Kenosha County juvenile court intake director outlines caseload trends, detention costs and budget pressures

Mary Beyer, director of juvenile court intake for Kenosha County, told county supervisors at a recent meeting that her office serves as "the gatekeeper for the juvenile court," screening agency referrals and deciding whether cases proceed to the district attorney or are diverted through deferred prosecution agreements.

The presentation summarized intake caseloads, diversion practices and out-of-county detention use, and flagged budget pressures from varying per-diem detention rates. Beyer described the office's 24/7 custody intake role, staffing and how deferred prosecution agreements (DPAs) work.

Beyer said referrals for delinquency in 2024 totaled 268 (a count that may include duplicated youth who had multiple referrals in one year). She reported that truancy-related referrals have risen in the first four months of the year and tied at least some of that increase to redrawn school boundaries that left some younger students without reliable busing. "We did a lot of deferred prosecution agreements with those families and are working with the Unified," she said, adding the county met with the school district to discuss transportation concerns.

On child-protection referrals, Beyer said CHIPS ("child in need of protection and services") referrals are down, which she…