Juvenile Diversion Program

Remington Building 11011 W. 6th Avenue Suite 200 Lakewood, CO 80215-5501 720-497-7800 One-stop Youth Services At the Remington Builiding, the Juvenile Assessment Center (JAC) now houses all of the County's juvenile justice services to to provide an immediate response to juveniles at the front end of the justice system to better reduce violent crime and redirect kids to more productive lives. JAC History Juvenile Diversion Mental Health Court The Juvenile Diversion Program was developed in 1976 as an alternative to juvenile prosecution. Clients are accepted into Diversion for a period of one year. Each client that participates on the Diversion Program is assigned a Diversion Officer who will supervise their progress for the duration of the program. Personal responsibility and personal accountability are core values that each Diversion Officer tries to teach and encourage.

Referral Process When a crime is committed by a juvenile in the First Judicial District, a law enforcement agency completes an investigation. The investigation is forwarded to the District Attorney's Office for screening. If a case is accepted by the District Attorney, one option open to the Deputy District Attorney assigned to the case is a referral to the Juvenile Diversion Program. The case is presented to the Diversion Program as a deferred adjudication. This is a formal referral after the petition in delinquency is filed in the Juvenile Court. Deferred Adjudication A juvenile is referred as a Deferred Adjudication to be potentially supervised by the Diversion Program after the petition in delinquency is filed with the Juvenile Court. The Diversion Program Director screens the cases and assigns the case to a Juvenile Diversion Officer. The Diversion Officer makes contact with the juvenile and/or their parents to see if they are interested in the Diversion Program as an alternative to prosecution by the District Attorney's Office.

The juvenile is also screened at this time to determine if he or she meets certain criteria to be eligible for a more formal screening with the Diversion Program. The Diversion Officer gives the juvenile and family a brief overview of the program and its demands. Initially, the juvenile and family Mental Health Court must express interest in the Diversion Program. Next, the juvenile must indicate that they feel the charges against them are fair or that they are at least interested in learning more about the relationship between their behavior and the law if they are not certain. Lastly, the juvenile must not have any previous district level adjudications or deferred adjudications. JAC History The juvenile is then scheduled for a Diversion Program Intake group prior to their Court date. The intake group consists of a presentation about the juvenile justice system and the Diversion Program. In addition, a Diversion Officer meets individually with each family to determine final eligibility for the Diversion Program . The Program conducts an additional screening to determine if the juvenile accepts responsibility for their referred offense and has

the willingness to make changes in their behavior and follow through with the requirements of the program. If the juvenile is eligible for the Diversion Program and is interested in participating in Program, an affirmative recommendation is made to the Deputy District Attorney. The juvenile and their parent(s) would then return to court for the entry of a plea. At that court appearance, the Deputy District Attorney would then officially offer the Diversion Program to the juvenile if he/she determines that it is an appropriate offer. The order for deferred adjudication is subject to the approval of the Juvenile Court. If the juvenile's guilty plea is accepted and a deferred adjudication is ordered, the juvenile then returns to the Diversion Program at a prescheduled time to begin the program. The juvenile's one year term begins the day they plead guilty in Court and receive the deferred adjudication. Juvenile Diversion Supervision All clients entering the supervised the Diversion Program complete an assessment interview with a Diversion Officer. The purpose of this interview is to get to know the juvenile and assess what issues should be addressed and what specific contract items should be completed during the supervisory period. The Diversion Officer also determines the level of supervision required based on risk factors. The risk factors, (such as current drug use or maintaining friends still involved in criminal activity) determine the level of services needed and frequency of supervision meetings. Once the assessment is completed, the juvenile begins attending meetings with his Diversion Officer at regularly scheduled times. Supervision is critical in the Diversion Program. This is the opportunity for the Diversion Officer to monitor the juvenile's compliance with court orders and/or Program requirements. Typically a juvenile sees his supervising officer anywhere between once per week and once per month depending on their determined supervision level. The juvenile has the ability to earn the right to less frequent appointments with his/her Diversion Officer. This is accomplished by making appropriate progress on the requirements of the court and the Diversion Program and demonstrating an ability to be a productive member of the community. Juvenile clients can earn the right to seen as infrequently as once each six weeks. Juvenile Diversion Contract Items While there may be many requirements of a juvenile while he/she is on the Diversion Program, there are some standard items that are on each juvenile's contract. Although this is not an all-inclusive list of standard contract requirements, it does give a general idea of what would be expected by a juvenile entering the Juvenile Diversion Program. Regular meetings or contact with the Diversion Officer Community Service Urine Scans Full-time school or full-time work (Clients 17 and under must be attending school full-time) No use or possession of alcohol or controlled substances No further status or criminal offenses Payment of victim restitution (if required by the Court) Respectful/obedient member of the family Remain in Colorado unless given permission to leave by Diversion Officer Payment of Court and Diversion Program fees Apology to victim

In addition to the above items, the Diversion Program attempts to create a contract that will enhance the client's ability to make pro-social and non-destructive choices. Further, the contract can be designed in a manner that provides necessary flexibility, based upon client needs. In order to facilitate this process, a juvenile may be required to complete additional contract items such as ethics classes, anger management classes, life skills classes, drug education and treatment, and counseling.

Juvenile Diversion Statistics The First Judicial District Attorney's Juvenile Diversion Program serves approximately 300 new juvenile clients per year. The Juvenile Diversion Program has a 78% successful completion rate.