Lexington Books Patching Up the Cracks: A Case Study of Juvenile Court Reform

In Patching Up the Cracks Michael D. Grimes evaluates the American juvenile court system, specifically looking at its ability to address child abuse and neglect cases. This project is both a specific case study focusing on the Orleans Parish Juvenile Court in New Orleans, Louisiana, and a discussion of the need to examine the juvenile court system within its larger social and institutional context. Grimes persuasively argues that in order to better evaluate the potential for juvenile court reform, it is crucial to understand the health of the larger community environment within which the court system operates. The book begins with a chronological overview of the evolution of children's rights and a brief history of juvenile justice in America, culminating in a thoroughgoing assessment of its current status. Grimes concludes with a discussion of the need for more adequate studies-researchers and students will appreciate the discussion of his own research design and methodology-of the ways that juvenile courts treat dependency cases and the processes through which these courts can improve their performance. Review In this case study of the Orleans Parish Juvenile Court, Michael Grimes offers a comprehensive and insightful view of the operations of an overburdened and underfunded court system. Focusing on abuse and neglect cases, he looks beyond litigation as the agent of social reform to assess the juvenile court system within the context of social and institutional factors that affect its operations and play a role in attempts at reform.--Susan Gluck Mezey, Loyola University, ChicagoPatching Up the Cracks: A Case Study of Juvenile Court Reform is an excellent addition to the juvenile justice literature. It is a thoughtful, innovative evaluation of the process of reform in one court, but it is much more than a one-court book. Because author Michael Grimes anchors his study in a larger historical, political, and social context, the study illuminates issues common to many American juvenile justice systems. Grimes lays out a methodology for conducting evaluation and doing case study analysis that provides a valuable model for future research as well as methodology courses. The book is written with a clarity that makes it accessible to a wide range of readers.--Anne Rankin Mahoney, University of Denver About the Author Michael D. Grimes is Professor of Sociology at Louisana State University.