Until recently, chronically misbehaving youth were routinely referred to juvenile court and subject to the same punitive interventions as youth charged with criminal activity. As jurisdictions evaluate and refine their status offender systems, a new paradigm is emerging that aims to provide immediate, individualized services to youth and their families outside of the juvenile court system. Making Court the Last Resort: A New Focus for Supporting Families in Crisis, a new report from Vera’s Center on Youth Justice (CYJ), highlights successful status offender system reforms in Florida, New York, and Connecticut. This report is a follow-up to the 2004 report Changing the Status Quo for Status Offenders, which highlights early efforts in New York State to improve services for troubled youth.
Vera established an office in Washington D.C., to bring its unique expertise more directly to bear on important national policy debates related to the administration of justice.
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