What follows are brief definitions of key terms or additional information about phrases used in the juvenile justice field in discussions about dual status youth. While not exhaustive, these are intended to provide additional information for users of the site.
Complex Trauma
Complex trauma refers to “exposure to multiple traumatic events, often of an invasive, interpersonal nature, with the potential to have more wide-ranging and long-term impact.”[1]
Detained or Detention
Detained youth are youth that the juvenile court has determined need to be removed from their home and confined in a secure juvenile facility known as a “detention” facility prior to their adjudication. (In some jurisdictions, such as New York City, youth are still considered detained even when they are in non-secure detention.) Youth may also be detained when a non-secure placement facility (e.g., shelter care or a treatment program) ejects them for allegedly failing to adjust in placement, or when a youth is accused of violating terms of probation. Detention is usually short-term and detention facilities differ from jails (which are adult-system facilities used to confine adults short-term) or long-term youth lockups, such as state “training” facilities or youth prisons.
Diversion
A system of procedures or programs that direct youth away from formal juvenile justice system processing entirely, as well as programs that divert youth away from secure detention in a juvenile justice facility.
Risk Assessment
A risk assessment instrument is a tool used to determine a youth’s likelihood of re-offending. It does not assess or diagnose mental health issues.
Dual Status Youth Sections
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Notes
[1] Thomas Grisso and Gina Vincent, “Trauma in Dual Status Youth: Putting Things in Perspective,” (Robert F. Kennedy Children’s Action Corps, 2014): 2.