Resource Roundup: Juvenile Justice Publications
This resource roundup — highlighting materials developed by juvenile justice leaders and researchers with the Annie E. Casey Foundation’s support — shares new knowledge and key findings from the field.
“Credible resources help spread ideas, inspire innovations and empower practitioners and others who have a stake in the system to think differently,” says Nate Balis, director of the Foundation’s Juvenile Justice Strategy Group. “Amplifying what’s working in places across the country — as well as lessons learned along the way — moves the field closer to a better and more equitable youth justice system.
Listening to Black Women and Girls
By the Georgetown Law Center on Poverty and Inequality
This report shares recommendations garnered from focus groups with black girls and women. The topic? Adultification bias — the perception that black girls are less innocent and more adult-like than their white peers of the same age. This publication follows Girlhood Interrupted, a 2017 report by the same researchers that explores the effects of adultification bias.
The Color of Justice
By the Alliance of National Psychological Associations for Racial and Ethnic Equity
This report explores how America’s mental health system — with its shortcomings in prevention, early intervention and treatment programs — contribute to the over-representation of youth of color in the juvenile justice landscape.
Moving Beyond Youth Prisons
By the Columbia University Justice Lab; and
Implementation of New York’s Close to Home Initiative
By the Center for Children’s Law and Policy
These publications describe how New York’s landmark juvenile justice reform initiative, Close to Home, has achieved its two fundamental objectives: 1) removing New York City youth from faraway facilities that are expensive and ineffective; and 2) returning most of these youth to the city or the immediate area. Such moves aim to help parents, caregivers and other relatives stay connected to their children and play vital roles in their treatment and rehabilitation. The reports also offer advice to the growing number of states looking to replace youth prisons with more effective investments in community-based services and support.
Place Matters
By the University of Southern Maine, University of Maine School of Law, and Maine Center for Juvenile Law and Policy
This report — written with Maine’s policymakers in mind — delivers a clear charge to improve how the state treats system-involved youth between the ages of 14 to 25. It calls for a full continuum of care — from prevention to reintegration — that leverages local resources and national research to offer community-based services at every step.
Collaborating for Successful Reentry
By the Center on Juvenile and Criminal Justice
This guide teaches juvenile justice and social service professionals about supporting youth who are reentering their community after confinement or a court-ordered out-of-home placement. It highlights both collaborative and community-based approaches that are designed to eliminate barriers and help address the needs of young people.
Juvenile Probation Transformation
By the Urban Institute with Mathematica Policy Research
This report — which documents juvenile probation transformation activities at two sites — aids jurisdictions that are considering and pursuing reforms to help young people positively redirect their lives and avoid further system involvement. The publication also connects funders to early insights on supporting a local juvenile justice system’s capacity to plan and implement change.
Juvenile Detention Alternatives Initiative Scale-Up
By WestEd Justice and Prevention Research Center
This report identifies critical success factors for four states — Indiana, Massachusetts, Missouri and New Mexico — that accelerated the spread of the Juvenile Detention Alternatives Initiative® (JDAI) across their local jurisdictions.
Examining How JDAI Sites Interact with Native Youth and Tribes
By the Association on American Indian Affairs
This report examines how JDAI® sites interact with Native American youth and tribes to support appropriate cultural alternatives to detention. In addition to identifying best practices and areas of concern, the publication notes that sites across the nation are failing to utilize culturally relevant approaches and outreach efforts that meet the unique needs of Native American youth.
Transformational Relationships for Youth Success
By the Center for the Study of Social Policy
This seven-page brief offers lessons culled from more than 80 interviews with organizations and the youth they support. It reminds readers that a strong relationship can make a pivotal difference in a young person’s life and reviews how professionals and public systems can support these vital connections.
