Diversionary Programs in Operation in Victoria (From National Conference on Juvenile Justice, P 437-447, 1993, Lynn Atkinson and Sally-Anne Gerull, eds. -- See NCJ-148673)

• NCJ Number: 148711
• Author(s): V Duggan
• Date Published: 1993
• Length: 11 pages
• Sale Source: Australian Institute of Criminology
• Publication Type: Program/Project Description
• Language: English
• Country: Australia
• Note: From proceedings of the National Conference on Juvenile Justice, held in Adelaide, Australia, September 22-24, 1992.

Annotation

After presenting statistics on the involvement of juveniles in Victoria's (Australia) juvenile court system, this paper describes the various types of juvenile diversion programs operating in Victoria.

Abstract

The statistics presented show that over the past decade, the number of juveniles processed by Victoria's juvenile justice system has declined significantly. Large reductions are evident in both community-based and custodial dispositions that are the responsibility of Community Services Victoria (CSV). In profiling Victoria's juvenile diversionary strategies, they are categorized as primary, secondary, and tertiary. Primary factors are those that influence the cohort group to reduce their chances of entering the juvenile justice system. Secondary factors are those that focus on those youth entering or about to enter the juvenile justice system. Tertiary factors are those that focus on young offenders already in CSV's programs. Primary diversionary factors include strong mainstream services, child protection services, and deinstitutionalization. Secondary diversionary factors include a police cautioning scheme, court advice, advice on sentencing practices and principles, and bail advocacy. Tertiary diversionary factors are the supervision of juveniles while they are involved in community-based dispositions, rehabilitation while in youth training centers, and postrelease supervision. 5 tables and 8 references