NCJ Number
83571
Date Published
January 1980
Length
175 pages
Annotation
These juvenile justice standards deal with general policies on information and specific standards for juveniles' social and psychological histories, records of juvenile courts, and police records.
Abstract
The standards are structured to provide a general framework of analysis for courts and agency directors attempting to design their information and record systems to protect juveniles' privacy and facilitate a flow of information that will promote fair and efficient decisionmaking. General standards pertaining to information uses and abuses are presented, along with the special issues pertinent to juveniles. The general standards are then applied to develop specific standards for juvenile courts, juvenile social and psychological histories, and police records. The standards seek to implement a philosophy of nonintervention and the reduction of stigma for juveniles. In addition to the importance of designing an information system sensitive to the special needs of juveniles, the standards express two other major themes. First, the information systems and practices of juvenile agencies must be visible. To promote visibility, the standards require each agency to develop rules and regulations and to conduct periodic audits of information collection practices and policies. Further, the establishment of juveniles' privacy committees with the power to scrutinize information policies and practices is recommended. Another major theme is that the privacy interests of juveniles will be most effectively served if agencies are required to examine and justify their collection of information before they begin to address the questions about how to protect the information after it is retained. A bibliography of about 100 listings is provided.
Date Published: January 1, 1980