Dr. Stephen Phillippi, Director of the Institute for Public Health & Justice and Chair of the Behavioral & Community Health Science Program, contributes to this month edition of the publication Juvenile Justice Information Exchange
Read the full article featured in the Juvenile Justice Information Exchange, “We Saw Long-lasting Reforms from Models for Change in Our States”
By Robert G. Schwartz, Diane Geraghty, Stephen Phillippi and Bobbe Bridge
February 19, 2018
The work done during the Models for Change Initiative (funded by the John D. & Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation) has embedded structural and practice improvements that continue to influence policy change in juvenile justice toward a more developmentally oriented and equitably responsive system.
With foresight toward the end of the Models for Change (MfC) initiative, the Louisiana legislature identified the Louisiana State University Institute of Public Health & Justice (IPHJ) as a research and technical assistance resource for the state. One of the first projects for the IPHJ, on the heels of its MfC work, was a legislated study examining the impact of moving 17-year-olds into the juvenile justice system. That study became the catalyst for legislation raising the age of juvenile jurisdiction. The law passed in 2016 with current implementation plans carrying over critical ideas from MfC. They include police diversion, district attorney diversion and a focus on DMC as the state emphasizes early prevention mechanisms to avoid formal entry into the justice system whenever feasible.
The Juvenile Justice Information Exchange (JJIE) is the only publication covering juvenile justice and related issues nationally on a consistent, daily basis.
