Issue Brief #3 - Protect and Redirect: Measuring Equity and Results in Juvenile Diversion

Issue Brief #3 Protect and Redirect: Measuring Equity and Results in Juvenile Diversion Robust data collection and analysis are essential tools Careful attention to data is necessary to answer ques- in any effort to expand and improve the use of diversion. [...] being targeted in terms of young people’s offenses and objectively measured risk to reoffend? How Lasting progress in diversion from system involvement equitably are opportunities for diversion being of- for youth requires state and local justice systems to set fered to youth of different races and ethnicities and meaningful goals and carefully monitor results. [...] This in- justice system “has limited capacity to collect, track, and attention to data can hamper efforts to expand and im- use juvenile justice data to evaluate and improve system prove the use of diversion and to reduce disparities. [...] far greater victim satisfaction than the traditional court process.15 In terms of recidivism and future justice system involve- ment, states should calculate and report for every coun- Recent Progress to Improve the Use of Data ty the share of youth with successful and unsuccessful di- in Diversion version cases who are rearrested, and the share who are subsequently adjudicated delinquent (in juve. [...] Massachusetts ny County (Pittsburgh) and Philadelphia focused on continues its multiyear initiative to improve the avail- expanding existing pre-arrest diversion programs ability and effective use of data for diversion and other 32 in the schools to also serve youth involved in prob-elements of the youth justice system.