Meet Lt. David Mann: Advancing Equitable Outcomes in Juvenile Justice System

Lt. David Mann shares important Juvenile Justice Works updates with Roundtable members in a small group breakout session at a quarterly meeting.

“When we are talking about juvenile justice, it’s aspirational,” reflected Lieutenant David Mann.

Lt. Mann joined the Buffalo Police Department in 1986 and has supervised the Special Victims Unit since 1995. He also chairs the Racial Equity Roundtable’s Juvenile Justice Works (JJW) Coalition, which focuses on reducing contact with and improving outcomes resulting from juvenile justice systems to advance equitable outcomes for young people.

“Justice is a lofty term that means something different to every individual,” he noted. “And as a Coalition, we’re trying to understand what justice looks like and then how to revise the system to adequately address the function that it’s supposed to perform, and in a way that helps and supports kids in the community at the same time.”

JJW is comprised of 35 community partners, including the Buffalo Police Department, Buffalo Public Schools (BPS) and Erie County Probation Department.

Lt. Mann touts the tireless efforts underway of partners like Dina Thompson, Executive Director, Erie County Restorative Justice Coalition, and Danielle D’Abate, Esq., Erie County District Attorney’s Office, who have focused on the diversion process in BPS, the Erie County District Attorney’s Office, and the court system, respectively.

“What we’re trying to do with this idea of pre-arrest diversion is build a community that will address what these kids need and do it soon enough so that they ultimately don’t end up in the juvenile justice system,” Lt. Mann explained.

As just one of many Roundtable initiatives, JJW relies on its partners on other coalitions to bring its efforts to the next level and Lt. Mann says he appreciates the Roundtable’s multi-prong approach to advancing racial equity and he has already seen good progress.

“When it comes to juvenile justice, if you’re only going to address the incidents themselves, you’re never going to get anywhere because it’s all tied up in everything else that’s going on. The beauty of the approach that the Roundtable is taking is you have so many people in the community who have knowledge and leverage; while JJW is focusing on specific aspects, all of the coalitions are pulling in the same direction and working toward the same overall goals.”

Additional JJW efforts underway and undertaken include:

• A pilot runaway intervention program between the Buffalo Police Department and the Child Advocacy Center that will provide an opportunity to identify specific services and interventions that can reduce or eliminate runaway episodes.
• A drop-in center that will provide a safe place for runaways to get the immediate support they need in the moment .
• Piloting of Restorative Justice Practices in five BPS that had the highest school suspension rates.
• Piloting of Erie County District Attorney Office’s 3-Part Restorative Justice Series that allows a first time violator to acknowledge harm, build community and be restored.

Learn more about the JJW’s efforts here: https://racialequitybuffalo.org/initiative/juvenile-justice-works/