In discussing today's trend toward harsher treatment of juveniles, the authors reveal stark statistics indicating the rise in juvenile violent crime rates. As a result, public demand for an immediate response to youth violence has sparked discussion, legislation and policy which focuses on what to do with young offenders once they have been arrested. "Risk-focused prevention" is analyzed as one innovative method of preventing and treating juvenile delinquency. This approach views specific developmental and environmental factors as creating an increased risk for delinquent or destructive behavior among youth.

The authors' treatment of the role of the judge in the rehabilitation of delinquents and in the prevention of delinquency is thought provoking. Because the judge is at the center of what happens to youth accused of crime, the judge's role has a determinative effect in the life of the young offender. Accordingly, the article urges that judges not only have a thorough understanding of the dispositional alternatives authorized by law, but also to effectively utilize the treatment services and resources available through private and public agencies. Using innovative programs for prevention and treatment, judges can turn those potentially or actually delinquent children into productive citizens of our society.