Coordinating Case Files in Milwaukee

Juveniles slipping through the cracks and missing out on opportunities that could curb their delinquency plague every jurisdiction in the country. This cohort of juveniles is often most at risk for recidivism, giving Milwaukee officials good reason to attempt to nip the cycle in the bud.
Milwaukee’s police department, prosecutors, criminal justice officials, and even school and health and human service agency representatives are meeting up and sharing the information they have on a select number of juveniles in Milwaukee at highest risk for continued delinquency issues.
Sharing the information, the group hopes, will ensure that key data and underlying issues are not overlooked by any one of the agencies. Sometimes it’s the little things—such as information regarding a substance abuse issue known to the schools but not to the prosecutors—that can play a major role in curbing delinquency.

Putting the collective wisdom to work and sharing information is a good step towards preventing missed opportunities to cut down on crime.

The post above is reprinted with permission from the blog of Right on Crime, a project of the Texas Public Policy Foundation, a research institute in Austin, TX.

Jeanette Moll is a juvenile justice policy analyst in the Center for Effective Justice at the Texas Public Policy Foundation. Prior to joining TPPF, she served as a legislative aide in the Wisconsin Legislature, where she dealt with various policy issues, media affairs, and constituent outreach. Moll earned a B.A. in Political Science from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She then earned a J.D. from the University of Texas School of Law, where she served on the board of the Texas Review of Litigation and interned with a federal bankruptcy judge, a Texas appellate court judge, and a central Texas law office.
 
*Photo by Flickr user buddawiggi