Juvenile Mental Health Courts: An Emerging Strategy explores the potential impacts of juvenile mental health courts as an effective response to address the needs of youth in contact with the juvenile justice system. This study sought to identify existing juvenile mental health courts and collect preliminary information about the structure, organization, and service capacity of these courts. While the information collected as part of this study helps to answer some of the general questions about juvenile mental health courts, more detailed information is necessary.

Interest in juvenile mental health courts is taking hold across the country. As more jurisdictions consider these courts as a viable alternative for youth with mental health issues, more research is necessary to examine the impact that these courts have on the lives of youth, and on the juvenile justice and treatment systems, as well as help shed light on the political benefits and drawbacks of this emerging strategy.

The National Center for Youth Opportunity and Justice (NCYOJ) originally developed and maintained this resource. The NCYOJ was operated by Policy Research, Inc. and operated from 2001 to 2022 and was formerly known as the National Center for Mental Health and Juvenile Justice. The NCYOJ improved life opportunities for youth through systems and practice improvement initiatives.

This resource should be viewed as a reference document. It has not been updated since its publication. In addition, this document has not been made 508 compliant. If you would like a 508 compliant version of this document, please email communications@prainc.com.

This resource was first shared in 2006.

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