JDAI Help Desk Overview

The Juvenile Detention Alternatives Initiative (JDAI) was established in 1992 by the Annie E. Casey Foundation. It supports the vision that all youth involved in the juvenile justice system have opportunities to develop into healthy, productive adults. JDAI focuses on the juvenile detention component of the juvenile justice system because youth are often unnecessarily or inappropriately detained at great expense, with long-lasting negative consequences for both public safety and youth development.

JDAI promotes changes to policies, practices, and programs to:

  • reduce reliance on secure confinement;
  • improve public safety;
  • reduce racial disparities and bias;
  • save taxpayers’ dollars; and
  • stimulate overall juvenile justice reforms.

There are now approximately 80 JDAI sites in 20 states and the District of Columbia. 

The Pretrial Justice Institute has supported JDAI’s efforts from its inception, initially providing technical assistance to JDAI’s staff and sites. Beginning in 2006, this partnership expanded when PJI took on the role of managing the JDAI Help Desk.   
The JDAI Help Desk is a practice-based, informational resource for advocates, practitioners, policymakers, and others interested in improving the detention component of their delinquency system.  Featured are materials that have been generated from sites in the course of their detention reform endeavors to achieve fairer, more effective, and more efficient juvenile justice systems. 

Visit the Help Desk at www.jdaihelpdesk.org and learn more about our work in juvenile detention reform.

View our PowerPoint presentation on PJI's partnership with JDAI.

Juvenile Justice in the News