthful offender accountable for their code of conduct violations or possible crimes," Nyilas said. "Using positive peer pressure, the respondent is given the opportunity to give back to the community through community service, written or verbal apologies and possible recommendation for counseling."

The young people who participate in the program will be given the opportunity to learn from their mistakes, she said. "Youth court members help the respondent to see who their victims are, how they were harmed and most importantly how to repair the harm their actions caused," Nyilas said.

During the ceremony, young youth court volunteers were able to share their thoughts, discussing how much they'd learned about the legal process and also about the friendships they'd made.

Student volunteer Anton Riehle said he signed up because he thought it would be an interesting experience, and has found participating in the cases and the youth court symposium rewarding. He thanked Nyilas, as well as Fialkowski, for sharing their skills.

Volunteer Nicole Gomez, who aims for a career in social work or teaching, gave heartfelt impressions of the program. "Youth court is a second opportunity for kids who have made mistakes in their lives. We, as teenagers, we trip and fall. We mess up sometimes." Explaining why the program means so much, she added: "In people's lives, there's always a reason why they do things. They all have lives, they all have backgrounds. Nobody's perfect." But youth court, Gomez said, gives young people the opportunity for new beginnings. "It's not about where you come from," she said. "It's about where you're going."

The program, she added, gives young people the change to better themselves, to give young adults who are "genuinely good people" a way to begin again.

And in Southold Town, the program is taking solid root.

"This is the second year, the program continues to grow," Nyilas said. This year, students were able to attend a youth court symposium in Lake George, she added, thanking Southold Town Supervisor Scott Russell and the town board for their support of the program.

Russell and town board members Bill Ruland, Jim Dinizio and Bob Ghosio attended the swearing-in ceremony.

"I was really impressed with the group of young men and ladies who were sworn in to the youth court tonight," Ghosio said. "Their dedication to the program and its principles was obvious. Everyone in involved should be commended for a great job."

During past weeks, Powers met with the students to discuss the role of a judge; experts from the criminal justice field also spoke with the young people. The program, Nyilas explained, gives students the chance to be exposed to many career opportunities.

Local school districts, law enforcement, and the town teamed up to make the program possible, she added.

Nyilas thanked the parents in attendance for their support and dedication to their children. "I love your kids," she said, adding that the student volunteers are a diverse group with varied backgrounds interests, and career goals, including law, social work, political science and engineering.

Parents in attendance spoke with pride. Margo Perman and Jürgen Riehle, Anton's parents, were thrilled their son was involved with the program, which Perman said was "wonderful."

Riehle said he was happy to see his son involved with a diverse group of students and by the opportunities the program afforded.

Alonzo Gomez, Nicole's father, was visibly moved when he congratulated his daughter. "I'm so happy," he said. "She makes me so proud."

Patch photos, video by Lisa Finn.