15th District Court Unit
Mission
Our mission is a commitment to excellence in public safety through the provision of an “integrated approach” by providing effective interventions that modify delinquent behavior, meet the needs of offenders and victims, improve the lives of youth and strengthen families within Stafford County while managing our activities and resources in a responsible and proactive manner.
Who Are We?
Juvenile Intake
- Intake services are provided 24 hours a day. Receive, review and process both civil and criminal matters for the Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court.
Investigations and Reports
- Social histories make up the majority of the reports that Court Services Unit (CSU) personnel complete. These court-ordered investigations describe the social adjustment of youth before the court and provide timely, relevant and accurate data for dispositional decisions.
Domestic Relations
- Provide intake services and drug screens for domestic relations complaints.
Probation & Parole Services
- Focuses resources on those juvenile offenders with the highest risk of reoffending by addressing the individual criminogenic/risk factors that contribute to the initiation and continuation of delinquent behavior.
Electronic Incarceration Program
- Provides a cost-effective alternative to secure detention for juvenile offenders without an increased risk to public safety.
Budget Summary
Funded Positions
Notable Changes
Personnel
- 2.25% Pay Scale Adjustment
- 2.75% Salary Increase
- Workers Compensation Increase
- Increase Vacancy Savings
- Decrease in the Health Insurance Budget
Operating
- Restore 10% of FY2021 budget reductions
Goals/Objectives
- System-identified juveniles will be deterred from committing new offenses for public safety.
- Only juveniles that are at high risk to public safety are placed in secure detention and appropriate juveniles are diverted from the court for public safety and service excellence.
- Unit operations will be consistent with the Code of Virginia, the Department of Juvenile Justice standards, the Court Service Unit Policy and Procedures Manual and all applicable policy and procedures for service excellence.
- Demonstrates excellence in leadership and stay on cutting edge of evidenced based practices for education.
Service Levels
- CSU records reflected 93.3% of probation/parolees (14 of 15) successfully discharged between October 2019 and October 2020 indicative of having completed all treatment and court ordered obligations, not warranting additional supervision by the adult system, enrolled into school and/or gainfully employed.
- CSU records reflected 81.1% of probation/parolees (30 of 37) were successful under supervision as were not charged with any new offenses while under supervision between October 2019 and September 2020.
- Per Community Insight’s Intake Offenses by Decision, between 10/01/19 and 09/30/20 the unit diverted on average 90.1% of identified divertible cases (35.5% of 39.4%). Of those cases diverted from the court, 91.5% successfully fulfilled contract obligations (140 of 153).
- Per community Insights, between 10/01/19 and 09/30/20 the unit completed 126 DAIs. Unit personnel reflected Detention Assessment Instrument override rate of 14.8% for DAIs resulting in detention (4 of 27) meeting Department of Juvenile Justice (DJJ) targeted rate of less than 15%.