With its main office located at 6300 West Denton Street in Boise, Idaho, Ada County Juvenile Court Services (ACJCS) began here in 1974 with a 32-bed detention facility, 1 court room, 1 judge, 1.5 prosecutors, 1 public defender, 8 probations officers, and court support and detention staff. Over the years, the building and the services offered have undergone numerous changes and expansions. ACJCS now has several branch offices, a 71-bed detention facility, 3 courtrooms, 3 judges, 5.5 prosecutors, 1 victim/witness coordinator, 1 certified service dog (named "Sunday"), 4 public defenders, 1 criminal investigator, 35 probation officers, 25 program/counseling staff, 60 detention staff, and about 20 court support staff, collectively serving about 2,800 youth and families.
ACJCS is one of the finest juvenile courts in the country. Its mission is to provide professional services that build, reinforce, and sustain skills to enhance the lives of youth and families. As mandated by the 1995 Juvenile Corrections Act, we practice the Balanced Approach to juvenile services. The Balanced Approach requires that court staff give equal consideration to methods for holding a juvenile accountable, assessing and implementing ways to ensure protection of the community, and assisting a young person to develop pro-social skills. Prevailing over this methodology is the Victim’s Rights Amendment to the Idaho Constitution, which requires the court to provide equal or greater services to victims’ needs for restorative justice than to offenders’ court-ordered services for accountability and rehabilitation.
Links on this webpage will take you to more detailed descriptions of ACJCS and the services offered. We operate in partnership with the Ada Board of County Commissioners (Rick Yzaguirre, Dave Case, and Jim Tibbs, Commissioners), Fourth Judicial Court (Judge Timothy Hansen, Administrative Judge), Ada County Prosecutor’s Office (Greg Bower, elected Prosecuting Attorney), and Ada County Public Defender’s Office (Alan Trimming, Department Head). The presiding magistrate judges at ACJCS are Judge David D. Manweiler, Judge William Harrigfeld, and Judge Lynnette L. McHenry. The director is Janet M. Wallace.
ACJCS Report Card for 2012