Bringing restorative justice to adolescent substance abuse.

Source: (2001) Special issue of Youth & Society 33 (December). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.

This special issue of Youth & Society collects a number of articles that address issues of adolescent substance abuse in relation to principles and practices of restorative justice. Cases involving substance-abusing youth offenders increasingly occupy the attention and resources of the juvenile justice system. Courts deal more and more with youth problems that would once have been handled in community settings through youth agencies and treatment facilities. In view of this situation, the purpose for this special issue is to inform academicians and practitioners about the extent of the substance abuse problem, the need for more and better treatment, the response of the justice system, and new approaches to deal with the justice and treatment needs of youthful offenders and their communities. Articles cover a number of matters: the effectiveness of adolescent substance abuse treatment models; juvenile justice in a “get-toughâ€? era; restorative justice as a theory for informal social control and social support; restorative justice and a new criminal law of substance abuse; restorative justice in school communities; restorative justice and the pro-social communities solution; community justice; and restorative justice and substance abuse.