The States involved in the study were Arkansas, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Kentucky, Maine, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New York, Ohio, Rhode Island, Texas, Washington, and Wisconsin. The States selected met one of the following criteria: (1) had recent serious juvenile offender legislation, (2) had statutes addressing the differential handling of first-time and repeat juvenile offenders, or (3) had indications that minimal latitude is given to police when taking a juvenile into custody. The review showed a limited consensus among the States about the handling of juveniles in the preadjudicatory stages. Variations were found in the following areas: classification of delinquent and status offenders, minimum and maximum age for juvenile court jurisdiction, custody, basic rights of juveniles, intake, detention, the role of the district attorney, differential processing of first-time and repeat offenders, waiver from juvenile court, and diversion and informal disposition. The laws of the 20 States allow the police officer substantial effect on the final disposition of the alleged juvenile offender, a power that exceeds that exercised by police over the disposition of adult arrestees. Twelve footnotes and 27 references are provided. For an analysis of police handling of juveniles in these States, see NCJ 89524 and NCJ 89522.