NCJ Number
101339
Date Published
1986
Length
118 pages
Annotation
Data from the 1985 calendar year are used to evaluate Arizona's PIC-ACT Program (Progressively Increasing Consequences Act), which provides for the adjusting of delinquency complaints without filing a petition if the juvenile acknowledges responsibility for the alleged act and agrees to participate in one or more specified rehabilitative programs.
Abstract
The rehabilitative programs specified include unpaid community service, counseling, education, nonresidential supervision, and victim restitution. The evaluation determined how the programs are perceived by various community groups, how they are implemented in each county, and whether program participation reduces the number of repetitive juvenile offenders. Only the first two of these three evaluation goals is discussed in this preliminary report. To determine how the programs are perceived by various community groups, questionnaires were mailed to selected samples of juvenile probation officers (286), police agencies (86), school principals (301), and parents (1,803). A total of 966 questionnaires were returned from all groups. All groups agree that consequences for first-time and second-time offenders under the program are appropriate. Community service work and restitution were viewed as most effective. To determine program implementation in each of the 15 participating counties, interviews were conducted with professionals knowledgeable about the program in each county. Data pertaining to program implementation in each county cover funding, program descriptions, the number of juveniles served in 1985, and whether particular services existed prior to PIC-ACT.