Judges use information every day to inform decisions about individuals or cases, but not all judges apply 

that same information to making decisions about the practices in their courtroom or jurisdiction. For 

example, judges use information about an individual youth’s educational status to determine appropriate 

services for that youth, but may not compile education data for all court-involved youth and look for 

patterns. This information helps to direct resources and system improvement efforts and to set baselines 

for evaluating policy or practice changes. Data collected in courtrooms every day can be aggregated 

and viewed differently to paint a picture of what is happening in that court and community. Here are five 

important ways that judges can use data:

Align decisions with 

evidence-based practices

Judges want to support the best interests of youth who 

come before the court, but how can they be sure that 

their court’s procedures align with what research says 

works? Data can describe a court’s overall functioning, 

replacing anecdotes with objective answers. For 

example, research has shown that courts achieve better 

outcomes when they divert low-risk, first-time offenders. 

Looking at the number of youth eligible for diversion 

by age, offense, and diversion decision helps judges 

see how many and which type of youth are eligible for 

and receive diversion as well as which type of youth 

are eligible but are not being diverted. This information 

allows judges to objectively assess whether their routine 

decision making aligns with evidence-based practices. 

Support positive

outcomes for kids

The juvenile court exists not only to hold youth 

accountable, but also to support them to grow into 

productive, law-abiding adults. It’s impossible to know 

whether policies and practices are resulting in positive 

outcomes for justice-involved youth without collecting 

and analyzing data. Data collected from assessments 

and interviews with the youth and family can inform 

court decisions and data shared by partnering agencies, 

like schools and community providers, can help judges 

understand how youth change as a result of interventions 

and see if the court is achieving its goals. Understanding 

which youth succeed in which programs can help judges 

match youth with the response that is likely to produce 

the best outcomes. 

Identify opportunities for improvement

Looking at the same measures over time can point to 

processes that could be improved, identify potential 

solutions, and set baselines. Data empowers court 

staff and stakeholders to suggest opportunities for new 

policies or practices that may be more efficient, lead to 

better outcomes, or ensure fairness. Anecdotal evidence 

might start the conversation, but objective data helps 

to direct efforts in the most impactful and efficient way. 

By using data to identify opportunities for improvement, 

judges can be sure that their often limited resources are 

leveraged wisely.

5Ways Juvenile Court 

Judges Can Use Data

OFFICE OF JUVENILE JUSTICE AND DELINQUENCY PREVENTION 

JUVENILE JUSTICE MODEL DATA BRIEF

01

“In many cases, I use data to educate the 

community to better understand what issues and 

challenges we see every day in my courtroom. 

I can describe my court’s processes with data. 

I can explain in depth the children who come 

through my courtroom, what their demographics 

are, what offenses they committed, the challenges 

they are facing, the variety of services they require, 

and the complexities of decisions I make. This 

information is critical to have as I describe the 

intricacies of juvenile justice needs not only in my 

court but throughout Ohio. Finally, data collection 

is critical as our court applies for national, state 

and local funding to meet the needs of the 

children and families that we all serve.”

02

03

THE HONORABLE 

ANTHONY CAPIZZI 

NCJFCJ PRESIDENT

MONTGOMERY COUNTY JUVENILE COURT, OHIO

“

NATIONAL COUNCIL OF JUVENILE AND FAMILY COURT JUDGES | NATIONAL CENTER FOR JUVENILE JUSTICE
Measure improvement 

efforts

The last two decades have seen numerous juvenile 

justice system improvements in jurisdictions across 

the country. Judges should know whether changes in 

courtroom practice are being implemented as designed 

and if they are having the intended impacts. For example, 

a jurisdiction that recently started using a validated risk 

assessment tool can regularly monitor the proportion 

of staff trained in administering the assessment, the 

proportion of youth assessed in a timely manner, and 

the degree to which the results were incorporated into 

case management decisions. After ensuring proper 

implementation, youth outcomes can be differentiated 

across risk levels or types of needs. Objectively 

monitoring practice changes not only assures they are 

implemented as intended, but clearly demonstrates 

related court activity to stakeholders, including funders, 

policymakers, and the public.

Tell the story of 

juvenile justice

Not only can the data collected and used by courts 

tell the story of juvenile justice locally, but it can also 

contribute to the broader story of juvenile justice at the 

state and national levels. State and federal agencies 

make important funding decisions that support practice, 

policy, and research. The more resources courts invest 

in research and planning locally, the better able they will 

be to contribute high quality data to state and national 

data collections and the broader picture of juvenile 

justice. Sometimes judges hesitate to trust their court’s 

data because they are not satisfied with its quality and 

afraid that inaccurate data will paint a false picture of 

their jurisdiction. One way to improve the quality of data 

is to analyze, use, and discuss it. The more data are 

used, the better their quality will become.

This project was supported by Grant No. 2015-JF-FX-K003 

awarded by the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency 

Prevention, Office of Justice Programs, U.S. Department of 

Justice. Points of view expressed in this document are those 

of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the official 

position or policies of OJJDP or the U.S. Department of Justice.

CONTACT

Teri Deal, Senior Research Associate 

Email: tdeal@ncjfcj.org 

Phone: 412-246-0846

PROJECT DESCRIPTION

The OJJDP Juvenile Justice Model Data Project aims to 

enhance the quality and consistency of juvenile justice 

information and to increase its appropriate use in policy 

and practice decisions by providing guidance to states 

and jurisdictions on data improvements. The Model 

Data Project is a collaboration between the Office 

of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, the 

National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges, 

the National Center for Juvenile Justice, the International 

Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP), the American 

Probation and Parole Association (APPA), the Council 

of Juvenile Correctional Administrators (CJCA), the 

Performance-based Standards Learning Institute (PbS), 

and researchers from the Florida Department of Juvenile 

Justice (FLDJJ).

04

05

NATIONAL COUNCIL OF JUVENILE AND FAMILY COURT JUDGES | NATIONAL CENTER FOR JUVENILE JUSTICE

“Most judges don’t want to hear that they aren’t 

doing something very well. Our position is that 

if we know there is an issue, we can address 

it and create better outcomes. After examining 

our initial data, it was clear that our jurisdiction 

had historically had a high detention rate. Once 

we knew this was an issue, we actively learned 

how to balance the youth’s need to remain in 

the community against public safety. By using a 

structured detention assessment instrument, we 

became consistent in our detention decisions. 

This led to a significant decrease in detention and 

commitment rates. Our jurisdiction is now seen 

as a model within our state for maintaining some 

of the lowest detention and commitment rates 

without negatively impacting public safety.”

THE HONORABLE 

SHERI C. ROBERTS

CHIEF JUDGE, ALCOVY JUDICIAL CIRCUIT COURT

NEWTON & WALTON COUNTIES, GEORGIA

“

SUGGESTED CITATION

Deal, T. and Wachter, A (2017). 5 Ways Juvenile Court Judges 

Can Use Data. Pittsburgh, PA: National Center for Juvenile 

Justice.