A series of U.S. Supreme Court decisions and State actions have reduced the discretion and procedural flexibility of juvenile courts. Recent events in Delaware and Maryland suggest that, when authority is exercised by a State youth services agency, placement decisions in the best interests of the child may be over-ridden by decisions in the best interest of the agency. Abolition of the juvenile justice system is probable if the juvenile courts are prevented from acting in the best interests of the child, particularly in the absence of public safety considerations. Abolition also becomes probable if effective programs are undercut by irresponsible bureaucracies whose concerns for youth are dwarfed by concerns for self-preservation. The Maryland and Delaware cases are important and frightening because they achieved both of these negative outcomes. 12 references