Part three in a series

Certain families are well-known to law enforcement and court officials.

“I joke that only the first names change, but it’s actually kind of true,” Sheriff Terese Amazi said.

Crime and chemical dependency runs in some Mower County families, and probation agent Mark Wernimont said some names are well-known in the court system and correctional services.

“A lot of the names, everyone in the whole system knows the family,” he said. “It’s like a family affair.”

Correctional Services Director Steve King said he sees what some call “generational crime” in Mower County.

“We do see generational crime in Mower County, and it confounds me,” King said.

Chemical dependency and turbulent family lives are some of the leading causes behind repeat offenders — sometimes called “frequent fliers” — in the correctional system, according to 3rd Judicial District Judge Donald Rysavy.

“Moral and ethical behavior is learned, and it’s learned from your environment,” he said. “It’s learned from your parents. It’s learned from your associates. It’s learned from the rest of society.”

Adults aren’t the only repeat offenders, as juveniles are cycling through the system, too.

“Juveniles are really becoming an issue,” Amazi said.

Many cases of juvenile crime can be traced to the family — or lack thereof, said Tracy Bachman, a juvenile probation and truancy officer.

“It’s a lack of the family unit,” she said.

While some parents truly try to help their child, many cases can be traced back to the parents, King said.

“The family typically enables these kids,” King said. “It’s us against them in a few cases. The parents want to blame law enforcement rather than blame their own child or blame the parenting style.”

Even when someone is rehabilitated, it often becomes hard to stay clean and sober because there’s no support at home, Wernimont said.

Some people go home to families with people who are dependent on alcohol, so it’s easy to fall back into the groove.

Many parents aren’t capable of parenting and setting rules and structure for their children.

“This year, we’ve had a parent say, ‘I can’t raise my child. The government needs to do it,’” King said.

While King said the number of juveniles committing crimes hasn’t necessarily increased, he said people as young as 13 are now committing more adult-like crimes. He said about six to eight juveniles a year take up about 70 percent of the cost in juvenile probation and they refuse to stop the criminal behavior.

When a juvenile commits a crime in Austin, they’re either put on probation or they go to a Department of Corrections facility. If they don’t follow the conditions, then further steps are taken.

“We’re not heavy-handed,” King said. “We subscribe to the theory of not making mischief into misdemeanors. We understand the difference.”

Statute calls for the county to start juveniles on the least restrictive kind of correctional services, King said.

While a juvenile may start out on a 36 hour detention or a stint in a foster home, such out-of-home placements are not cheap options.

Even though there are significant costs with out of home placements, King said there’s really no alternative. Some children simply need a certain level of services.

If children commit adult-like crimes and aren’t placed, King said it sends the message that there aren’t consequences to such crimes.

Solutions are easier said than done. Wernimont said intervention at an early age is important, as is early education.

But even those solutions are difficult.

“I question whether or not there is a whole lot we can do,” Wernimont said. “It’s so ingrained in some of these families. Our priority is public safety.”

According to King, repairing families is the only solution.

“Until we fix the family norms, we’re not going to fix crime,” King said.

Look for the final part in this series Thursday.