Juvenile Services

The main difference between the Juvenile and Adult systems is the concept of rehabilitation. Washoe County Juvenile Services is committed to helping youthful offenders better themselves by offering a multitude of services and accountability. While community protection is of the utmost importance, youthful offenders are an important part of that community and as such deserve all the resources available to them. 

Learn more about juvenile case processing or JDAI (Juvenile Detention Alternatives Initiative) within our department.

The Department of Juvenile Services, upon completion of a Release of Juvenile Legal History form, can only provide the legal history to the requesting person, if they are 18 years or older.  If the requestor is under the age of 18 the youth's parents or legal guardians need to complete the form.  Forms are available at Jan Evans Juvenile Justice Center.  All forms must be notarized prior to or at time of submission (free notary services are available at Juvenile Services).  Please allow up to two weeks to process these requests. 

If you need more detailed juvenile records, such as police reports you will need to contact the Self Help Center at washoecourts.com to request a court order for release of this information.

Due to confidentiality, police reports cannot be released by this department. You may however contact the District Attorney`s office at 328-3200 to request a copy.

We have several types of court hearings at the Jan Evans Juvenile Justice Center.

Detention Hearings:

If a youth was arrested and detained they are required by law to have a hearing before the Juvenile Court the following business day to determine if they will remain detained in Wittenberg Hall or if they can be released, or released on house arrest or electronic monitoring.  Detention hearings are held:

Juvenile Traffic Court:

If a youth has received a citation for a minor traffic offense, they will be summoned to appear with one or both parents before the Juvenile Traffic Master.  The hearings are held throughout the business week.  The summons sent to you will have the date and time you need to appear at Juvenile Traffic Court.  If you have lost your paperwork, contact our Juvenile Traffic Office at 325-7901.

Juvenile Court Hearing and Trials:

All other court hearings or trails are set by the Juvenile Court.  Court is held every business day. If you have lost your paperwork, contact your assigned probation officer at 325-7800.  It is your responsibility to attend your court hearing. There are no excuses allowed for missing court.

Most juvenile records are confidential and cannot be accessed by others. Juvenile records can be sealed under certain circumstances. If you would like further information please see visit the Public Defender's  website.