The Juvenile Detention Alternatives Initiative (JDAI) is a juvenile justice system improvement initiative that was developed by the Annie E. Casey Foundation and has been proven effective over the past two decades in over 200 jurisdictions across the nation.  The philosophy of JDAI is to serve the right youth, in the right place, at the right time, emphasizing the goal of objectively identifying the least restrictive next step available while ensuring community safety.  One of the most important components of JDAI is collaboration.  The philosophy and process transition towards JDAI does not happen overnight nor does it occur with just one person or a single agency.  A successful JDAI process includes all components of the juvenile justice system and the community working towards a common goal of ensuring the best possible outcome for youth.

JDAI is based upon eight core, interconnected strategies that address the primary reasons why youth are unnecessarily or inappropriately detained. These core strategies are: Collaboration, Collecting and Analyzing Data, Objective Admissions and Use of Detention, Alternatives to Detention (ATD), Case Processing, Special Detention Cases, Disproportionate Minority Contact (DMC), and Conditions of Confinement.

JDAI has been implemented in Minnehaha County and Pennington County in South Dakota since 2011. Since that time, both sites have achieved remarkable results, closely mirroring other successful jurisdictions nationwide. Because of this noted success, the JDAI philosophy will begin to expand to other areas around South Dakota.

In order to begin the process of expanding the JDAI philosophy to other areas around South Dakota, a diverse group of individuals were appointed to the Statewide JDAI Steering Committee by the Chief Justice and began meeting in April 2014. The purpose of the Committee is to review available data and proved recommendations for effective statewide expansion of the Initiative. The Statewide JDAI Steering Committee identified that the goals for implementation were to ensure that all seven Circuits in South Dakota have the necessary resources, tools, and training to implement the JDAI principles, values, and goals; and, that all seven court circuits are implementing JDAI core strategies with fidelity to the model.