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Final Report of the Working Conference on Juvenile and Family Substance Abuse: A Judicial Response

NCJ Number
121831
Date Published
1987
Length
28 pages
Annotation
This is the final report on a conference designed to develop a broad base of understanding for an appropriate response by the juvenile and family court judiciary to substance abuse as a correlate or causal factor in cases presented to the courts.
Abstract
Nine fundamental issues were presented to the conference in plenary session. Each issue was analyzed, and response recommendations were developed by the participants in six small groups. The groups were composed of judges, agency and organization guests, and faculty resource persons. The issues were the reality of substance use/abuse; supply/demand sides of the substance abuse equation; screening, testing, assessing, and evaluation of substance use/abuse in cases referred to courts; the timing of court intervention in substance abuse; court authority to intervene in juvenile and family substance abuse; effective intervention and treatment; youth groups' involvement in substance manufacture, distribution, and sale; interjurisdictional coordination; and community leadership by judges. This report outlines the findings and recommendations for juvenile and family courts in each of the aforementioned areas.