In a context where more than 1,000,000 American adolescents are processed by juvenile courts annually and approximately 160,000 are sent to residential placements, this paper examines "what works" and "what doesn't work" in reducing the criminal behavior of juvenile offenders and presents examples of government initiatives that have successfully…

This document contains a compilation reflecting amendments made to the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act of 1974 by the Fiscal Year Adjustment Act; the Crime Control Act of 1976; the Juvenile Justice Amendments of 1977 and 1980; and the Juvenile Justice, Runaway Youth, and Missing Children's Act Amendments of 1984. Title I of this…

Over the past ten years, probation departments across the state of California have undertaken five major initiatives aimed at juvenile offenders and at-risk youths. Although these initiatives were concomitant with reductions in juvenile arrests and other positive outcomes, we cannot definitively attribute such observed statewide trends to these…

"Ombudsman" is derived from the Swedish word meaning agent or representative. It has come to denote a trusted commissioner or agent who looks after the interests or legal affairs of a particular group. Through their unique access to information and investigative authority, ombudsmen often bring endemic problems within child serving systems to the…

North Carolina's Community-Based Alternatives (CBA) program serves more than 44,000 youths each year. To obtain local criminal officials' and juvenile justice program practitioners' reactions concerning the operation of the CBA, information was gathered from 107 questionnaires completed by local social service, school, and juvenile court…

An overview is presented of select research performed under a project entitled "Education, Delinquency Prevention, and the Search for Youth Policy: An Historical Inquiry." This overview contains two discrete essays that synthesize the main findings of seven key writers in the field of juvenile delinquency between 1900 and 1930 and…

This report presents data on the social, legal, and demographic characteristics of youth admitted to the residential programs of the New York State Division for Youth (DFY) during 1984. These programs offer services for youth referred by the courts, social services, and other agencies. The report is divided into seven sections. Section 1 outlines…

A supplement to the related document "Delinquency Prevention: Theories and Strategies," this paper analyzes the options for state agencies (particularly state planning agencies participating in the Law Enforcement Assistance Administration formula grant program) to promote and support program forms recommended in the companion document.…

This document contains witnesses' testimonies and prepared statements from a Congressional hearing called to discuss successful programs and approaches to serving youth more effectively in the field of juvenile justice. In his opening statement, Representative Dale Kildee emphasizes that much of the progress made in the field of juvenile justice…

In this article on state-organized programs to reduce rates of juvenile delinquency, programs such as truancy prevention, day treatment, specialized foster care for emotionally disturbed, handicapped, and/or mentally retarded children, community resources projects, and residential treatment are briefly described. (Author/SE)

These proceedings of the Subcommittee on Juvenile Justice deal with the proposed abolition of the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, which was marked for elimination in the proposed budget of the Justice Department. Testimony is presented that supports retention of this office along with the comments of senators, police and…

These materials are intended to provide suggestions for the development of legislation for programs of delinquency prevention and treatment administered by state and local public agencies. Recommendations for both content and language are offered as aids to planning the improvement, coordination or unification of existing law, or on the drafting…

This report discusses the use of funds provided by the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act in California, Florida, Idaho, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, and Texas. Objectives of the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act are discussed and requirements for states to receive formula grants are reviewed. Observations from project…

An evaluation of a North Carolina supervision program for juvenile offenders--the Intensive Protective Supervision Project--is presented. The program involves extensive and proactive contact between the court counselor, offender, and offender's family. Statistical and field-based evaluation suggest that the project is successful in preventing…

The Intensive Protective Supervision Project (IPSP) is a juvenile justice program in North Carolina designed to assist status offenders. Several legislative and programmatic influences antedated the current program. This article provides a brief summary of three major events affecting the evaluation of the IPSP. (TJH)