The complex factors contributing to youth violence in the U.S. and abroad are found at the individual, family, community, and societal levels.

Nationwide, more than 400 juvenile drug treatment courts (JDTCs) offer a way to respond to the complex needs of youth with substance use disorders, which often require specialized interventions.

Today, nearly 95,000 youth under the age of 21 are in custody in publicly and privately operated facilities in the U.S. Increasingly, youth are finding themselves involved in the juvenile justice system as a result of school-related conduct. Researchers suggest that this trend, known as the “school-to-prison pipeline,” is an unintended consequence of harsh school discipline policies such as “zero tolerance” and referring students to the police or courts for school code violations historically handled by schools.

AIR developed this second edition of the National Evaluation and Technical Assistance Center for the Education of Children and Youth Who are Neglected, Delinquent, or At Risk’s Transition Toolkit.

AIR’s evaluation of the program, which was designed to improve the processing and disposition of serious juvenile offenders for four jurisdictions across the country, focused on the program’s effects on file charges, case processing, and case outcomes.