[M]inority youths access court diversion programs as often as white youths, a recently released study has found. Female youths, however, are less often referred to diversion and more likely to end up in adult court.
The study, conducted by the Vermont Center for Justice Research, used three years of data from Chittenden, Rutland and Bennington counties to examine the representation of minority and white youths at three points of the criminal justice system: referrals to juvenile court, referrals to adult court and referrals to diversion.
The research examined 1,992 youths in fiscal years 2009 through 2011. Of those, 1,671 were white and the rest were minorities, three-quarters of whom were black.
The 66-page study completed in April and released online last month found minority youths were more likely than white youths to be referred to adult court and to community justice centers, but less likely to be referred to juvenile court and court diversion.
The 66-page study completed in April and released online last month found minority youths were more likely than white youths to be referred to adult court and to community justice centers, but less likely to be referred to juvenile court and court diversion.
When the two types of diversion are combined, however, a minority youth’s greater likelihood of referral to a justice center and lower likelihood of a referral to court diversion canceled each other out, the study found.
Typically, police refer people to the state’s network of community justice centers before a charge is filed in court, whereas diversion happens once a charge is filed.
White youths were more likely than minority youths to be referred to juvenile court for public order, drug and theft offenses, while minority youths were more likely to be referred to adult court for those offenses, the study found. Minority youths were more likely to be referred to a justice center for public order or theft, the report found.
The study also found that females were more likely to be referred to adult court relative to comparable males and less likely to be referred to a community justice center or diversion.
Minority status did not independently influence the probability of referral to adult court or diversion, the study found.
Minority youths were 48.8 percent more likely than comparable white youths to be referred to juvenile court and 53.3 percent less likely to be referred to court diversion, the study found.
However, minority youths were 86.5 percent more likely to be referred to a community justice center than comparable white youths. That accounts in part for minority youths’ reduced likelihood of a referral to juvenile court, according to the study.
In Vermont, the juvenile and family courts have jurisdiction over youths ages 10 to 18 who have committed a “delinquent act,” an offense that would be considered a crime if committed by an adult. Youths charged with more serious offenses can tried as adults.
Vermont state’s attorneys typically prosecute 16- and 17-year-olds in adult court regardless of the offense. Juvenile court jurisdiction can be extended to children under age 10 in cases of murder and up to age 22 for “youthful offenders” — youths charged in adult court but for whom the juvenile court determines would be better-suited in juvenile court.
A 2007 study of Vermont’s system for juveniles found it unusual compared to other states and gives prosecutors much discretionary power.
Attorneys sometimes want their juvenile clients to be referred to adult, rather than juvenile, court for minor crimes because it can be easier to access alternative justice programs and juvenile court can hold people on probation or supervision for longer periods of time, Defender General Matthew Valerio said.
Valerio said the study’s results are positive. Still, data indicates that minorities are disproportionately arrested. A 2012 report in Vermont showed black youths were 2½ times more likely to be arrested than white youths and 1½ times more likely to have charges filed in adult court.
“We’re being fair in the way we handle white youths versus non-white youths when it comes to the use of alternative criminal justice options,” Valerio said.
In general, a less-punitive initial response leads to lower recidivism down the road, particularly if it’s a restorative justice-type system, Valerio said.
Restorative justice aims to include those who responsible and affected by wrongdoing as well as others in the community to find ways to repair any harm done by the offender.
Emmet Helrich runs the Chittenden County Rapid Intervention Community Court program, which refers misdemeanor offenders to services that aim to address the root cause of the crime.
“I just look at does the offense they’re charged with fit our profile of people that we take,” Helrich said. The profile has to do with what type of crime is committed and their prior court record, not a person’s race or ethnicity.
In Rutland County, minority youths were less likely to be referred to court diversion, the study found.
Marcia Bellas, a researcher who performed the study, said it was both good and surprising to find that minority youths are more likely to be referred to a justice center and equally likely to be referred to some type of diversion.
“It’s a sort of affirmative action, I guess,” Bellas said.
Females in court are often seen as acting outside their gender stereotype and therefore treated more punitively, she said. She urged officials to take note of this finding.
“[Female youths] are being treated more harshly and that’s a finding that’s not unusual,” Bellas said.
The study was performed for the Vermont Children and Family Council for Prevention Programs and is a requirement in order for the Department for Children and Families to receive federal grants, Bellas said. It is performed using data gathered by DCF.
Vermont in 2002 began monitoring the contact of minority youths relative to white youths at various points in the juvenile justice system, the study’s introduction says.
Vermont has not yet implemented strategies to reduce disproportionate contact of minorities with the justice system, other than making jurisdictions aware of annual data, the study found. The council is charged with advising the Legislature on issues related to juvenile justice.
There is a significant amount of missing data in juvenile court records that threaten the state’s compliance with federal law, the study said. However, in 2012 the state adopted two strategies to reduce the amount of missing race and ethnicity data, the study says.
The state revised the forms for court data entry to include race and ethnicity of youths charged, and also asked the family court to require race/ethnicity data in all delinquency cases filed, according to the study.
