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Greene County Juvenile Court began the Diversion Program in
the summer of 1993, with one (1) full-time staff person.
The Program has now grown to a staff of nine (9) and its
primary purpose is to prevent formal court involvement for
youth who have had no previous court history. The Diversion
Program is based on the philosophy that not
all cases are best handled through the formal court system.
Individuals referred to the Diversion Program are assured of
the following due process rights:
1.
A child who is referred to a diversion program may choose
instead to have the matter handled officially by the court;
2.
The child will be expected to admit or deny the alleged
behavior at the onsent of the diversion hearing. If the
child admits the alleged behavior, the hearing officer may
develop a diversion contract for the child to complete. If
the child denies the alleged behavior, the case may be
transferred to the formal court process. The hearing
officer has the discretion to refer any case to the formal
court at any given time.
3.
The child has a right to consult an attorney before agreeing
to program participation;
4.
Any statement made by the child during participation in a
diversion program or during negotiations leading to such
participation is inadmissible as evidence in any subsequent
adjudicatory hearing relative to the original charge as it
relates to the child who was in the diversion program.
Statements and/or documents in the diversion program may be
used in the prosecution of a co-participant who is formally
charged.
The benefits of the Diversion Program are that if the youth
and parent(s) complete the program contract, the case will
be handled informally with no official juvenile court
record. If, however, the program is not completed, the case
will be referred to Juvenile Court for a formal hearing.
Link onto the following programs for additional information:
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