The Interior and Justice departments released their guidelines Monday, updating a three-decade-old juvenile justice code. The update recommends that detention be a last resort for disciplining youth, especially runaways and those who may struggle with addiction or truancy.
The guidelines reflect a national shift in juvenile justice reform that has led more states to find alternatives to detention.
The Interior Department’s Bureau of Indian Affairs is required by law to establish a suggested framework for tribes for handling juvenile cases.
A tribe has final say over whether it will adopt the recommendations.
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