Tenure: 1977–1979 Accomplishments (as cited by the administrator) Full Story Refocused the JJDPA funds to objectives of the act. Emphasized the advocacy aspects of the act: removal of status offenders from detention; least possible intervention with actual offenders; and enforcement of the formula grant contracts that the states had signed in order to receive funds through the act. Took steps [...] [...more]
1977–1979 Key Accomplishments John Rector came to OJJDP with unparalleled knowledge about how it was supposed to run, and with a fierce determination to make it run that way. Rector was one of the key architect’s of the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act (JJDPA). The agency created by that act was in its infancy when President Jimmy [...] [...more]
Rector writes about his battles as administrator in Juvenile Justice Digest, which also follows controversies in funding and focus at OJJDP after his departure. (Courtesy of John Rector) [Document Download] [...more]
With OJJDP under fire, Rector tells the House Subcommittee on Economic Opportunity that the agency has been neglected by the U.S. Department of Justice. (Courtesy of John Rector) [Document Download] [...more]
The administrator speaks to the Children’s Embassy, a gathering of youth, about the rights of young people and the determination of OJJDP to stop “business as usual” in the juvenile justice system. (Courtesy of John Rector) [Document Download] [...more]
Rector tries to explain and allay concerns about the JJDPA, especially its provisions about status offenders, and paints OJJDP as caught between those saying it is moving too quickly and those saying it is moving too slowly. Rector does not recall the precise event or group that held it; it appears to have been in [...] [...more]
This General Accounting Office investigation produces a detailed look at the early and painful struggles to implement the JJDPA. It confirms Rector’s main complaints: that many state officials were resisting implementation of key parts of the act, and that OJJDP’s efforts were hampered by a lack of support from higher-ups in the Justice Department. But [...] [...more]
This memo to the attorney general lays out the case for removing Rector, who did not know about these discussions at the time. (Courtesy of the National Archives.) [Document Download] [...more]
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