Recent news

Young people caught up in the juvenile justice system are too often punished for being poor, saddled with paying excessive restitution that leaves them broke and leaves their victims out of luck, too, a new report says.

Juvenile Law Center Examined State Practices, Finding the Policy Fails Both Young People and Those Harmed.

She entered the juvenile justice system at 13, after she ran away from home for the first time, hoping to escape a volatile relationship with her mother. Before long, running away escalated to petty theft, then stealing cars and breaking into homes. It cost her nearly two years spent in and out of juvenile facilities, and many additional months still tied to the system through probation.

Ten years ago, the Supreme Court issued its landmark decision in Miller v. Alabama. The Court held that mandatory life-without-parole sentences for children 17 or younger convicted of homicide were unconstitutional. We celebrated this decision, as it meant that hundreds of people sentenced as children to die in prison had a chance at redemption, and a chance for freedom.

This week, members of Juvenile Law Center’s Youth Advocacy group, Advocates Transforming Youth Systems (ATYS), partnered with coalition Philly Homes 4 Youth in holding a town hall in the courtyard of Philadelphia’s City Hall to raise awareness about the unique needs of older youth facing housing insecurity-- particularly youth aging out of the foster care system.

For Pennsylvania’s child welfare system, the Ohio teen’s death is a stark reminder.

Juvenile Law Center Applauds Introduction, Urges State Legislature to Act Quickly to Pass Needed Reform.

Although four juvenile justice reform bills are primed to move forward in the Pennsylvania Senate, it would appear that the heaviest of lifting on the effort is yet to be done.

Names represent a person’s identity, our cultural origins, history, and in some instances how the world sees us. Names, like all words, are used to label or describe things and affect our perceptions, which inevitably impacts how we experience the world around us. The history of language is also particularly important when identifying or speaking about individuals or communities, especially for communities who have been the most marginalized.