NCJ Number
196350
Editor(s)
Patrick Griffin,
Patricia Torbet
Date Published
June 2002
Length
138 pages
Annotation
This revised Desktop Guide was produced by a group of juvenile probation professionals from across the United States and is intended to promote and enhance the practice of juvenile probation as a career, reflecting a consensus towards a more active, collaborative, and results-oriented juvenile probation justice system.
Abstract
The goal of this guide is described as envisioning a catalyst for developing safe communities and healthy youth and families by holding offenders accountable; building and maintaining community-based partnerships; implementing results-based and outcome-driven services and practices; advocating for and addressing the needs of victims, offenders, families, and communities; obtaining and sustaining sufficient resources; and promoting growth and development of all juvenile probation professionals. The organization of this guide follows the principal delinquency case processing decision points. Topics covered include history, legal issues, youth and delinquency, case processing overview, intake decision-making, diversion, detention and disposition recommendations, supervision, selected practices and techniques, and special populations. This guide concludes with a call to action which states that performance-based and outcome-focused measurement should become standard procedure which is fully integrated into all department operations by all personnel. The appendices contain a glossary of selected juvenile justice terminology and an instruments section containing forms and instruments with information on juvenile intake criteria for different court jurisdictions, risk assessment guidelines, intake guidelines and disposition options, a risk assessment scale, a risk and offense classification matrix, guidelines for structured interviewing, a reassessment of risk measure, a reassessment of needs measure, and a risk/needs matrix.