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JJGPS State Scan: U.S. Age Boundaries of Delinquency 2016

Jul 3, 2017, Angela Zang

This StateScan publication is an update in a series that distills knowledge from NCJJ’s Juvenile Justice Geography, Policy, Practice & Statistics website (jjgps.org). The publication…

A Legislated Study of Raising the Age of Juvenile Jurisdiction in Louisiana

Feb 15, 2016, Institute for Public Health and Justice

Louisiana should strongly consider raising the age of juvenile court jurisdiction to include 17-year-old offenders. Findings suggest that this change would benefit public safety, promote youth…

Reducing Recidivism and Improving Other Outcomes for Young Adults in the Juvenile and Adult Criminal Justice Systems

Nov 9, 2015, Council of State Governments Justice Center

Researchers focused on brain development have found that 18- to 24-year-olds—also referred to as young adults — stand out as a distinct developmental group with heightened impulsive…

CSG Justice Center: Infographic Series

Nov 9, 2015, Council of State Governments Justice Center

This infographics series, from the CSG Justice Center, details three critical challenges faced by states to improve outcomes for youth, identify the key questions that policymakers should ask, and…

The Supreme Court and the Transformation of Juvenile Sentencing

Sep 30, 2015, Elizabeth Scott

In the past decade, the Supreme Court has transformed the constitutional landscape of juvenile crime regulation. In three strongly worded opinions, the Court held that imposing harsh criminal…

Overview Brief: The U.S. Supreme Court and the Transformation of Juvenile Sentencing

Sep 30, 2015, Elizabeth Scott

Three United States Supreme Court decisions of the past decade have delineated the principle that children are developmentally different from adults in ways that matter for the fair punishment of…

Juvenile Sentencing in a Developmental Framework: The Role of the Courts

Sep 30, 2015, Elizabeth Scott, Thomas Grisso, Marsha Levick, and Laurence Steinberg

Three United States Supreme Court decisions in the past decade have delineated the constitutional principle that children are developmentally different from adults in ways that matter for the fair…

Practitioner Brief: Applying a Developmental Framework to Juvenile Sentencing-What Forensic Experts and Attorneys Should Know

Sep 30, 2015, Elizabeth Scott, Thomas Grisso, Marsha Levick, and Laurence Steinberg

Recent decisions by the United States Supreme Court have severely restricted the use of life without parole for juvenile offenders (JLWOP). Affirming the principle that children are developmentally…

U.S. Age Boundaries of Delinquency

Aug 14, 2015, Angel Zang

This StateScan publication is the 8th in a series that distills knowledge from NCJJ’s Juvenile Justice Geography, Policy, Practice & Statistics website. The publication summarizes the…

State Trends 2013-2014 Legislative Session

Sep 12, 2014, Campaign for Youth Justice

The report takes a look at states that have, and are taking steps to remove children from the adult criminal justice system. State Trends documents the continuation of four trends in justice reform…

Capital City Correction: Reforming DC's Use of Adult Incarceration Against Youth

May 19, 2014, Eduardo Ferrer, Campaign for Youth Justice and DC Lawyers for Youth

From 2007 to 2012, 541 youth were charged as adults and incarcerated in adult jail in the District of Columbia. While incarcerated in the adult jail, these DC youth were housed in a developmentally…

Automatic Adult Prosecution of Children in Cook County, Illinois 2010-2012

Apr 22, 2014, Juvenile Justice Initiative, Kanako Ishida, Policy Research Analyst; Elizabeth Clarke, President; David Reed, Board Member

Over 30 years of poor outcomes from “automatic” adult prosecution of children. Under Illinois' automatic transfer law in effect during the study of 2010 through 2012, anyone age 15 or 16…

Raising the Age of Juvenile Court Jurisdiction in Illinois

Dec 1, 2013, Illinoia Juvenile Justice Coalition

Kids are Not Adults

Dec 1, 2013, National Conference of State Legislatures

Research distinguishing adolescents from adults has led states to re-establish boundaries between the criminal and juvenile justice systems. New policies reflect the growing body of research on how…

State Trends: Legislative Victories from 2011-2013

Oct 10, 2013, Campaign for Youth Justice

Removing Youth from the Adult Criminal Justice System Over the past eight years, 23 states have enacted 40 pieces of legislation to reduce the prosecution of youth in adult criminal courts and end…

NJJN Policy Platform - Youth in the Adult System

Aug 1, 2013, National Juvenile Justice Network (NJJN)

We all recognize that youth are different from adults -- so why doesn't our juvenile justice system? With legal and scientific communities consistently asserting that young people cannot be held…

Raising the Age of Juvenile Court Jurisdiction: The Future of 17-yr-olds in Illinois' Justice System

Feb 1, 2013, Illinois Juvenile Justice Commission

In 2009, legislative advocates in Illinois supported moving 17-yr-olds from criminal to juvenile court jurisdiction. The proposal was vigorously debated, with opponents raising concerns over public…

Innovation Brief: Reforming Automatic Transfer Laws: A Success Story

Nov 30, 2012, Jason Szanyi, Center for Children’s Law and Policy

In the mid-1980s, the Illinois Legislature took a tough stance on drug use among youth. As part of a national trend toward harsher punishments for juveniles, lawmakers decided to prosecute in adult…

State Trends: Legislative Victories from 2005 to 2010 Removing Youth from the Adult Criminal Justice System

Mar 16, 2011, Neelum Arya, Research & Policy Director at the Campaign for Youth Justice

Neelum Arya, National Research and Policy Director at the Campaign for Youth Justice, recently authored the report, State Trends: Legislative Changes from 2005 to 2010 Removing Youth from the Adult…

Conducting Benefit-Cost Analyses of Juvenile Court Jurisdiction and Other Juvenile Justice Policies

Dec 21, 2009, Jens Ludwig, Roseanna Ander & Laura Brinkman

Concern about juvenile crime in the 1980s led most states across the country to enact policy changes that made it easier to transfer juvenile arrestees into the adult criminal justice system (Hahn et…

Different from Adults: An Updated Analysis of Juvenile Transfer and Blended Sentencing Laws, with Recommendations for Reform

Nov 1, 2008, National Center for Juvenile Justice

Maps the current landscape of laws governing the trial, sentencing, and sanctioning of juveniles as adults. The report summarizes the transfer laws of all 50 states and the District of Columbia as of…

Changing Course: A Review of the First Two Years of Drug Transfer Reform in Illinois

May 31, 2008, Illinois Juvenile Justice Initiative

Details the reform efforts that led to passage of PA 94-0574, which reversed the automatic transfer of juvenile drug cases to adult court, and the impact the law has had in the two years after it…

Jailing Juveniles: The Dangers of Incarcerating Youth in Adult Jails in America

Nov 1, 2007, Neelum Arya, Liz Ryan, Jessica Sandoval and Julie Kudrna

Provides a summary of the risks that youth face when incarcerated in adult jails, facts and figures about how many youth are incarcerated in jails nationwide, and a review of the limited federal and…

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