NCJ Number
80632
Date Published
1981
Length
41 pages
Annotation
This report highlights the activities of Utah's Juvenile Court during 1980 and presents statistical data on court actions.
Abstract
Each department of the court is described, and court organization is illustrated. Data are given on the number of referrals to the court, on the number of reported offenses and their severity, and on the number of cases handled by the court. A description of the court's probation department and the State's juvenile justice system is included. Tables present data on the recidivism rate and on court budget and workload. Data indicate no significant growth in criminal, status, or dependency/neglect referrals in 1980 over 1979 and a decline in traffic referrals. However, criminal referrals rose 87 percent in 1980 over 1970, and other referrals rose even higher for the decade. A total of 28.6 percent of all offenses were status, 12.4 percent were felonies, and 51.4 percent were misdemeanors. Of the total burglaries handled by the court and the probation department in 1980, 82 percent resulted in convictions, with the youths receiving a court sanction. Utah's overall 1980 recidivism rate of 51 percent compares closely with the 50 percent rate recorded in 1979. Graphs, flow charts, pie charts, and organizational charts are included.