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CONFIDENTIALITY OF YOUTH RECORDS
Establishment of protective measures for guarding the privacy of youthful offenders can be traced to the separation of juvenile courts from criminal court systems, which included the idea of keeping juvenile proceedings and records private.
Juvenile records reflect both the legal and social history of a youth, based on the juvenile's contact with various state and local agencies and service providers. Social history records often include information about a youth's family and academic records and any history of abuse or neglect or problems with drug and alcohol use. Legal records include information relating to court proceedings involving the juvenile and information introduced and used as evidence. These records include petitions, complaints, motions, court findings, and court orders.
Recent state action has recognized that many agencies that serve children may be better equipped to do so if provided with comprehensive access to a youth's records. Policy initiatives that support this idea include expanding access to juvenile records to youth corrections personnel, to courts, and to other state agencies, and school officials in some cases.
