Assessment of Juvenile Justice system Reform in Washington State: Vol. II, The Impact of Washington's Reform on Juvenile Justice Agencies

• NCJ Number: 139895
• Author(s): A L Schneider; D D Schram
• Date Published: 1983
• Length: 86 pages
• Sponsoring Agency: US Dept of Justice
• Corporate Author: Institute of Policy Analysis
• Sale Source: National Institute of Justice/; NCJRS Photocopy Services
• Publication Format: Document
• Publication Type: Survey
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

The legislative reforms of Washington's juvenile justice system required the State's juvenile courts to formalize their procedures; extend to juveniles the same due process available to adults; improve accountability for decisions at various points in the process; and create formal, accountability-based diversion systems. These reforms in essence rejected the traditional doctrine of parens patriae.

Abstract

The due process provision in the new statute provided juveniles the right to counsel, right to appointment of experts, right to subpoena, right to adequate notice, privilege against self-incrimination, limitations on admissible evidence, right to verbatim transcripts of proceedings, and right to an open hearing. Several unique due process provisions are provided as well: the process by which minor or first-time offenders may be diverted from formal court proceedings and the process by which juveniles may appeal court dispositions outside the presumptive sentencing standards. The formalization research presented here used aggregate data studies, individual level case studies, and surveys of juvenile justice agency professionals to examine the extent to which juvenile justice practices and procedures changed as a result of the new legislation and to determine organizational responsibility and resource requirements needed to implement these changes. 8 tables, 10 figures, 22 footnotes, and