Improving Outcomes for Youth in the Juvenile Justice System

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By Elizabeth Seigle
Policy Analyst
Council of State Governments (CSG) Justice Center

There has been significant progress in juvenile justice reform, with youth confinement rates decreasing by nearly 50 percent from 1997 to 20111, and juvenile arrest rates in 2011 at their lowest level in more than 30 years.2 While much progress has been made diverting youth from involvement in the juvenile justice system, there is still a great need to measure, and ultimately improve, the recidivism rates and other outcomes for youth under system supervision. With over 60,000 youth still in confinement on any given day3 and hundreds of thousands more on probation, policymakers and juvenile justice professionals are seeking guidance on how to ensure that system interventions and limited resources are used most effectively to promote youth’s transition from involvement with the juvenile justice system to a crime-free and productive adulthood.

With funding and support from the MacArthur Foundation, the Bureau of Justice Assistance, and the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, and in collaboration with nationally recognized experts in the field, the Council of State Governments Justice Center produced two products that together provide a roadmap to state and local officials, SAGs, and other key stakeholders on what works to reduce recidivism and improve other outcomes for youth involved with the juvenile justice system.

Core Principles for Reducing Recidivism and Improving Other Outcomes for Youth in the Juvenile Justice System highlights four core principles that research shows must undergird any strategy to reduce recidivism and improve outcomes for youth in the juvenile justice system. The white paper details lessons learned from research and practice on how to implement the principles effectively, and provides examples of how state and local juvenile justice systems and stakeholders have operationalized the principles in practice. The core principles include the following:

  • Principle 1: Base supervision, service, and resource-allocation decisions on the results of validated risk and needs assessments.
  • Principle 2: Adopt and effectively implement programs and services demonstrated to reduce recidivism and improve other youth outcomes, and use data to evaluate system performance and direct system improvements.
  • Principle 3: Employ a coordinated approach across service systems to address youth’s needs.
  • Principle 4: Tailor system policies, programs, and supervision to reflect the distinct developmental needs of adolescents.


Measuring and Using Juvenile Recidivism Data to Inform Policy, Practice, and Resource Allocation provides guidance for improving juvenile justice systems’ approaches to the measurement, analysis, collection, reporting, and use of recidivism data through a set of recommendations that include the following:

  • Measure recidivism for youth involved with the juvenile justice system, considering the multiple ways they may have subsequent contact with the juvenile justice system.
  • Analyze recidivism data to account for youth’s risk levels, as well as other key youth characteristics and variables.
  • Develop and maintain the infrastructure necessary to collect, analyze, and report recidivism data.
  • Make recidivism data available to key constituents and the general public.
  • Use recidivism data to inform juvenile justice policy, practice, and resource allocation.


Systems can use the recommendations detailed in this issue brief to measure recidivism in an accurate and comprehensive way and to guide system decisions and hold agencies and providers accountable for results. 

Learn more about CSG Justice Center’s Juvenile Justice Project.

Ms. Seigle is a Policy Analyst at the Council of State Governments (CSG) Justice Center, which operates the National Reentry Resource Center (NRRC). As a part of her work with the NRRC, Ms. Seigle provides technical assistance to local and state juvenile justice agencies implementing Second Chance Act projects. Ms. Seigle also supports the work of the CSG Justice Center’s Juvenile Justice Program. 

 


1 “Easy Access to the Census of Juveniles in Residential Placement”, ojjdp.gov/ojstatbb/ezacjrp/.
2 Charles Puzzanchera, “Juvenile Arrests 2011,” National Report Series Bulletin (December 2013): 1-3.
3 “Easy Access to the Census of Juveniles in Residential Placement”, ojjdp.gov/ojstatbb/ezacjrp/.