A police reference manual on crime prevention and diversion with youth.

Source: (1996) Ottawa: Canadian Research Institute for Law and the Family; Solicitor General Canada.

This manual is intended for front-line police officers and senior police managers. The focus is on youth because the majority of persistent adult offenders begin committing offences as youth. The aim is to assist police in taking proactive approaches to prevent and respond to youth crime. Some sections of the manual deal more with conceptual and policy issues that may be of more interest to police managers. Other sections deal more with practical issues concerning the role of the front-line officer in crime prevention and diversion. The manual begins with an introduction treating the need for prevention strategy, the purpose of the manual, challenges for police agencies, the emerging role of front-line officers, and the themes and organization of the manual. Subsequent chapters cover the following subjects: understanding youth crime; the legal basis for the use of police discretion and diversion; a conceptual framework for crime prevention; models of diversion in other countries; a conceptual framework for diversion; police involvement in crime prevention and diversion programs with youth; and police involvement in tertiary crime prevention (prevention focusing on youth who have already committed a crime). A bibliography and an appendix (identifying selected resources and materials) complete the manual