Juvenile Detention Alternatives Initiative

About the Program

Category: Criminal Justice and Public Safety (Best in Category)

Year: 2012

The Dakota County Juvenile Detention Alternatives Initiative (JDAI) sought to reform the juvenile justice system by using detention placements only for juveniles who pose a risk to public safety or are likely to fail to appear in court. In doing so, the JDAI also intended to eliminate racial disparities in youth served in county Corrections. A broad collaboration of stakeholders for Dakota County juvenile justice worked together to define the issues, develop a Risk Assessment Instrument (RAI) to guide decisions on secure detention of youth, and create a data system to inform policies as juveniles move into and through the Corrections system. The automated RAI and JDAI were implemented in May of 2008. Juvenile detention intakes fell 78% from a prior three-year average of 533 annually down to 114 in 2011. The average daily population in the Juvenile Service Center dropped 56% for all Dakota County youth and 47% for Dakota County youth of color, representing participation in detention and a range of correctional treatment programs. Resources have been redirected to other needed services for juveniles. Although the number of delinquent juveniles released to community has increased, juvenile crime is down and there have been very few incidents related to these releases.