NCJ Number
79865
Date Published
1980
Length
112 pages
Annotation
Factors tending to cause Michigan's strained capacities of juvenile institutions are identified, and recommendations for improvement are offered.
Abstract
The current department of social services secure institutional capacity has remained unchanged since 1977-78 at 648 beds (568 male and 80 female). The number of delinquent wards awaiting placement in training schools has increased from less than 100 to over 160 during the 1976-80 period. The placement delay is presently between 2 to 3 months, in the face of a 15-day placement objective. One of the factors contributing to strained institutional capacity is the 1976 departmental policy which prohibits the placement of status offenders in secure beds and requires the placement of selected seriously delinquent wards in training schools. This policy has apparently significantly increased institutional referrals for Wayne County males. Other factors are (1) reduction in truancy from the institutions, (2) greater reliance on State juvenile services, (3) underuse of alternatives to institutionalization, and (4) greater reliance on secure placement for delinquents. Factors which may influence institutional capacity in the future are a juvenile population decline, a revised juvenile code, increased unemployment among juveniles, and an increase in alternatives to institutionalization. An expansion of the current institutional capacity is not recommended at this time. Recommendations for immediately lessening pressure on the training schools are given. Tables are included. Appended are the estimated construction cost of 160 additional secure beds, an institutional intake and discharge flow chart, the State juvenile crime analysis for 1978, and the departmental felony and status offender policy. A bibliography has 21 listings. (Author summary modified)