THE PHILOSOPHICAL BASIS OF THE JUVENILE JUSTICE SYSTEM IN KANSAS IS THE BELIEF THAT COURTS HAVE BROAD PROTECTIVE POWERS OVER YOUTH, MUCH LIKE THOSE OF PARENTS. COURTS RETAIN ORIGINAL JURISDICTION OVER JUVENILES ACCUSED OF CRIMINAL OFFENSES, AS WELL AS OVER CASES INVOLVING SCHOOL TRUANCY, WAYWARDNESS, DEPRIVATION, ADOPTION PROCEEDINGS, AND CONSENT TO MARRY. STATISTICAL INFORMATION ON ACTIVITIES IN JUVENILE COURTS DURING 1977 WAS PROCESSED FOR 22,562 REFERRALS. OFFENSES FOR WHICH REFERRALS WERE MADE WERE CATEGORIZED AS DELINQUENT-MISCREANT, STATUS, TRAFFIC, DEPRIVED, SPECIAL PROCEEDINGS, AND MISSING OFFENSE TYPES. THE MOST REFERRALS WERE FOR THE DELINQUENT-MISCREANT OFFENSE CATEGORY. THERE WAS CONSIDERABLE DISPARITY IN THE HANDLING OF JUVENILE CASES, WITH 52.7 PERCENT OF ALL REFERRALS HANDLED INFORMALLY. LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCIES WERE RESPONSIBLE FOR 75 PERCENT OF THE TOTAL NUMBER OF REFERRALS TO JUVENILE COURTS AND THE REMAINING REFERRALS WERE FROM SOCIAL AGENCIES, PARENTS OR RELATIVES, AND SCHOOLS. THE PERCENTAGE DISTRIBUTION OF JUVENILE OFFENDERS BY SEX WAS 70 PERCENT MALE AND 30 PERCENT FEMALE. OF ALL REFERRALS, 75 PERCENT INDICATED NO DETENTION OVERNIGHT, WHILE 12 PERCENT HAD SOME FORM OF CONFINEMENT PRIOR TO DISPOSITION. THE COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF SELECTED VARIABLES YIELDED ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ON SEX AND RACE OF OFFENDER, CATEGORY OF OFFENSE BY SOURCE OF REFERRAL, CATEGORY OF OFFENSE BY MANNER OF HANDLING, MANNER OF HANDLING BY SOURCE OF REFERRAL, DISPOSITION BY CATEGORY OF OFFENSE, DISPOSITION BY MANNER OF HANDLING, TIME ELAPSED BETWEEN REFERRAL AND DISPOSITION BY CATEGORY OF OFFENSE, AND TIME ELAPSED BETWEEN REFERRAL AND DISPOSITION BY MANNER OF HANDLING. APPENDIXES CONTAIN ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ON JUVENILE COURT REFERRALS AND THE ESTIMATED JUVENILE POPULATION IN KANSAS BY COUNTY AND INCLUDE A GLOSSARY OF TERMS, 1976 AND 1977 RESOURCE TABLES, AND A JUVENILE COURT STATISTICAL CARD. (DEP)