Youth Services Bureau
The Cuyahoga Falls Police Department Youth Services Bureau has been providing a Diversion Program
since 1989 which affords juvenile misdemeanor and status offenders an alternative to Juvenile Court,
as well as acts as a liaison between parents, schools and Juvenile Court. Juveniles who qualify for the
program will be handled informally and will not have a record with the Juvenile Court. The program
goal is to reduce the chances for future criminal involvement by improving the youth’s social
adjustment by strengthening family relationships, enhancing self-esteem and improving decision
making. Parental cooperation is also essential for the youth’s participation in the Diversion Program.
The Youth Services Bureau also offers a referral service for the community, schools, parents and
juveniles to address problems, such as children who are “at-risk” for criminal involvement.
Furthermore, it serves as a child advocate for dependent, neglected and abused children.
The Youth Services Bureau operates as part of the Detective Bureau and under the authority of the
Summit County Juvenile Court. The Bureau is partially funded through a grant from the RECLAIM Ohio
Funds from the State of Ohio. Laura Nusbaum is the Youth Services Coordinator who identifies cases
where juveniles are eligible for the diversion program, schedules hearings, handles all of the hearings,
follow up calls and visits with the juveniles and their parents, insures all necessary paperwork is
delivered to Juvenile Court, collects and disperses all restitution monies and verifies juvenile
participation in community service, programs and classes.
In 2014, 527 juvenile arrests were initially referred to the Youth Services Bureau, with 502 being
referred from the City of Cuyahoga Falls and 25 cases forwarded to our department from other
agencies. From those referrals, 128 cases were accepted into the Diversion Program, 345 were
handled by the Juvenile Court, 28 were forwarded to other agencies, 1 was handled on a counsel and
release level, and 1 involved a traffic offense.
The youth involved with the diversion program are required to complete various tasks, including
community service, restitution and educational classes. School districts and police departments
throughout our county utilize our intervention classes as well. A total of 135 juveniles were referred
to the various educational classes. From those referrals, Drug and Alcohol Education had 39 students
attend; Conflict Resolution, 47; Theft, 20; Tobacco, 17; Summit County Juvenile Court’s Gun Safety, 10;
and Akron Children’s Hospital Firestoppers, 2. Community service is also assigned to many of the
youth, and this year they completed a total 2,015 hours, with 1,396 hours completed through the
Youth Services Bureau, and 619 hours that were completed privately. The Youth Services Bureau
continually expands its programming to fit the varying needs of the youth in the community.