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Judge: Delaware County withdraws from state juvenile-detention initiative; sets new automatic-detain criteria
Summary
Delaware County will stop participating in the state juvenile-detention alternatives initiative and has designated new offenses for automatic detention, officials said. County leaders plan a stakeholder meeting to redesign the detention-screening tool.
A judge and juvenile-probation leadership told commissioners Monday that Delaware County withdrew from the state'run Juvenile Detention Alternatives Initiative (JDAI) effective Feb. 21, 2025, and that the county is changing detention routing and screening practices.
Judge Andrew Ramirez (as introduced) and juvenile justice stakeholders said the decision to withdraw from JDAI followed local discussions and was intended to let the county focus on local partnerships and locally tailored initiatives. The judge said the juvenile probation department, juvenile board and court participated in the decision.
Effective immediately, county policy will treat three categories of juvenile offenses as presumptively requiring detention at arrest: dangerous possession of a firearm, resisting law enforcement in a vehicle, and specified felony-level battery offenses (including battery causing moderate bodily injury, battery of a pregnant woman, battery with a deadly weapon and battery on a public-safety official).
The judge said the decision was made for safety reasons for juveniles, law enforcement and the public. Commissioners and stakeholders agreed to convene community stakeholders, probation, prosecutor, public defender and commissioners to redesign the local detention-screening tool used to assess whether a juvenile should be held in detention.
Next steps
County leaders said they will set a convening with stakeholders to review and revise the screening instrument and will coordinate timelines for public and partner input. No formal ordinance or funding decision was announced at the meeting.
