Juvenile services director warns of placement shortages, urges timely diversion and local supports

Erica (Juvenile Department director) told the county’s special meeting that the juvenile department’s mission is to protect the community by holding youth accountable in fair, developmentally appropriate ways while providing services that support positive change.

She described the intake process, including the Juvenile Crime Prevention (JCP) risk assessment used to determine whether youth are eligible for diversion, and stressed that timely responses matter: prolonged delays between intake and case resolution can undercut the effectiveness of interventions. "When you are prolonging that for 8, 9, 10, 12 months...it kind of loses its impact," Erica said.

Erica highlighted prevention and restitution programs the department runs, noting they keep many youth from escalating to the Oregon Youth Authority (OYA). She said roughly 93 percent of cases in 2024 did not proceed to OYA commitment, a figure she presented as evidence of the department’s effect in keeping youth out of long-term commitment.

A major budget risk, Erica warned, is the possible closure or reduced capacity at regional detention facilities (Deschutes County and Norcor were cited). She said those two are assessing whether to remain open; if the county must place youth in more distant facilities the nightly per-bed cost could rise substantially (she cited examples around $400 per night), which would significantly affect the juvenile services budget.

Next steps: The juvenile department’s materials will be folded into the county’s living core-services packet for annual review. No formal board action was requested at this meeting; staff and board members discussed local placement models and community feedback.