NCJ Number
238245
Date Published
January 2012
Length
103 pages
Annotation
This report from the Center for Court Innovation presents the results of an evaluation of QUEST Futures, a demonstration project in Queens, New York designed to address the mental health needs of justice-involved youth.
Abstract
The report presents the results of a process and outcome evaluation of QUEST Futures that examined the program's planning process and key features of the its model, as well as six in-depth case studies and quantitative data on participant characteristics and outcomes. Evaluation of the planning process found that the program's planners successfully reached out to the three communities that work with justice-involved youth - the juvenile justice system, mental health service providers, and substance abuse treatment providers. The challenges faced by the program's planners are discussed in detail. Evaluation of the implementation phase of the program found that enrollment in the program during its first 2 years was slightly lower than projected - 138 actual enrollees for the first 2 years compared to a projected enrollment of 160-180; and that 70 percent of the enrollees were in the program voluntarily and not by judicial mandate as had originally been planned. Participant demographics include the following: 86 percent were aged 14-16, 54 percent were Black and 34 percent were Hispanic, 58 percent self-reported a history of mental illness, and 24 percent of the underlying arrest charges were for assault, with 45 percent of participants being arrested for a felony. Evaluation of program outcomes found that 50 percent of the youth enrolled at the pre-adjudication stage had their cases closed due to a parent request; of those participants with closed family court cases, 58 percent received probation, 22 percent received institutional placement, and 14 percent had their cases dismissed; and of the 138 enrollees, 20 percent were re-arrested. Tables, figures, references, and appendixes