NCJ Number
107605
Date Published
1987
Length
181 pages
Annotation
This study of a representative suburban juvenile court demonstrates how competition for resources, agency self-interest, and bureaucratic pressures play key and sometimes contradictory roles in the court's operations.
Abstract
Drawing from interviews, transcripts, and daily observation of agency staff meetings and court activities, the study explored the workings of the juvenile justice system. The study focused on the interaction of agencies within the court network, including social service organizations, diagnostic teams, school administrations, and local and State governments. By following the development of new State legislation to limit out-of-home placement, for example, the study indicates how the balance of power within the court system can shift dramatically and how such changes can impede effective justice administration. Also addressed are such issues as case processing times, diagnosis, and detention. The study concludes that the lack of clear priorities has allowed agencies in the court network great latitude in negotiating the nature of their objectives and operations. More coherent juvenile justice goals can be developed by acknowledging that delinquents are both children and offenders, by developing a comprehensive services policy for children that gives high priority to the needs of children before birth through adolescence, and by establishing a graduated response system that focuses on the frequency and seriousness of offenses. 8-item bibliography, chapter notes, 180 references, and subject index.