Tribe: Minnesota Chippewa Tribe, Minnesota - Leech Lake Band
4-1.B. Purpose.
The Juvenile Justice Code shall be liberally interpreted and construed to fulfill the
following expressed purposes:
1. To preserve and retain the unity of the family whenever possible and to
provide for the care, protection, and wholesome mental and physical
development of children coming within the provisions of this code;
2. To remove from children committing juvenile offenses, the legal
consequences of criminal behavior and to substitute therefore a program of
supervision, care, and rehabilitation consistent with the protection of the
Leech Lake Community;
3. To achieve the purposes of this code in a family environment whenever
possible, separating the child from the child’s parents only when necessary for
the child’s welfare or in the interests of public safety;
4. To provide judicial and other procedures through which the provisions of this
code are executed and enforced and in which the parties are assured a fair
hearing and their civil and other legal rights recognized and enforced;
5. To provide a continuum of services for children and their families from
prevention to residential treatment, with emphasis whenever possible on
prevention, early intervention and community-based alternatives; and;
6. To provide a fornm where an Indian child charged to be “delinquent” or a
“status offender” in other jurisdictions may be referred for adjudication and/or
disposition.
7. To recognize that alcohol and substance abuse is a disease that is both
preventable and treatable.
8. To recognize and acknowledge the tribal customs and traditions of the Leech
Lake Ojibwe and to utilize the same whenever applicable to promote the wellbeing
oflndian children who come before the Juvenile Division.
9. To provide for culturally specific programming whenever possible.