Warren’s words encapsulate for me the importance of commemorating Youth Justice Action Month (YJAM) every October to elevate the plight of youth who are incarcerated and treated as if they were adults. As we conclude this year’s YJAM, we are also celebrating a transformative success: a 30 percent drop in the number of people under 18-years-old tried in adult courts in just four years, from 75,900 in 2015 to 53,000 in 2019. This groundbreaking achievement was realized after years of advocacy by a dedicated community of families, youth, and activists. Challenges remain, however, such as ending automatic charging of youth in the adult system in Maryland, Pennsylvania and the District of Columbia, and raising the age of juvenile court jurisdiction in the final three outliers: Georgia, Texas, and Wisconsin. Throughout the year, The Sentencing Project fights to keep kids out of adult courts, jails and prisons and produces research that transforms the way the country looks at the persistent problems in our youth justice system, including the harsh treatment of school kids and racial and ethnic disparities that plague every state in the country. The Sentencing Project invites you to join this fight. Email Marcy Mistrett, [email protected], to get involved. We’re getting ready for even bigger things in 2022, and we need your help to get us there. |
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