Adolescents becoming formally involved with a juvenile court because of school-related behavior and discipline problems is a phenomenon known as the school-to-prison pipeline. Adolescents with learning disabilities are disproportionately represented within this pipeline. A study was conducted to review the outcomes for a population of youthful…

In the wake of a U.S. Justice Department investigation that found widespread use of excessive force by staff at upstate psychiatric care facilities for mentally ill children, this new edition of Child Welfare Watch identifies shortcomings in mental health services and explores possible solutions, including the expansion of alternatives to…

In commemoration of the juvenile court's centennial, the Justice Policy Institute of the Center on Juvenile and Criminal Justice and the Children and Family Justice Center of Northwestern University School of Law profiled 25 individuals who were petitioned into juvenile court as serious delinquents when they were young and then turned their lives…

Comparative research in juvenile delinquency provides criminal justice professionals with a mechanism for better decision-making. This study analyzed juvenile probationer arraignments and the offender risk/need classification assessment to better understand juvenile court careers and probation recidivism. Analyses were based on data generated by…

Recent statements by social scientists and legal professionals have pointed to the need for a general research framework within which discretionary practices in the juvenile justice system can be empirically described and evaluated. The present article proposes social judgment theory as one framework suitable for addressing these issues. (Author)

Examines issues surrounding detention of young people in Westchester County, New York, as the county attempts to deal with the increasing number of juveniles. Discusses length of stay, violation of the "least restrictive principle" and negative effects. Concludes that new statutory criteria must be developed for the admission of youths to secure…

This document contains several essays on topics of interest to researchers of rehabilitative efforts. The subjects covered include an historical look at chronic delinquents and their treatment programs; a review of West European programs; legal constraints on intervention; a review of evidence concerning biological contributions to criminality and…

Questions the availability to juveniles of protection from double jeopardy in State juvenile proceedings. (JF)

Examined records of 558 juveniles sheltered at short-term residential facility for five years to determine effect of Illinois' Minor Requiring Authoritative Intervention (MRAI) statute on status offenders. Results indicated that dispositions of clients MRAI legislation were not significantly different from earlier dispositions under old Minor in…

This paper assesses the parens patriae orientation, which is often considered to be at the core of the operation of juvenile courts, and discovers that existing ideas concerning its role must be revised. In opposition to common theory it appears that parens patriae at best shares influence with a number of other orientations in juvenile courts,…

This document contains testimony and prepared statements from the Congressional hearing held to examine youth and the justice system. Factors which might lead to behavior problems among the young are identified and ways to ameliorate those conditions and prevent delinquency and incarceration of youths are considered. Witnesses include two juvenile…

Community-based programs in the juvenile justice system present a promising alternative to the disappointing results achieved by large institutional facilities. A diverse group of states has found that intensive, individualized services provided in small, family-like residential settings or in the juvenile's own home yield comparable or reduced…

This study examined two pilot mentoring programs which were designed to provide information on the feasibility of integrating mentoring relationships into the juvenile justice system. Each program, one in St. Louis, Missouri and one in Atlanta, Georgia, sought to recruit, train, and match 100 adult volunteers (half over the age of 55) with 100…

This report, an examination of the administration of the federal Juvenile Justice Act from 1974 to the present, outlines the findings and recommendations of the National Advisory Committee for Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention. Following a statement of the proposed new direction in delinquency prevention, which focuses on the serious,…

The Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act of 1974 attempted to make a coordinated effort to improve the juvenile justice system. Its emphasis was on attempting to prevent juvenile delinquency rather than reacting to it after the fact. The status offender was to be removed from the traditional juvenile system; but the juvenile court…