NCJ Number
166782
Date Published
Unknown
Length
18 pages
Annotation
Following a review of the law that mandates the philosophy for the disposition of all cases that involve children and families in Virginia, this report outlines the phases of juvenile case processing.
Abstract
The overall intention of the statute is to ensure that in all juvenile proceedings the welfare of the child and the family, the safety of the community, and the protection of the rights of victims are the paramount concerns. The law shall be interpreted to give priority to the diversion of juveniles from the formal juvenile justice system, a fair hearing, the maintenance of the child in the home except when the child is endangered, and the protection of the community. A summary of the 1996 report of the Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission of the Virginia General Assembly advises that data do not support the view that the juvenile offender population is by and large a hardened, violent criminal population, so the intent of the juvenile code is appropriate for most of the juveniles encountered by the system. This report then briefly describes each of the 18 options for orders of disposition for juveniles and their families. They are intended as graduated dispositions that are related to the seriousness of the offense and the danger the juvenile poses to the community. This is followed by an outline of the phases of case processing. Phase one is the investigative and assessment phase. It consists of a social history investigation prepared by the Court Service Unit of Juvenile Probation, a multidisciplinary team assessment of at-risk youth and their families, a substance abuse evaluation, a psychological/psychiatric evaluation, a learning disabilities assessment, and a medical assessment. Phase two involves the entry of a dispositional court order, and phase three consists of the monitoring and enforcement of the court's order with the imposition of graduated sanctions as appropriate.