Raised by a loving grandmother and grandfather, young Will could never have predicted that just six weeks after his 13th birthday he’d become a ward of the state and spend the rest of his childhood in America’s adult prison system. Continue reading Bridging the Gap Between Community and Systems
Community Accountability Boards (“CABs”) have served as a diversion program – or alternative to the formal court process – for first-time juvenile misdemeanor cases in King County since 1959. CABs are made up of trained community volunteers who hear juvenile cases and devise a tailored plan of accountability for each young person. If a youngContinue reading Making diversion programs more culturally responsive
Find out more about Federal Way Youth Action Team (FWYAT) and how to become a mentor.Continue reading Youth mentors needed for growing Federal Way community support network
Two years in jail for 15-year-old Rimon would be followed by a lifetime of notifying future employers and landlords that he was a convicted felon. Two years in jail and the legal process along the way would cost taxpayers somewhere around $200,000. And two years in juvenile detention could turn a teenager hard and bitter.Continue reading Peacemaking circle pilot shows new path for juvenile justice
King County Superior Court is making changes this month that could reduce juvenile detention bookings by as much as 250 a year. The Court is doing that by making two significant changes to divert more youth away from detention and to continue a more than decade-long decline in the use of juvenile detention.Continue reading King County Juvenile Court changes to cut detention bookings by as much as 250 a year
King County’s juvenile justice system has been under increasing pressure from youth advocacy and community groups to drastically improve the way the system works. And the pressure is welcome, says King County Juvenile Court Judge Wesley Saint Clair.Continue reading King County juvenile court judge: ‘I welcome the community’s agitation’
