THE ANALYSIS FOCUSES ON THE SUBURBAN COURT'S PERCEPTION OF THE FEDERALLY FUNDED DIVERSION PROGRAM, ON THE COURT'S IMPLEMENTATION OF PROGRAM, AND ON THE IMPACT OF DIVERSION OPERATIONS ON YOUTH. INITIATED IN EARLY 1972, THE DIVERSION PROGRAM INCLUDED FOUR COMPONENTS: DRUG ABUSE UNIT; OUTREACH CENTER; FAMILY INTERVENTION UNITS; AND NEIGHBORHOOD YOUTH HOUSE. ORGANIZATIONALLY, DIVERSION BECAME AN EXTENSION OF INFORMAL PROBATION. PROGRAMMATICALLY, DIVERSION EMPHASIZED WHOLE FAMILY TREATMENT. ANALYSIS OF THE PROGRAM'S OPERATIONS REVEALS THAT DIVERSION ACTUALLY INCREASED THE NUMBER OF YOUTHS RECEIVING SOME FORM OF JUVENILE COURT SERVICE AND THEREBY EXPANDED SOCIAL CONTROL. THE PROGRAM ACCELERATED SOCIAL CONTROL THROUGH ITS OUT-OF-HOME PLACEMENT SERVICE TO YOUTHS WHOSE FAMILIES WOULD NOT OR COULD NOT RESPOND TO INTERVENTION. IN SOME CASES, SIBLINGS WITH NO PRIOR BEHAVIOR PROBLEMS WERE ACCELERATED INTO THE FORMAL COURT SYSTEM FOR OUT-OF-HOME PLACEMENT, A PRACTICE THAT MAY HAVE THE POTENTIAL TO PROMOTE PROBLEM BEHAVIOR OR EVEN TO CREATE DELINQUENCY. THE DIVERSION PROGRAM'S OFFICIAL GOAL OF LIMITING THE SCOPE AND JURISDICTION OF THE JUVENILE COURT HAS NOT BEEN ACHIEVED. INSTEAD, DIVERSION HAS ENLARGED THE SCOPE OF THE JUVENILE COURT AS WELL AS THE PROPORTION OF THE POPULATION UNDER ITS CONTROL. ORGANIZATIONAL CHARACTERISTICS OF THE JUVENILE COURT RESULTED IN THE TRANSFORMATION OF AN APPARENTLY LIBERATING CONCEPT (DIVERSION) INTO ACCELERATED SOCIAL CONTROL THROUGH FAMILY INTERVENTION. SUPPORTING DATA ARE INCLUDED.