Florida State University’s Center for Criminology and Public Policy Research, a branch of the College of Criminology and Criminal Justice, has formed a partnership with the National Institute of Justice. Through this collaboration, three research agendas will be pursued to generate scientifically valid findings to be used by practitioners, agency decision makers, and policymakers to produce effective juvenile justice outcomes resulting in future cost savings and improvements to public safety.

Three research agendas will be pursued resulting in peer-reviewed publications, policy-relevant research reports, presentations, and recommendations for system improvement. The goals involved in this project are meant to formalize and advance an existing collaborative and productive partnership between FSU and the National Institute of Justice through additional dedicated resources.

The first project will provide empirical evidence to juvenile justice administrators and policymakers with an assessment of the use of civil citations during the initial contact of police with juvenile suspects as an alternative to traditional official arrest practices. The second project will examine the practice of family visitation with a juvenile justice system which has been virtually ignored in the research literature but may have implications for improving the adjustment of youth committed to residential facilities and their post-release outcomes. The final project will provide empirical evidence to practitioners and policymakers with an assessment of the use of school-based referrals to the juvenile justice system, a practice that has been relatively ignored in the research literature.

For more information about this grant, or to learn more about the Center for Criminology and Public Policy Research, please click here.