Criminal Case Puts Focus on Bullying Laws
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Once considered a teenage rite of passage, bullying is now the subject of hundreds of state laws and a rallying cry for pundits, parents and celebrities.
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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For Juveniles, the Elusive Right to Legal Counsel
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A single phone call made from a trailer home in rural Arizona, where 15-year-old Gerald “Jerry” Gault lived with his family, wound up indelibly altering the landscape of juvenile justice in America.
[Video] What is Juvenile Indigent Defense?
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On November 11th, JJIE rolled out the next section of our juvenile justice resource hub on juvenile indigent defense. To kick start the launch, JJIE led a compelling and informative live group video chat with key players in the Juvenile Indigent Defense reform movement.
OP-ED: It’s Time to Re-Wire Some Adults
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It's time for a new law that begins with the foundation that juvenile justice targets the kids who scare us—not those that make us mad.
Have Questions About Juvenile Indigent Defense? Get Some Answers!
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Today JJIE rolled out the next section of our juvenile justice resource hub on juvenile indigent defense. To kick start the launch, join us tomorrow, Tuesday November 12th, for a compelling and informative live group video chat with key players in the Juvenile Indigent Defense reform movement—exploring youth’s rights and access to quality council and defense when they find themselves in court.
Speaking for the Children: A Hard Look at the State of Juvenile Defense Across the U.S.
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In a continuing series beginning today, JJIE will explore the complicated world of juvenile defense -- from the difficult job of the juvenile public defender to the jumble of juvenile court systems across the country.
OP-ED: Transforming How We Treat Incarcerated LGBTQ Youth
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On my first day in prison the doctor checked to see if I was a homosexual. It was a regular part of the intake process, and anyone discovered to be gay (as determined by the doctor) was placed in segregation. This was my introduction to the extra burdens that gay men faced in confinement. Beyond the normal dangers of being in prison, gay men had to face additional dangers, and were always more likely to be assaulted, robbed and raped. Even so, many men who were gay preferred to live in the general population instead of the “sissy dorm” and many others worked to hide their sexual orientation from the staff and the inmates.
False Confessions: NYC Still Struggles in Aftermath of Central Park Five
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In the United States, false confessions play a role in about one in four wrongful convictions overturned by DNA evidence. The confessions often come forth following hours of interrogation, resulting in a statement of guilt put on paper in front of the investigating detectives or on videotape.