Placement Review Hearings & Step-Down Decisions

Pipeline 08A

Transparency note: review hearing cohorts can be small and schedules vary by jurisdiction. We pool low-n months and annotate series breaks when review cadence or criteria change.

Overview

During residential placement, courts or administrative panels periodically review youth progress and consider transitions to less-restrictive settings. Decisions balance safety, program completion, and continuity of education and health services. This page documents measurable elements of the review process and the criteria used to authorize step-downs and supervised community reentry.

What We Track

Commitment Thresholds & Decision Factors

Policy standards & judicial discretion; tool-guided recommendations (risk/needs, clinical screens)
Offense severity & prior history balanced with program availability/capacity
Least restrictive alternative; proximity to home/school considered and documented
Equity impacts (race/disability disparities; rural access constraints) coded for review

Placement Types (Chosen Program)

State secure facilities (high-security commitments; specialized units)
County post-adjudication programs (shorter LOS; step-down pathways)
Contracted residential: staff-secure or non-secure aligned to risk/needs
Therapeutic group homes (small settings; treatment focus; education continuity)

Length of Stay & Step-Down

Expected vs. actual LOS (mean/median; IQR)
Earned milestones (treatment phases, credits) tied to step-down criteria
Movement to less-restrictive settings or community aftercare documented

Continuity of Education & Care

Records transfer completed (education & health packets)
IEP/504 services continued; credit accrual tracked monthly
MH/SUD treatment handoffs (plan, meds reconciliation, appointments)

Parole / Aftercare & Reentry

Typical supervision length (e.g., 3–9 months) with planned step-downs
Coach/Case Manager model: re-enrollment in school, MH/SUD follow-through, IDs/docs, transport support
Outcome checks at 30/90/180/365 days where feasible

Typical Flow

Commitment decision documented with least-restrictive rationale and program match
- Record thresholds, tool guidance, and any judicial overrides (with rationale)
Placement selection & admission (state/county/contracted/group home)
- Complete intake; launch education & health baselines; set family contact plan
Treatment & education with scheduled case reviews
- Track credits, treatment milestones, and incident/safety metrics
Step-down planning initiated early (e.g., 30–60 days)
- Coordinate community providers & probation; identify housing/school placement
Release & aftercare handoff
- Schedule post-release appointments; transmit records; set 7/14/30-day follow-ups

Fields

Field	Type	Required	Codeset	Description
pipeline_place_id	uuid	✅	—	Unique identifier for this review/decision record.
pipeline_stage_id	enum	✅	stages.yml#stage_key(8) intake detention adjudication disposition supervision commitment_and_placement reentry closure	One of the eight canonical stages.
pipeline_place_key	enum	✅	pipeline_places.yml#place_key(45) intake pre_petition_diversion_and_deflection diversion youth_assessment_tools prosecutorial_screening status_offenses adjudication case_planning family_engagement case_timeliness language_access restorative_justice detention_screening community_atds electronic_monitoring court_appearance_and_fta initial_hearing pretrial_supervision probation intensive_supervision …and 25 more	Canonical key for this place (maps to route/slug).
youth_id	string	✅	—	Salted/hashed or state UID. No plaintext PII.
staff_id	string		—	Lead reviewer or presenting officer (admin review) or court liaison.
occurred_datetime	datetime	✅	—	Timestamp the decision was recorded (administrative or court).
jurisdiction_code	string	✅	—	County/parish/circuit or standardized local code.
legal_case_id	string		—	Case/docket identifier associated with the placement.
source_system	string	✅	—	Origin system name.
source_file	string		—	Source batch/file id if flatfile.
extract_run_id	string		—	ETL run id for lineage.
series_break_flag	boolean		—	Comparability break applies to this row.
series_break_reason	enum		series_breaks.yml#reason(4) definition_change vendor_change coverage_change policy_change	Reason for break (policy/tool change, threshold update).
review_type_code	enum	✅	review_types.yml#type(4) administrative_review court_hearing multidisciplinary_team other	administrative_review, court_hearing, multidisciplinary_team, other.
review_scheduled_date	date		—	Date the review/hearing was scheduled to occur.
hearing_datetime	datetime		—	Actual court/board hearing timestamp (if review_type_code = court_hearing).
panel_role_codes	array<string>		roles.yml#actor_role(7) Intake_Officer Prosecutor Defender Probation_Officer Case_Manager Facility_Staff Coach_Reentry	Roles participating (judge, po, clinician, educator, caregiver, youth); semicolon-delimited.
commitment_threshold_codes	array<string>		commitment_thresholds.yml#threshold(6) risk_needs_threshold offense_severity_threshold prior_history_threshold clinical_screen_threshold capacity_constraint other	Policy thresholds referenced at review; semicolon-delimited.
tool_guidance_code	enum		tool_guidance.yml#guidance(4) place community either not_applicable	Tool-guided recommendation (place, community, either, not_applicable).
least_restrictive_rationale_note	string		—	Documented rationale considering proximity/home/school.
equity_impact_codes	array<string>		equity_impacts.yml#impact(3) race_disparity_flag disability_flag rural_access_flag	Flags for race/disability/rural access concerns; semicolon-delimited.
milestone_evidence_codes	array<string>		placement_milestones.yml#milestone(5) education_credit treatment_phase skill_certificate behavior_tier other	Evidence used (treatment_phase, credits, behavior_tier); semicolon-delimited.
expected_los_days	integer		—	Expected LOS remaining at time of review.
actual_los_days	integer		—	Actual LOS elapsed at time of review.
step_decision_code	enum	✅	step_decisions.yml#decision(7) approved_step_down continue_current continue_intensive step_up transfer release_to_aftercare administrative_closure	approved_step_down, continue_current, step_up, transfer, release_to_aftercare.
decision_basis_codes	array<string>		step_decision_bases.yml#basis(9) risk_reduced milestones_met safety_concern noncompliance capacity family_ready housing_ready education_ready other	Reasons supporting decision (risk_reduced, milestones_met, safety_concern, noncompliance, capacity, family_ready, housing_ready); semicolon-delimited.
override_flag	boolean		—	Departure from tool/policy grid occurred.
override_reason_code	enum		overrides.yml#reason(4) safety_exception capacity_constraint policy_exception supervisor_override	Rationale for override (clinical_judgment, safety_exception, etc.).
override_approver_staff_id	string		—	Approver for override (if policy requires).
new_security_level_code	enum		security_levels.yml#level(3) staff_secure hardware_secure community_residential	Security level after decision (if changed).
step_destination_code	enum		step_down_destinations.yml#destination(5) aftercare community_program probation home other	aftercare, community_program, probation, home, different_program, other.
effective_start_datetime	datetime		—	When the new level/destination takes effect.
education_records_transfer_flag	boolean		—	Education packet/records prepared for transition.
health_records_transfer_flag	boolean		—	Health/meds packet prepared for transition.
iep_504_continuity_flag	boolean		—	IEP/504 continuity confirmed with next setting.
mh_sud_followup_appointment_date	date		—	First community BH appointment scheduled date, if releasing/stepping down.
aftercare_model_code	enum		aftercare_models.yml#model(4) coach_case_manager parole_officer hybrid_model other	coach_case_manager, parole_officer, hybrid_model, other.
aftercare_followup_due_codes	array<string>		followup_windows.yml#window(4) followup_30d followup_90d followup_180d followup_365d	Due windows to check outcomes (30d, 90d, 180d, 365d); semicolon-delimited.
Download CSVwhat_we_track.csv

Data & Methods

Rates may be normalized to the 12–17 population; when n is small, pool across 2–3 years with annotations. Mark series breaks when reporting systems, definitions, or program mixes change. Summarize LOS and step-down timings with medians and interquartile ranges to reduce skew. Apply small-n suppression and include comparability notes when facility types or security levels differ across sites.

Indicators use placement-based denominators and event timestamps for review dates and decisions. Eligibility→decisiontimeliness measures the days between meeting step-down criteria and formal approval. Progress is summarized using program-specific completion flags and education credit accrual. When program models or review cadence change, we mark series breaks. Equity analyses follow conventions in Cross-Jurisdiction Comparability, and exposure adjustments follow Denominators & Exposure Time. Small-n suppression and documentation standards align with Suppression & Small-n and Metadata & Documentation.

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