Pennsylvania’s Juvenile Justice Task Force can help the state’s youth and save money Each year, about 18,000 kids in the state of Pennsylvania [1] have some type of contact with the criminal justice system. Most of these young people are in trouble for relatively minor behaviors, like failing to pay a court-ordered fine or a fee, shoplifting, disorderly conduct or possession of drugs. For youth adjudicated in Pennsylvania’s juvenile courts, the most common outcome is formal probation. This is the case even though While putting kids on probation may not seem like a big deal, research shows [3] probation isn’t effective for low-risk kids and is often a pathway to deeper criminal justice system involvement. Formal probation comes with close supervision and a long list of conditions. For many kids, this means more opportunities to miss appointments and make mistakes. Indeed,