NCJ Number
81640
Journal
Journal of Drug Issues Volume: 12 Issue: 1 Dated: (Winter 1982) Pages: 89-102
Date Published
1982
Length
14 pages
Annotation
Juvenile drug and alcohol offenders do not receive more severe dispositions than other juvenile offenders and are no more likely than other offenders charged with equally serious offenses to be placed in compulsory treatment programs.
Abstract
Data from 8,044 intake data cards filed by single-intake workers in 7 Florida counties between January 1, 1979, and September 30, 1979, showed the dispositions at all stages of the juvenile justice system, as well as sociodemographic and legal case characteristics. Dispositions differed for misdemeanor and felony offenders in that the more serious the offense, the more likely intake officers were to recommend that a petition be filed by the prosecutor. Youths charged with substance abuse were no more likely than misdemeanor offenders of other types to receive placement in a treatment program. Felony drug offenders were more likely than other felons to be placed in treatment programs when recommended for a court petition, but this relationship disappeared when controlled for prior record and sociodemographic variables. Nevertheless, the findings did not show that some drug and alcohol offenders were not coerced into treatment programs or that some other offender types were not coerced as well. The pre-judicial final disposition for juveniles might well be used as a way to place youth under more restrictive control than they would have received from court dispositions. Data tables and a list of 21 references are included.