DMC/Travis County, Texas

Through a cooperative agreement with the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP), an agency of the US Department of Justice, CCLP is working to advance data collection and enhance reduction of Disproportionate Minority Contact (DMC) with the juvenile justice system for Latino youth. Researchers historically have failed to count accurately the numbers of Latino youth involved in the juvenile justice system.

CCLP has been engaged in a project in Travis County, Texas (Austin) to explore improved data gathering and implement new strategies to reduce DMC. There, the Juvenile Probation Department undertook careful analysis of numerous points of contact with the juvenile justice system and determined that Latino and African-American youth were detained disproportionately for probation violations. Through a process of file review, interviews, and other fact-gathering, CCLP analyzed the system and provided recommendations for potential interventions. The Department is now embarking upon a project to increase the availability of intensive supervision for probation violators as an alternative to incarceration. CCLP will continue to work with the Department to analyze outcomes and report to stakeholders about the data and interventions.