The 18-month study gathered information by means of observations, interviews, and document reviews. These sources revealed that the city's Department of Probation lacks statistics to permit adequate evaluation and has inadequate safeguards to protect confidentiality of records. Many potential cases receive perfunctory treatment at probation intake in that their handling consists of paper referrals to agencies with no followup. Investigative procedures are equally inadequate and rarely include home visits. Children receive only routine and inadequate supervision. Probation officers and mental health staff on duty in court do not hold regular conferences on difficult cases. Other problems included perfunctory procedures for referring children for residential placement and increased delays in processing individual cases since court liaison officers were abruptly removed from trials. A statute or regulations should define a clear division between juvenile probation services and those of adults. Experienced probation officers should design and provide a training course on the provision of services to children and youths. Eleven other recommendations, tables, footnotes, appendixes presenting youth's views and related materials, and a bibliography listing 37 references are included.