NCJ Number
151583
Date Published
1993
Length
50 pages
Annotation
Mediation services for first- and second-time juvenile offenders are discussed.
Abstract
This document is the final evaluation report of the results of the Community Boards of San Francisco's Community Involvement in Mediation of First and Second Time Juvenile Offenders Project (Project). The purpose of the Project is to reduce the number of repeat offenses by youths who come to the attention of the San Francisco Juvenile Court, as well as to reduce court costs, through mediation of the appropriate cases by trained community volunteers. Community mediation between juvenile offenders and their victims is provided. Overall, the Project is designed to develop an effective relationship between the Court and the Community Boards Program. Included in this report are a process evaluation and an impact evaluation. The process evaluation was carried out primarily through interviews with key actors, including juvenile court judges and commissioners, probation staff, deputy district attorneys, defense counsel, and Community Board staff members, and through the review of relevant Project documentation. The impact evaluation involved a comparison between cases in the experimental group (Community Boards mediation) and cases in the comparison group (traditional juvenile justice processing). Results of the process evaluation and impact evaluation are provided. Case examples of the operation of the mediation process also are described. Nine tables are included in the report. Results of the Project review, although mixed, reveal that the Project has proven to be an effective way of handling disputes between specified juvenile offenders and their victims. Recommendations as a result of the Project are made. A referral recap for the period October 1, 1990 through December 31, 1992 is included.