Youth Justice Resource Hub
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NACo’s Youth Justice Resource Hub provides counties with a collection of evidence-based strategies to strengthen their juvenile justice systems.
NACo’s Youth Justice Resource Hub provides counties with a collection of evidence-based strategies to strengthen their juvenile justice systems. This dynamic hub turns ideas into practice across key areas including probation, alternatives to detention, community engagement, reentry services and more, giving county leaders practical tools that improve outcomes for youth and families.
Resource
NACo Series on County Youth Justice
NACo's series on county youth justice provides insights into practices counties are adopting to strengthen youth justice systems.
Program
Youth Justice
Through technical assistance, national partnerships and member-driven initiatives, NACo’s Youth Justice programming equips county leaders with resources and peer learning opportunities to strengthen local youth justice systems.
New approach transforms youth justice in Pierce County
Since 2000, Pierce County, Wash. has achieved an 88% reduction in youth detention — even as the county’s overall population has grown by approximately 30% over the same period.
Ramsey County, Minn. cuts juvenile justice admissions with assessment tool
The county's Risk Assessment Index focuses on the critical window between arrest and first court appearance.
Bernalillo County empowers youth through community-based services
Bernalillo County, N.M.'s funding has allowed a drop-in center to cater to young people's needs while giving them an added sense of security.
Counties support youth with a second chance opportunity
A Riverside County, Calif. supervisor took experiences from his former life as a teacher to help create a program that serves students who had gone the juvenile justice system and were looking for a second chance.
Santa Clara County celebrates Youth Justice Action Month with a youth-led model
Since 2008, U.S. Department of Justice’s Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention has made National Youth Justice Action Month an annual campaign to raise awareness to the experiences of young people and families who come into contact with the youth justice system.
Transforming Justice Through Collaboration
Join NACo to discuss how to leverage cross-system partnerships to address root causes leading to justice involvement.
Partner Resources
| Title | Organization | Description |
|---|---|---|
National Conference of State Legislatures |
The Juvenile Justice Toolkit is a comprehensive, policy-focused resource to help county leaders and practitioners understand and follow emerging trends in juvenile justice services across the country. |
|
Preventing Future Crime by Helping Children Get on the Right Path (Video) |
The Annie E. Casey Foundation |
This video highlights Hinds County’s (Miss.) commitment to diversion and reducing out-of-home placements through enhanced collaboration, strong community partnerships and transformative leadership. |
National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges |
This toolkit provides evidence-based strategies and actionable guidance to help judges reframe traditional juvenile supervision. Grounded in adolescent brain research, this resource highlights best practices including prioritizing incentives, minimizing probation conditions and developing individualized case plans tailored to each young person’s need. |
|
Unlocking Your Community’s Hidden Strengths: A Guidebook to Community Asset-Mapping |
Southern Poverty Law Center |
This resource provides an accessible, practical introduction to community asset mapping and includes templates and step-by-step guidance to help incorporate strengths-based planning into youth programming and workforce development efforts. |
DC Criminal Justice Coordinating Council |
This study, commissioned by the District of Columbia’s Criminal Justice Coordinating Council, provides a clear, evidence-based understanding of the factors driving youth-involved violence in Washington, D.C., based on the lived experiences of the youth and families. The study guides leaders and practitioners toward effective strategies by highlighting what young people identify as meaningful support and barriers to accessing services. |
|
Advancing Pretrial Policy & Research |
This policy brief outlines how pretrial practices affect system-involved caregivers and their children and offers strategies and policy recommendations to reduce unnecessary family separation and promote youth stability and well-being. |
|
American Probation & Parole Association |
This resource provides a research-informed framework for youth probation that centers youth and families and aligns supervision practices with adolescent brain development. |
|
The Annie E. Casey Foundation |
This resource offers a curated, searchable collection of practical tools, research and resources to support counties and practitioners working to strengthen youth justice systems. |
‘Zero drowning’ program boosts safety and prevents deaths
Miami-Dade County, Fla. teaches children how to swim at no-cost and provide more community education around water safety, cutting down on what had been the leading cause of death for children ages 1-14.
Rural county program preps students for first responder careers
Okeechobee County, Fla.’s public safety career programs are giving young people the tools to jumpstart their careers and helping address the county’s workforce shortages in fire rescue, dispatch and law enforcement.
Information-sharing bill could protect court workers
The Countering Threats and Attacks on Our Judges Act could provide more than 30,000 state and local judges with access to security assessments, best practices and a database of threats made against colleagues in the justice field.
After historic winter storms, counties assess response
Counties in states that rarely receive much winter weather are assessing their responses to the January storm that left many covered in snow and ice.
California counties fight agricultural crime
Sheriffs' offices and prosecutors in California's central valley make specific efforts to prevent and prosecute crimes against the agricultural community.
Survivor’s story helps empower Ohio county dog wardens
A courageous dog attack survivor helped county dog wardens make their case for more authority to protect residents.
Program Contact
Elise Simonsen
This content is intended for educational purposes only. The National Association of Counties (NACo) supports policies and programs that equip county governments with the resources and flexibility needed to serve our residents. NACo does not endorse any particular strategy or approach shared in this resource over another. For official NACo positions, please refer to the American County Platform