Hubbard County Juvenile Diversion Program

Juvenile diversion, or the intentional decision to address unlawful behavior outside of the formal juvenile justice system, has long been in practice in the state of Minnesota. In 1995, a provision to establish at least one juvenile diversion program in each Minnesota county became a uniform requirement under Minnesota Statute § 388.24. This legislation further solidified diversion in Minnesota as both a cost-saving measure and a pro-social, community-based response to youth offending.  While statute specifies the purpose of diversion and establishes minimum eligibility criteria, most aspects of juvenile diversion programming and service delivery in Minnesota are left to individual counties to determine. With 87 counties diversion can vary widely, including which youth receive diversion, what agency oversees programming, conditions necessary to complete diversion and services offered.