FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE???????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? OJJDP

Monday, December 03, 2001?????????????????????????????????????????????? ? ??????? ????????? ??202/307-0703

MEDIA ADVISORY

THE JUSTICE DEPARTMENT?S OFFICE OF JUVENILE JUSTICE AND DELINQUENCY PREVENTION INCREASES INVOLVEMENT WITH YOUTH COURTS

??? WASHINGTON, D.C. -- The Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP), in conjunction with the American Bar Association, is releasing a Volunteer Training Package designed for Youth Courts. The package is a public/private sector effort to uniformly train youth and adult volunteers in conducting Youth Courts, based on the National Youth Court Guidelines.? It explains the four Youth Court models and includes video, compact disk and print material.? Acting OJJDP Administrator Terrence Donahue ?released the training package at a Capitol Hill event where he also announced preliminary national evaluation data on youth courts and the upcoming OJJDP-sponsored National Youth Court Conference in April 2002.

Youth Court is the fastest growing crime intervention program in the nation.? Engaging the community in a partnership with the juvenile justice system, juvenile offenders are questioned, defended and sentenced by their peers.? Currently, there are over 850 Youth Court programs operating in district-level juvenile justice systems, schools and community-based organizations in 46 states and the District of Columbia.? This number has risen from 78 operational courts in 1994.?

For information on youth courts and the April 2002 conference, contact www.youthcourt.net.? For more information on the Office of Justice Programs, contact www.ojp.usdoj.gov.? ??????????? ?

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