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Assessment of Juvenile Justice System Reform in Washington State, Volume 5 - Divestiture of Court Jurisdiction Over Status Offenses

NCJ Number
95391
Author(s)
A L Schneider; J G McKelvy; D D Schram
Date Published
1983
Length
93 pages
Annotation
This fifth volume in the five-volume series examines two of the most significant changes in the Washington law (implemented in 1978 to hold juveniles accountable for their crimes while holding the system accountable for what it does to juveniles): the removal of status offenders from the jurisdiction of the juvenile court and the establishment of a voluntary service delivery system for status offenders within the State's Department of Social and Health Services (DSHS).
Abstract
One of the most important purposes of the status offender provisions in the law is to minimize control by justice system agencies over youths whose acts are not violations of the criminal law and would not be crimes if committed by an adult. Evidence indicates that incidents involving misbehavior disappeared from the recordkeeping systems of juvenile court. However, the legislation has failed to remove status offenders from court authority. Data also indicate that divestiture may produce an incentive for law enforcement officers to relabel runaways and thereby record more of their delinquent acts. The State has many problems with the voluntary service system, but refuses to reintroduce mandatory treatment for even the hard core status offenders. Thus, the voluntary treatment approach fails to meet the needs of a small group of offenders. Nine tables, 10 figures, and 44 references are included. For other volumes in the series, see NCJ 95387-90.