Specialty courts—such as juvenile drug courts, juvenile mental health courts, and juvenile behavioral health courts—are designed to provide an alternative to traditional case processing and to focus on providing treatment and services to address underlying behavioral health needs.
Given the high prevalence of youth with co-occurring mental and substance use disorders in the juvenile justice system, as well as the poor outcomes associated with these conditions, many juvenile drug courts have modified or are considering adapting their policies and programs to include and effectively address the treatment needs of these youth. As a… Read More
Given the high prevalence of youth with co-occurring mental and substance use disorders in the juvenile justice system, as well as the poor outcomes associated with these conditions, many juvenile drug courts have modified or are considering adapting their policies and programs to include and effectively address the treatment needs of these youth.
As a partner in the National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges’ Juvenile Drug Court Training and Technical Assistance Project, the NCMHJJ seeks to enhance understanding of the impact of co-occurring disorders on juvenile drug court policy and program development. This goal is achieved through several activities including: