MJDA

In Richmond, the city has hired ex-convicts to mentor dozens of its most violent offenders and allows them to take unconventional steps if it means preventing the next homicide.

Aug 28

Aug 28 Paying former gang members to go to college? This program does — and it seems to be working.

Ideas and Opinions, Juvenile Justice News, National News

Who would pay former gang members to help them go to college? A program in Dorchester, a neighborhood in Boston, is doing just that — and for some of its students, it seems to be working.

Aug 28

Aug 28 For juvenile offenders, art can be an outlet

Juvenile Justice News, Ideas and Opinions, National News

PEORIA — Unusually long and wide, the main hallway at the Peoria County Juvenile Detention Center would be intimidating if there weren’t the giant frog at one end.

The frog sits on a lily pad in a placid blue pond surrounded by cattails and a perfect summer sky, offering respite in a very serious setting. Between the vibrant color, the charming kid-friendly illustration, and the wonders of the natural world, the scene is a pleasant oasis for both the center’s young residents and the adults who work there.

Aug 28

Aug 28 Navigating the Path to a Successful Career: The Vitality of Vital Records

The consequences system-involved youth experience by not having these essential records include potential housing instability, the inability to pursue certain educational opportunities and financial aid, and lack of access to public benefits. Not having identification can also be a barrier to employment.

Aug 25

Aug 25 New landmark reform law will give youth a chance to erase past mistakes and protect public safety

CHICAGO, Aug. 24, 2017 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Landmark juvenile justice reform legislation signed Thursday by Gov. Bruce Rauner will clear roadblocks to success for tens of thousands of Illinoisans whose youthful mistakes have restricted access to education, jobs, and housing.

Aug 25

Aug 25 NOPD can now warn juveniles instead of arresting them

Juveniles accused of minor offenses in New Orleans will get written warnings or summons to appear in court rather than be arrested and taken to a detention facility, under an ordinance the City Council unanimously approved Thursday (Aug. 24).

Aug 24

Aug 24 Gouging families with kids in detention serves no one. California should make it stop

The California Legislature should pass Senate Bill 190 and lead a national movement to end the practice of charging parents for the costs of children being in the juvenile justice system. Under current law, counties can charge parents or guardians for detaining minors, as well as for electronic monitors, substance use testing, probation, and home supervision. Such charges yield little net revenue or benefit for the government, but impose enormous financial burdens on families.

Aug 23

Aug 23 Rapper Common Lobbies Legislators On Juvenile Justice Measures

SACRAMENTO (CBS13) — Oscar- and Grammy-award-winning rapper “Common” was on a tight schedule Tuesday, in an uncommon setting—the state Capitol.

Aug 16

Aug 16 "No arrest, no record," changes made to Florida juvenile cases

State Attorney Aramis Ayala is making changes to cases involving juveniles.

Aug 16

Aug 16 Sentenced To Adulthood: Direct File Laws Bypass Juvenile Justice System

Orange County, Fla., leads the state in juvenile arrests, according to data from the Florida Department of Juvenile Justice. The majority of those arrests are felonies charged to black boys. In this five-part series, 90.7 WMFE reporter Renata Sago (@renatasago) documents Orange County's complex system for handling kids who commit crimes. The stories are told through the lens of three black men who were charged with felonies as children.

Aug 1

Aug 1 THE LATEST DANGEROUS DRUG TREND DOESN’T ACTUALLY EXIST

National News

Naloxone is a drug that reverses opioid overdoses, bringing a heroin user back from the brink of death. Known by the brand names Narcan or Evzio, this meek little opiate antagonist resuscitated approximately 27,000 people in the United States between 1996 and 2014.

Jul 31

Jul 31 ‘Millennial Bill’ Could Help At-Risk Youth Secure Jobs

WASHINGTON — Taj Jackson dreamed of college after graduating from a Maryland high school in 2014, but didn’t think his family—headed by a single mother who worked multiple jobs—could afford it.

Jul 28

Jul 28 School segregation didn’t go away. It just evolved.

How parents are gerrymandering school borders and fencing out poor kids.

Jul 28

Jul 28 Miss Buchanan's Period Of Adjustment

Listening Recommendations

Brown v Board of Education might be the most well-known Supreme Court decision, a major victory in the fight for civil rights. But in Topeka, the city where the case began, the ruling has left a bittersweet legacy. RH hears from the Browns, the family behind the story.

Jul 25

Jul 25 Civil Rights Groups In New Jersey Say ‘Youth Prisons Are a New Form of Slavery’ and Should Be Abolished

Ideas and Opinions, National News

The New Jersey Training School for Boys has been a youth incarceration center for 150 years and is the state of New Jersey’s largest prison for juveniles. Known as “Jamesburg,” the correctional facility in Monroe Township, N.J., first opened its doors on June 28, 1867, and today houses about 200 boys.

But on Jamesburg’s 150th birthday, a coalition of more than 40 civil rights activists, including the New Jersey Institute for Social Justice, the NAACP, the ACLU of New Jersey and members of the clergy, launched a campaign to close the youth prison as well as its counterpart for girls, the Female Secure Care and Intake Facility.

Jul 25

Jul 25 Youth who commit misdemeanors could receive warnings or summonses under proposed ordinance

National News, Juvenile Justice News

New Orleans youth who commit misdemeanor offenses could receive warnings or summonses to appear in court with a guardian, under a proposed ordinance aimed at preventing young people from entering, and often re-entering, the criminal justice system after an arrest.

Jul 25

Jul 25 Trauma-Informed Policing in Juvenile Justice

Juvenile Justice News

Statistics continue to show that a majority of the youth that come into contact with the criminal justice system have been exposed to trauma. In fact studies indicate over 90% of delinquent youth have experienced a traumatically stressful life event.

Jul 25

Jul 25 Program helps Kane County juvenile inmates earn college credits

The dual credit program is a collaboration between the county and Elgin Community College. Libby Roeger, the college's dean of college transitions and developmental education, said she wants the collaboration to expand beyond the two entities, bringing other community colleges into the fray.

Jul 19

Jul 19 Troup County Juvenile Court starts Family Dependency Treatment Court