Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention
The Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) is an office of the United States Department of Justice and a component of the Office of Justice Programs.
OJJDP sponsors research, program, and training initiatives; develops priorities and goals and sets policies to guide federal juvenile justice issues. OJJDP also disseminates information about juvenile justice issues and awards funds to states to support local programming nationwide through the office's five organizational components.
The office cooperates with other federal agencies on special projects. For example, it formed the National Gang Center along with the Office of Justice Programs (OJP) and the Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA). The OJJDP has the National Youth Gang Center linked through the National Gang Center.[1]
The office is headed by Acting Administrator Melodee Hanes. Before serving as counselor to the acting administrator, Hanes spent 16years as a deputy county attorney in Des Moines, Iowa, and Billings, Mont., primarily prosecuting child abuse, sexual assault and homicide cases. She has trained child protection investigators and served as an adjunct professor of law at Drake University, where she taught child abuse law, forensic medicine and forensic law. Hanes is a graduate of Drake University Law School.
OJJDP, a component of the Office of Justice Programs (OJP), supports states, local communities and tribal jurisdictions in their efforts to develop and implement effective programs for juveniles. The office strives to strengthen the juvenile justice system’s efforts to protect public safety, hold offenders accountable and provide services that address the needs of youth and their families. Through its components, OJJDP sponsors research; program and training initiatives; develops priorities and goals; sets policies to guide federal juvenile justice issues; disseminates information about juvenile justice issues, and awards funds to states to support local programming.