Supreme Court Considers Whether Ban on Mandatory JLWOP Should Be Retroactive
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In 2012, the justices ruled 5-4 in Miller v. Alabama that mandatory life without parole sentences for juveniles (JLWOP) are unconstitutional on Eighth Amendment grounds.
An 11-year-old denied making a threat and was allowed to return to school. Tennessee police arrested him anyway.
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In late September, Torri was driving down the highway with her 11-year-old son Junior in the back seat when her phone started ringing.
It was the Hamilton County Sheriff’s deputy who worked at Junior’s middle school in Chattanooga, Tennessee. Deputy Arthur Richardson asked Torri where she was. She told him she was on the way to a family birthday dinner at LongHorn Steakhouse.
“He said, ‘Is Junior with you?’” Torri recalled.
Earlier that day, Junior had been accused by other students of making a threat against the school. When Torri had come to pick him up, she’d spoken with Richardson and with administrators, who’d told her he was allowed to return to class the next day. The principal had said she would carry out an investigation then. ProPublica and WPLN are using a nickname for Junior and not including Torri’s last name at the family’s request, to prevent him from being identifiable.
When Richardson called her in the car, Torri immediately felt uneasy. He didn’t say much before hanging up, and she thought about turning around to go home. But she kept driving. When they walked into the restaurant, Torri watched as Junior happily greeted his family.
Soon her phone rang again. It was the deputy. He said he was outside in the strip mall’s parking lot and needed to talk to Junior. Torri called Junior’s stepdad, Kevin Boyer, for extra support, putting him on speaker as she went outside to talk to Richardson. She left Junior with the family, wanting to protect her son for as long as she could ...
A campus shooting spurred her political awakening. Her whole family followed.
TUCSON, Arizona — Adriana Grijalva was getting ready to head to class at the University of Arizona in the fall of 2022 when she got a text message from her cousin telling her to stay put. The cousin, who works in maintenance at the university, had watched law enforcement descend on campus and reached out to make sure she was safe. A former student had just shot a professor 11 times, killing him.
Justice organization announces new youth restorative justice partners
Equal Justice USA (EJUSA) announced October 8 that it will partner with four new communities to build new restorative youth justice diversion programs. Restorative justice includes an accountability process that identifies root causes of youth criminal actions, while providing an opportunity for healing both for the person harmed and the person who has caused harm.
A Louisiana law meant to fight teen violence is sweeping 17-year-olds arrested for lesser crimes into adult court
Louisiana is the only state to pass and then reverse Raise the Age legislation. Louisiana’s criminal justice system now treats all 17-year-olds as adults. Is reversing Raise the Age making a difference in the number of violent crimes by 18-year-olds?
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Texas prisons and jails are recruiting more teenagers to shore up guard shortage
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JDAI Starting to Sound Like a Systems Revolution
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At the conclusion of JDAI’s recent annual conference, I became convinced that not only are juvenile justice systems undergoing positive changes nationwide, so is JDAI.
Man Jailed 50 Years for Murder Is at Center of Supreme Court Hearing on Youth Life Sentences
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In 2012, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that youth can’t be sentenced automatically to life in prison. But what should happen to the couple thousand inmates already serving such sentences? Tuesday, lawyers for Henry Montgomery argue that they should get parole hearings. An in-depth look at the crime and the man at the center of the case.
Video: Youth Unite to Face Addiction, Fight Shame
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Thousands gathered at the Unite to Face Addiction Rally in Washington, D.C., Sunday, Oct. 4, to fight the stigma of addiction and to celebrate substance use recovery.
House Committee Hears Strong Calls for JJDPA Reauthorization
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The Juvenile Justice Delinquency and Prevention Act sets core protections for juveniles in the states and provides state grants. The law was last reauthorized in 2002.
Report: Supreme Court Opinions Changing Juvenile Justice Landscape Beyond JLWOP
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The Supreme Court’s landmark juvenile sentencing rulings establishing that youth should be treated differently than adults have had effects beyond the death penalty and juvenile life without parole (JLWOP) sentences, says a recent report.
A Dog Locked in a Cage
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This place is like hell with ice water. You can learn many new things from being where you are now.
Young People Find Hope, Community at ‘Unite to Face Addiction’ Rally
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"It's important for young people to know that recovery is possible, that going back to school is possible. That having fun and partying sober is possible,” said Arielle Spanvill