Boone County News Release

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Boone County 13th Judicial Circuit Receives Disproportionate Minority Contact Award

October 28, 2016

The 13th Judicial Circuit Family Court Disproportionate Minority Contact (DMC) Steering Committee received an award from the Missouri Juvenile Justice Association's (MJJA) State Disproportionate Minority Contact Steering Committee and the Missouri Juvenile Justice Advisory Group (JJAG) for its work addressing DMC. Courtney Pulley, DMC Coordinator, received the award on behalf of the 13th Judicial Circuit yesterday at the MJJA Fall Conference luncheon in Osage Beach, MO.

According to the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, Disproportionate Minority Contact (DMC) occurs when the number of minority youth who come into contact with the juvenile justice system is significantly different from the rate of contact for non-minority youth. The DMC Steering Committee of the 13th Circuit focuses on this issue in Boone and Callaway Counties; collaborates regularly with the state DMC Coordinator; works toward a data-based understanding of DMC; identifies strategies to reduce DMC based on that data; and measures the results of these strategies.

In the email regarding the award, the MJJA DMC steering committee and JJAG reviewed the entirety of the 13th Judicial Circuit's Steering Committee's work through the last several years and found it evidenced a commitment to the work. MJJA further found that the 13th Judicial Circuit's work with community partners demonstrated the importance it places on reducing the disproportionality of treatment of juveniles.

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