For some justice system-involved young people, shorter case processing times can reduce their chance of re-arrest

In the US juvenile justice system, the time that young people wait between arrest or referral to the final outcome of their case is largely unregulated. In new research, Abigail Novak and Elizabeth Hartsell examine the effects of case processing time on youth re-arrest rates. They find that context is important: females and low-risk youth on diversion, and detained youth with non-felony charges, and detained youth of color were all at greater risk of re-arrest the longer their case took to run its course.