The Michigan Juvenile Detention Association will continue to be a national leader in promoting and sustaining of exemplary juvenile detention, residential treatment, and community based services for youth and their families.
The Michigan Juvenile Detention Association is committed to the highest standard of professional ethics, overall excellence in the care and custody of youth, and the provision of services to their families.
All in Ideas and Opinions
WASHINGTON — A white board with a giant illustration of the human brain sat in the middle of the room, a constant reminder, participants said, that any real attempts to treat juvenile offenders begins not with detention or tough love, but with science.
Traumatic brain injury (TBI) within youth, defined by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention as an injury to the head that causes disruption of the normal function of the brain, is fast becoming an issue of concern for parents across the United States.
Ronald Elston spent more than 30 years in prison, with no preparation for what he would do if he got out.
Reflecting on National Siblings Day, in a juvenile justice context, reminds us that if we had ever been caught doing the delinquent acts we may have done as kids, we would be denied the support of some of the closest people to us.
Data from the Wyoming Afterschool Alliance indicates early intervention engages kids on a healthy path, and it saves money too by keeping kids out of detention, and out of prison as adults. It costs about $800 a year to have a child in an afterschool program. It costs $9,660 a year to care for a child when the Department of Family Services has to intervene.
Massachusetts lawmakers are still working on this session's criminal justice reform package. One proposal -- among many -- would allow offenders to stay in the juvenile court system longer -- until they turn 21. But not all juvenile justice advocates support it.
Politicians, school administrators and advocates in Kentucky all agree that children shouldn’t be locked up for behavior problems. But there’s little agreement on whether or how to stop the practice.
Kentucky put more kids in detention in 2014 for non-criminal charges than any state except Washington, according to the most recent statistics from the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention. At least half the states in the U.S. prohibit locking up children for noncriminal offenses. Even when states allow the practice, they use it rarely, except in a handful of states – Kentucky among them.
Limiting the number of children locked up and helping children return home are just some of the suggestions.
A recent University of California study offers a powerful rationale for shielding children 11 years old and younger from prosecution and incarceration in the state’s juvenile justice system.
Poverty tends to dampen test scores, but new research suggests people with hard upbringings can sometimes outperform their more-privileged peers.
Internet access brings all sorts of benefits: Education, jobs, and connection to friends and family. But youth in the criminal justice and foster care systems often don't have access to it. That's why some lawmakers in California want to make it their right.
WASHINGTON — Data from growing research have stormed into the juvenile justice and child welfare fields over the past two decades, providing more raw material to help troubled teens than ever before. But turning that information wave into better outcomes for children — and convincing practitioners within established systems to adopt new approaches — still requires some prodding and commitment to adopting these findings, according to judges, case workers, academics and advocates for children.
Orange County has the highest number of juvenile arrests in Florida, and black boys make up the majority of those arrests for crimes charged as felonies. As part of the final installment of Young & Arrested, 90.7’s Renata Sago discusses what’s next for juvenile justice in Orange County and what we can take away from the voices in the series.
Meting out justice to juvenile defendants is complex, with brain science and recent U.S. Supreme Court rulings propelling the criminal-justice system into a more nuanced approach that recognizes young people can be impetuous and prone to take risks.
CHAMBERSBURG, PA - The concept of being judged by a jury of your peers was taken to a new level Wednesday, as the county's first official Youth Court was held at Chambersburg Area Senior High School.
According to Florida’s Department of Juvenile Justice (DJJ), one sliver of Pine Hills has Florida’s highest volume of juvenile arrests. Though agency data show that juvenile arrests statewide are at a forty-year low, Orange County has maintained the highest number of juvenile arrests in Florida for the past three consecutive years. The majority of those arrests are for crimes charged as felonies. Demographically speaking, black boys between ages twelve and sixteen comprise the majority of those arrests.
Lawmakers in New York, North Carolina, Missouri, and Texas are currently debating proposals that would move 16-or-17-year-olds (or both) out of the adult criminal justice system and into the juvenile court.
There continues to be a barrage of bad news coming out about juvenile justice systems in Australia and the US. But rather than temporary crackdowns or cosmetic fixes, officials in both countries should enact permanent solutions that replace large and ineffective youth prisons with a safer, more decent alternative.
California should start treating juvenile offenders more like children, state lawmakers said Monday as they promoted bills that they said reflect research showing that children's brains are different from adults.
African American teenagers mingle with cops in a series of forums designed to humanize each to the other. It’s not the answer to all their problems—but it’s one step forward.
