Hoping for a turnaound

Jamar Davis listens to questions quietly, pausing before answering.

There’s something precise about the way the 16-year-old responds. There’s a sharpened clarity, a sense of purpose.

It’s a far cry from the muggy August night last year when he and two others decided to raise a gun to a pizza delivery man’s face and threaten to pull the trigger. Moments later, the boys lit out into the darkness, carrying the stolen pizza, the man’s car keys, a wallet and about $200.

Waynesboro police caught the trio later that night. Davis’ arrest sent him into juvenile detention for months.

In January, Judge Humes J. Franklin, known for his tough stance on crime, stared down from his bench in Waynesboro Circuit Court at the teenage boy and decided to give him a second chance.

Franklin committed Davis to the Covington Boys Home, where he takes classes, works on cars and takes direction from a staff of teachers, coaches and instructors.

Five months after entering the program, Davis handed his grandmother a silver medal, a sign of his progress and accomplishment at Covington.

Davis vowed that he’s changed. He said he understands his good fortune in finding a spot at the boys home.

“I was hoping,” he said. “Because that was my first time really getting into trouble. I’d never been in that situation before.”

The chances are slim for juveniles trying to stay free from trouble once they’ve run afoul of the law and landed in a place such as the boys home.
More than half of 16-year-olds released from juvenile corrections in 2008 wound up getting arrested again. The rates were higher for boys.

At Covington, the odds are no better. Officials at the home don’t promise complete change or even a dramatic overhaul of a teenager’s personality. But hopes are high that a regimen of discipline will turn boys such as Davis away from habits that might lead them back before a judge’s bench, this time with no second chances.

Davis and others rise early at Covington, complete chores, go to school, even adopt after-school activities to nurture and perfect, he said.

For Davis, it’s an opportunity to reconstruct the direction of his life under the watchful eyes of those who know his struggle well.

Last Christmas, when Davis interviewed for a spot at Covington, boys home Executive Director Donnie Wheatley said he searched for newspaper stories about Davis. He wanted to learn as much as possible about the boy he’d eventually take under his wing.

Wheatley offered more than a home: he offered perspective and experience. When he was 12, Wheatley said he found himself at the Covington Boys Home in a position similar to Davis’.

“I got there because I broke the law, and my mother’s situation was such that she could not provide supervision,” he said.”

Wheatley said the home offered a way out of the juvenile justice system, a way to seek something better.

“I wanted out, and I wanted a place where I had a chance to be successful,” he said. “You have a lot more structure in your life.”

It isn’t easy, Wheatley said. The process of enforcing a disciplined lifestyle can go one of two ways, he said.

“They either resent it so much they have no expectations — or they will be strict in their own lives,” he said. “Putting themselves in a system is difficult for a lot of them, and it was difficult for me.”

Wheatley said he went on to become an electrical engineer with a master’s degree in business administration. He took his leadership role at the boys home in 1985.

“Later on, you realize that some of the reason you’re able to be successful is because you have a lot higher expectations for yourself. You learn what it means to have people care for you.”

Covington Boys Home Developmental Director Janet Lemmer said a key part of the program is patience.

“Kids not only get a second chance, but they also get time,” she said. “We’re not on a timeline here. Jamar has certain goals, but he doesn’t have to become completely successful in six months.”

Lemmer said Davis recently was selected to represent Covington in a boys home Olympics event in New Jersey. He walked away with medals for basketball, the high jump and sportsmanship, Lemmer said. He would later hand one of those medals to his grandmother, a token of his success.

During a recent trip home, Davis said he stopped by Waynesboro Commonwealth Attorney Charles Ajemian’s office to update him about his progress.

Ajemian declined to comment.

The journey ahead of Davis is still long. The statistics tell part of the struggle.

In 2008, 52 percent of 16-year-old juveniles released from juvenile corrections were rearrested. Males showed higher arrest rates than females, and black juveniles had the highest re-arrest rates for both juvenile releases and probation placements.

Lemmer said there are no quick fixes for juvenile violators. Anecdotal information on recidivism after completing the Covington Boys Home program indicates a 50-50 chance of reoffending, Lemmer said.

Davis’ mother, Angela, still weeps when she talks about the progress her son has made so far. The tears also roll when she hears Jamar talk about wanting a basketball scholarship to Harrisonburg universities.

“That’s what I hope,” Angela Davis said. “That Jamar gets to college and not come back around here. Everybody looks at kids and sees a robbery and thinks they’re bad — but life still goes on, and his will make it.”

She described her own changes as a mother since Jamar left for Covington. She said she realizes more now the importance of motherhood.

“That was the first time that Jamar had been away from me,” she said. “I haven’t stopped praying. I am so proud of him.”