NCJ Number
83452
Date Published
1982
Length
7 pages
Annotation
The study explored how well the Pima County Juvenile Court (Arizona) diversion program succeeded in divesting itself of all status offenders by soliciting community agencies to act as service centers for these youths in need of assistance. It views community agencies as more reactive to juvenile offenders than a court-based intake unit.
Abstract
The community agencies vied for clients, whether or not the form of service or treatment was appropriate, often because having clients can guarantee future funding. The court's diversion intake unit appeared to take a noninterventionist stance as compared with community-based agencies. Based on the length of stay, it could also be argued that the court's diversion unit was less punitive than the 20 community-based agencies. The move to divest the juvenile court of jurisdiction over certain deviant acts may be premature. Community agencies may be less capable of handling youthful offenders since they are more vulnerable to social pressures than are official agencies. Data tables and 11 references are supplied.