DECATUR - Macon County is backing out of what was to have been a nearly $600,000 state grant meant to provide troubled youths with alternatives to prison.

But no one is saying why.

In a May 23 letter to the Department of Human Services, Court Administrator Don Meyer says the county will terminate its agreement with the state, effective June 30. The letter doesn't explain the reasons behind the decision, and Meyer wouldn't comment on them.

Associate Judge Lisa Holder White, who handles juvenile court cases, and Presiding Judge John K. Greanias did not return calls seeking comment on the program.

"While Macon County will no longer be the recipient of support and resources from the Illinois Department of Human Services, it shall continue to foster and develop a collaborative approach to serving high-risk juveniles in the community with the goal of reducing the number of commitments to the Department of Corrections," Meyer wrote in the letter.

The county was to have received $578,192 over an 18-month period. It already has received $218,000, which it can keep. The goal of Redeploy Illinois is to cut the juvenile prison population by providing community based alternatives to prison.

Human Services spokesman Tom Green said his agency hasn't received the letter yet but had been informed that the county might not be renewing the agreement for the 2006 fiscal year. He said he did not know the reasons why.

The county had a contract with the state for January through June. Green said the state has paid the county $218,000.

"They have done some training and have served some youth, so it would not be necessary to pay that back," Green said. "Having said all that, we would like to continue to work with them and continue to serve youth in Macon County."

The county's grant proposal listed programs including substance abuse treatment, sex offender treatment and victim counseling, services for youths on home detention, and electronic monitoring as among the uses for the funding. The county's teen court program also was to have received funding.

Auditor Amy Stockwell said the county has spent $53,000 so far on some of the services outlined in the grant.

Meyer said White agrees with the philosophy behind Redeploy Illinois of reducing the number of juveniles in prison. He said the county would look for ways to keep pieces of the program intact but declined to elaborate.

State's Attorney Jack Ahola said he did not know the reasons why the county is not renewing the grant and planned to talk with White about it.

"I'm hoping we can salvage it," Ahola said.

County Board Chairman David Wolfe, D-Oakley, said he had received a copy of Meyer's letter but did not know the reasons behind the decision. He plans to discuss it with Meyer.

At the time the county received the grant, officials were excited about its prospects. White said it would give the county the opportunity to help the families of troubled youths. And probation officials said building a network of community services is key to reducing recidivism.

Illinois Department of Corrections spokeswoman Dede Short said 23 juveniles from Macon County had been sent to prison through April of the 2005 fiscal year, which ends June 30. In the 2004 fiscal year, 75 youths from Macon County were sentenced to prison. In 2003, the number was 55, and in 2002, it was 44.

Stephanie Potter can be reached at spotter@;herald-review.com or 421-7984.