NCJ Number
218573
Journal
Aggression and Violent Behavior: A Review Journal Volume: 12 Issue: 4 Dated: July-August 2007 Pages: 393-401
Date Published
July 2007
Length
9 pages
Annotation
This article reviewed the national best practices for effectively reducing disproportionate minority confinement (DMC) in the juvenile justice system.
Abstract
Effective strategies for addressing DMC included: (1) data review and decision-point mapping; (2) cultural competency training; (3) increasing community-based detention alternatives; (4) reducing decisionmaking subjectivity; (5) reducing barriers to family involvement; and (6) developing State leadership to legislate system-level changes. The review reveals that the issues communities face when attempting to address DMC are similar across communities. To some extent, all communities across the United States struggled to acknowledge the problem of racial disparity in their local juvenile justice systems and struggled to deal with historical racial and ethnic inequalities. The collection and analysis of data helped to reveal the extent of racial and ethnic inequalities in a community and helped to focus discussion on the key points at which the juvenile justice system fails minority youth. Cultural diversity training was viewed as an important first step in most of the communities under examination, which was followed by more comprehensive DMC reduction planning. The authors recommend that all assessment instruments be up-to-date and culturally appropriate and that detention admission policies should be clear to all police officers so that detention decisions do not seem arbitrary. The overview of best practices for reducing DMC involved an examination of multiple sources, including Federal publications, State DMC assessments and publications, published books and articles, foundation reports, the Internet, and through contacts with prominent DMC training, technical assistance, and advocacy stakeholders. Thematic analysis was used to identify the effective strategies common to all sites. Throughout the review, the authors report on effectiveness indicators, including pre- and post-intervention findings where available. References