Technical Assistance Partnership for Child and Family Mental Health

FEBRUARY2002

When planning for juvenile justice involvement, who are the most critical partners a grant community should invite to participate in their activities?

It is critical for policy makers and planners to be aware of the many stakeholders involved in the administration of juvenile justice activities. The most common mistake made by new programs is not recognizing the importance of informing all stakeholders of their new initiative. For System of Care grantees, it is critical that non-traditional partners like police, prosecutors, judges, juvenile probation, the faith community, and juvenile corrections personnel be made aware of planned initiatives. To gain their support, it is just as important to show the cost benefit to their operations as it is to present evidence of the benefits to youth and families.

The structure of the juvenile justice system varies widely across different states, counties, cities and other municipal organizations of government. Therefore, it is important that you clearly understand how and by whom decisions are made and where your project would best fit into the local juvenile justice system. Although the system has done a great deal of collaboration over the last few years, collaboration still has a very unnatural feel for many who work in and with juvenile justice. It is equally critical to know the roles and basic mandates of each stakeholder. While these mandates may at first appear to be barriers to progress, they can also be opportunities for you.

Most stakeholders will welcome the involvement of your grant community if you approach them with some knowledge of their mandates and responsibilities. The numbers of youth with mental health issues and diagnoses in the juvenile justice system is problematic to all juvenile justice stakeholders. There is concurrence that incarceration is usually not the best alternative for them, especially if they have not been arrested for serious or violent offenses against people. Unfortunately, there are usually few alternatives that take into consideration the community and victim safety issues that must be addressed in the treatment and rehabilitation plans for a young person at each decision point in juvenile justice.

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	FEBRUARY2002 When planning for juvenile justice involvement, who are the most critical partners a grant community should invite to participate in their activities? It is critical for policy makers and planners to be aware of the many stakeholders involved in the administration of juvenile justice activities. The most common mistake made by new programs is not recognizing the importance of informing all stakeholders of their new initiative. For System of Care grantees, it is critical that non-traditional partners like police, prosecutors, judges, juvenile probation, the faith community, and juvenile corrections personnel be made aware of planned initiatives. To gain their support, it is just as important to show the cost benefit to their operations as it is to present evidence of the benefits to youth and families. The structure of the juvenile justice system varies widely across different states, counties, cities and other municipal organizations of government. Therefore, it is important that you clearly understand how and by whom decisions are made and where your project would best fit into the local juvenile justice system. Although the system has done a great deal of collaboration over the last few years, collaboration still has a very unnatural feel for many who work in and with juvenile justice. It is equally critical to know the roles and basic mandates of each stakeholder. While these mandates may at first appear to be barriers to progress, they can also be opportunities for you. Most stakeholders will welcome the involvement of your grant community if you approach them with some knowledge of their mandates and responsibilities. The numbers of youth with mental health issues and diagnoses in the juvenile justice system is problematic to all juvenile justice stakeholders. There is concurrence that incarceration is usually not the best alternative for them, especially if they have not been arrested for serious or violent offenses against people. Unfortunately, there are usually few alternatives that take into consideration the community and victim safety issues that must be addressed in the treatment and rehabilitation plans for a young person at each decision point in juvenile justice.

Juvenile Justice and Systems of Care Frequently Asked Questions