North Carolina Advanced Juvenile Defense Program

The North Carolina Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC), in partnership with The North Carolina Office of Indigent Defense Services (IDS) and the North Carolina Office of Juvenile Defender (OJD), will implement a Juvenile Defense Equal Access Project (JDEAP) in twenty-eight counties with the following goals: 1) address the unique challenges in small and rural jurisdictions; 2) increase the number of attorneys in rural areas who specialize in representing youth; 3) increase the knowledge and skills of defense attorneys in order to provide consistent, high-quality legal representation to youth in juvenile and superior courts; 4) develop accessible written informational resources; and, 5) create the opportunity for a multi-disciplinary approach to address changes in court processes and procedures pertaining to Raise the Age (RtA) legislation.  OJD will use certified Juvenile Training Immersion Program (JTIP) trainers, juvenile public defenders, juvenile contracted attorneys and other license professionals to carry out this initiative through a blend of live and online training models.