Ethical Dilemma

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Ethical Dilemma

During the first week of February it was discovered that one of the youth on probation and his family was no longer living at their given address. I, along with my supervisor, made several trips to the house to verify. The house was soon boarded up and the youth could not be located. There was no attempt by the youth to contact probation and he soon became out of contact, a clear violation of his probation contract. An arrest and detain (A&D) warrant was issued for the youth because of his probation violation. The youth was unable to be located by the Juvenile Crime Apprehension Team (JCAT) and no one in his family could be found by probation staff. The youth was also no longer attending school. The seriousness of the youth’s offence presents a problem. He was adjudicated delinquent on a charge of unlawful possession of a pistol. With such a criminal history it is not hard to say that society may be in danger with the child unable to be located.

On March 1, the youth called my supervisor, his probation officer, to check in. The youth stated that he was staying in a hotel in Saint Paul with a few of his friends that had been staying in the home they were evicted from. He stated that he was not staying with Grandma or older sisters, the only adults that were at his other house, and that he wasn’t sure where they were staying. The youth did state that they were trying to find a house to live in somewhere in Saint Paul and that he was trying to get enrolled at a high school in Saint Paul.

The youth making contact with my supervisor developed into an ethical dilemma; to send the police and have him brought in on his warrant, or go meet the youth to re-establish contact. Each choice has its pro’s and...

... middle of paper ...

... order for this situation to work, the youth must call everyday and a face-to-face visit must happen every week. The youth must also be actively developing a plan to enroll in school. If the youth does not follow through with any of these conditions a warrant will be issued and his location made known to the police.

The youth will be allowed to live in the hotel as long as he maintains contact with probation and is actively developing a plan to become enrolled in school and find more stable housing accommodations. This plan was implemented because it provided a consequence, but also was understanding to the unique situation the youth found himself in.

Works Cited

Ayers, Jim and Gary Schoner. “Ethics Framework.” Class Handout and SWK 490 Syllabus, Spring 2010.

National Association of Social Workers. “Code of Ethics.” Put out by the NASW, 2006.

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