Following up on a post on October 6 about making sure we are using data and facts rather than unsubstantiated rhetoric about juvenile arrests, based on data available from the Wisconsin Bureau of Justice Information and Analysis, juvenile arrests continued their decline through 2015. The data shows that juvenile arrests have declined...
Youth Justice
Let’s Not Make the Same Mistake Twice Regarding Juvenile Crime
With some recent statistics showing a rise in violent crime in some of our nation’s larger cities, I fear a “déjà vu’ all over again” rise of language and messaging that is eerily similar to the “superpredator” scare of the late 1980’s and early 1990’s that led to some of the more regressive changes in statutes related to dealing...
Fines for Youth are Not Fine
Something we don’t always think about as youth go through the juvenile justice system – or in some cases diverted from the formal system into municipal courts or even other diversion programs – is that often various fines and fees are assessed on the youth and/or the parents. A new report from the Juvenile Law Center, “Debtors’ Prison...
Ten Things Leaders Can do to Improve the Lives of Children and Families with Mental Health Challenges
Kids in Crisis, USA Today Network’s lengthy investigation on challenges children with mental health issues face, has developed a 10-point Legislation Action Tracker. You can check out this list and follow it over time to see if our state’s leadership takes the kind of steps recommended to improve the lives of thousands of...
Where Will Wisconsin Youth Be When the Music Stops?
A recent story published by Frontline highlights that in the last seven years, five states (Illinois, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Mississippi, and New Hampshire) have raised the age at which youth can be tried as adults. South Carolina and Louisiana have also recently passed legislation, expected to be signed into law soon that will...
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