How It Works
When a complaint is filed against a youth, the Cuyahoga County Prosecutor’s Office will determine if a youth is eligible for the Youth Diversion Program. If eligible, they will forward the youth’s information to the Cuyahoga County Juvenile Court’s Early Intervention and Diversion Center (EIDC) where the staff will complete risk/needs assessments on each youth.
The EIDC staff will then refer the youth to the Youth Diversion Program. The Youth Diversion Program staff will contact the parent/guardian and offer the program to them; participation is voluntary. Each youth that agrees to participate will attend a diversion meeting with their assigned caseworker. At the diversion meeting, the caseworker will give the youth accountability-based assignments to complete and also refer them to community resources as needed. Once a youth completes their assignments, their case is closed out of the diversion program and the EIDC staff is notified.