TY - JOUR
AU - Nejelski, Paul
AB - Diversion is inherent in the juvenile justice system and necessary tokeep it from collapsing. It is defined as "the channeling of cases tononcourt institutions, in instances where these cases would ordinarilyhave received an adjudicatory (or fact finding) hearing by a court." Itshould be distinguished from preventive efforts which contain nopossibility that the juvenile's behavior would result in a court hearing. Agood test of diversion, therefore, is whether the number of juvenile courtadjudications is reduced as a result of a new program.Four diversion projects are described, and their common characteristics are noted-the use of paraprofessionals from the community, areliance on crisis intervention, the central role of arbitrators andadministrators rather than judges, the trend to avoid stigma, a concentration on status offenses and minor delinquency, and a lack ofevaluation.A proposed balance sheet set forth to weigh the value of diversiondiscusses the clients of these programs and their treatment, fairness andthe power of the state, the available resources, and evaluations .of theseprograms.Diversion projects are dangerous to the extent that they may destroy thenecessary balance between social welfare and due process. The court stillhas an important role to play by reviewing cases for abuse of discretion,by creating special masters as ombudsmen to determine what is happening in the system, and by increasing the research capabilities available tothe judicial branch. Finally, the article notes that diversion may be only ahalfway measure which takes the pressure off the system to eliminatestatus offenses and, instead, creates an equally coercive social controlsystem with less visibility and accountability.
TI - Diversion: The Promise and the Danger
JF - Crime & Delinquency
DO - 10.1177/001112877602200401
DA - 1976-10-01
UR - https://www.deepdyve.com/lp/sage/diversion-the-promise-and-the-danger-E7Bw6bkEld
SP - 393
EP - 410
VL - 22
IS - 4
DP - DeepDyve
ER -