The purpose of diversion is to help offenders understand that their actions have consequences, yet allow them to continue on with their adolescent lives, while providing education and tools to equip them for making better decisions down the road. The benefit of successfully completing the outlined diversion program is that the alleged charge(s) would be dismissed against the juvenile. Therefore, the juvenile has hopefully learned appropriate skills to avoid future incidents without it affecting their juvenile record. Diversion is an alternative to juvenile court. With that being said, if you decide diversion is not to your liking or opt out of diversion, our office must proceed with formal prosecution in a court setting. Prior to making your decision to participate in the diversion program, state law requires that you be notified of your rights, as follows:

• You have the right to an attorney, if you cannot afford one, the Court may appoint one for you. If appointed, the attorney would be paid for by Brown County, but you would be expected to pay the county back.
• You have the right deny the allegations and ask for a trial. If this occurs, the State would petition the offense in juvenile Court; the State would then be required to prove the allegations beyond a reasonable doubt. Your child could not be required to testify and the judge could not use that against him or her.

Our hours of operation are 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. Monday through Friday (excluding Holidays)