Implementing Comprehensive Juvenile Justice System Improvement in Hawaii

• NCJ Number: 251355
• Date Published: October 2017
• Length: 5 pages
• Grant Number(s): 2014-ZB-BX-K011
• Agencies: OJJDP-Sponsored
• Publication Type: Report (Technical Assistance); Report (Grant Sponsored); Program/Project Description

Annotation

This report documents the implementation and outcomes of Hawaii's juvenile justice reforms under the technical assistance provided by the Crime and Justice Institute (CJI) and the Pew Charitable Trusts in an effort to reduce the out-of-home population of justice-involved juveniles, while protecting public safety and holding such youth accountable while improving their outcomes.

Abstract

In 2013, Hawaii established a task force to lead this reform effort. It issued recommendations that became the basis for Act 201, which was signed into law in 2014. Later that same year, Hawaii was selected as one of the initial sites for the U.S. Justice Department's Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention's (OJJDP's) Compehensive Juvenile Justice System Improvement Initiative. This qualified Hawaii's juvenile system to receive personnel training and technical assistance from CJI, in order to implement the improvements authorized under Act 201. After 2 years, Hawaii is already experiencing positive public safety results. Twenty-eight percent fewer youth are being charged in court for new law violations, and court filings for status offenses have decreased 9 percent. Among the changes that have led to this positive change are 1) the selection and use of a statewide risk and needs assessment tool for establishing supervision levels and referrals; 2) the development and implementation of a graduated response system; 3) the establishment of a multiagency collaborative to provide coordinated services to youth; and 4) training and professional development that has improved the supervision skills of probation staff.