Juvenile Office

Our Mandate:

The Jasper County Juvenile Office’s mandate, as defined by Missouri Revised Statutes, § 211.011 is to “provide the care, protection, and discipline of children who come within the jurisdiction of the juvenile court. Each child coming within the jurisdiction of the juvenile court shall receive such care, guidance and control as will conduce to the child’s welfare and the best interests of the state, and that when such child is removed from the control of his parents, the court shall secure for him care as nearly as possible equivalent to that which should have been given him by them”

Under the direction of the Chief Juvenile Officer, the Juvenile Office deals with children under the age of seventeen who have committed a violation of the law (referred as delinquency); runaways, out of parental control, behaviors which are injurious to self of others, or habitually truant from school (referred to as status behavior). Additionally, the Office handles cases of child abuse and neglect cases within the county which require court intervention. The Juvenile Office is designed to provide protection, treatment and rehabilitation.  Children are not treated as criminals, but as persons needing care, education, protection and guidance.

The Juvenile Office of the 29th Judicial Circuit is organized into six units; Intake, Probation/Informal Supervision, Child Abuse and Neglect, School-Justice, Legal Services, and Clinical Services.

Juvenile Office Management Team

Steven D. Norman
Chief Juvenile Officer

Rebecca Hutchison
Chief Deputy Juvenile Officer

Richard Freitas
Clinical Director