LD1779, An Act to Prevent Youth Involvement in the Juvenile Justice System by Establishing a Strength-based, Discretionary Juvenile Needs Assessment Program, was enacted by the legislature but failed to receive needed funding. That bill would have created a paradigm shift for youth justice in Maine, shifting accountability from control and punishment to prevention. This bill would provide law enforcement discretion to refer young people in Maine to strengths-based needs assessments from the Department of Health and Human Services and pair the youth and their families with support and services rather than getting them involved with the criminal justice and carceral systems. The passage of LD1779, sponsored by Rep. Grayson Lookner, was a significant victory in attempts to reform Maine’s juvenile justice system and a new bill is sure to return to a new Legislature in advocacy led by Maine Youth Justice.