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Oklahoma Administrative Code (Last Updated: March 11, 2021) |
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TITLE 377. Office of Juvenile Affairs |
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Chapter 1. Function and Structure of the Office of Juvenile Affairs |
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Subchapter 1. Function and Structure of the Office of Juvenile Affairs |
SECTION 377:1-1-3. Description of the Office of Juvenile Affairs (OJA)
Latest version.
- (a) History. The Office of Juvenile Affairs (OJA) was created on July 1, 1995, as a result of legislation enacting the Oklahoma Juvenile Code.(b) Organization. The Office of Juvenile Affairs consists of programs providing services to juveniles involved in the juvenile justice system and administrative components which provide administrative support.(1) Office of the Executive Director.(A) Within the Office of Juvenile Affairs, programs and divisions which report directly to the Executive Director include, but are not limited to, the:(i) Office of Public Integrity;(ii) Division of the Advocate Defender; and(iii) Office of General Counsel Service;(B) The Executive Director of OJA is designated by the Governor as the Interstate Compact Liaison.(C) Additional responsibilities of the Executive Director are listed in OAC 377: 1-1-11.(D) The Executive Director shall establish divisions within OJA in addition to those required by law and may employ staff as necessary to perform the duties of the Office of Juvenile Affairs as authorized by statute. Organizational charts are available upon request from the Office of the Executive Director.(2) Division of Community-based Youth Services. The Division of Community-based Youth Services operates under the authority of 10A O.S., §§ 2-7-202, 2-7-303, 2-7-305 and 2-7-306.(3) Advocate Defender Division. The Advocate Defender Division is a Division of the OJA established by 10A O.S., § 2-7-302. Compliance with Oklahoma statutes is obtained by assignment of the Advocate Defenders to the OJA institutions. The Division of Advocate Defender shall be separate and apart from the Office of General Counsel.(4) Support Services Division. The Support Services Division shall provide centralized support function for the Office of Juvenile Affairs.(5) Financial Services Division. The Financial Services Division shall provide the centralized accounting, procurement, reporting, and budgeting for OJA.(6) Institutional Services Division. The Institutional Services Division shall be responsible for all secure institutional services.(7) Juvenile Services Division. The Juvenile Services Division shall be responsible for intake, probation and parole services, supervision and placement of juveniles.(8) Office of the Parole Board. The Office of the Parole Board shall have responsibilities as set forth in 377:5.(c) Purpose/mission. The purpose of the Office of Juvenile Affairs as stated in Title 10A O.S., § 2-1-102, is to promote the public safety and reduce delinquency. To execute the purpose of the statutes, OJA has developed its mission to include:(1) protection of the public from juvenile offenders;(2) prevention of juvenile delinquency;(3) implementation of programs ensuring accountability of juveniles for their behavior; and(4) involvement of the community in creating and implementing solutions to juvenile delinquency and establishing individual accountability.