Recognizing the harm done to children caught up in the juvenile justice system, many organizations are now advocating for alternative responses to undesirable behaviors of some adolescents and teens. Decades of research confirm that the juvenile justice system is an abject failure, especially for youth of color (Mendel, 2023). Locking kids up does not improve public safety, but more often makes the community even less safe by further harming and traumatizing those in its charge. For too long, responses to delinquent or criminal behaviors have been based on racism, anger, and fear, rather than addressing what led to those undesirable behaviors in the first place. When we punish kids because we are mad at them or afraid of them, we miss the opportunity to address unmet needs, teach coping strategies and communication skills, and guide youth to better options for handling the challenges in their lives. We also do nothing to interrupt those challenges and protect kids from the traumas that contribute to offending behaviors.

The Annie E. Casey Foundation (AECF) is one of several organizations advocating for reducing the reliance on juvenile incarceration to address challenging behaviors in youth. In their arguments for reform, AECF blatantly calls out the racist practices running rampant in the juvenile justice system. Pointedly, they explain their recommendations, “are explicit about race equity, focusing specifically on youth of color because they are the youth that systems are most likely to confine. Because racial and ethnic disparities in juvenile justice begin at arrest and persist throughout the youth justice system, reform strategies must be explicit about race and begin with those who face the steepest barriers to a healthy adulthood” (AECF, n.d.:Strategies).

Juvenile justice reform recommendations center on using alternatives to incarceration in response to delinquent or criminal behavior in juveniles. They argue for diverting youth away from the experience of being removed from their home and community and placed in a locked facility, rampant with abuse and steeped in trauma. Rather, youth are far better off when they are kept away from the juvenile justice system as much as possible through the use of diversion. Various diversion programs in communities exist to help steer kids away from the system of punishment and meet their needs in a way that changes their undesirable behavior going forward.

The National Juvenile Justice Network argues for local diversion options, explaining, “Community-based programs positively change the trajectories of young people’s lives” (NJJN, n.d.). Keeping youth in the community allows for diversion options that include “home confinement, alternative education, family preservation, mentoring, victim-offender mediation, restitution, community services, respite care, and day and evening reporting centers with educational, recreational, and counseling opportunities” (NJJN, n.d.).

A principle of youth reform emphasized by the National Juvenile Justice Network is to “eliminate racial and ethnic disparities.” Because youth of color are disproportionately impacted by this damaging system, they can also benefit the most from improvements in responding to negative behaviors. The National Juvenile Justice Network says that:

In nearly every state, in every offense category – person, property, drug, and public order – youth of color receive harsher sentences and fewer services than white youth who have committed the same category of offenses. Confidential youth surveys show that during adolescence, youth of all races and ethnicities become involved in violence, property crimes, and other delinquent behaviors with only modest differences in the frequency and severity of their lawbreaking. Yet African-American youth are arrested at dramatically higher rates than white youth for all types of crime. Once arrested, they are more likely to be detained, formally charged in juvenile court, placed in a locked correctional facility, waived to adult court, and incarcerated in an adult facility (NJJN, n.d.).

Negative behavior can be addressed in ways that lead to healing for all involved, rather than even more harm. This is possible with restorative justice practices, for example, involving everyone affected by the incident. In restorative justice practices, all those touched by the harm work together to determine the best course of action to repair the harm, not just punish the offender. In this manner, the child is kept in their community, and they learn how to work with other community members to improve things going forward. This is in direct opposition to removing youth from their communities to punish them, then returning them with the notion that now they will somehow become welcome and productive community members.

Learn More: Restorative Justice at Work

After school, two teenage boys, Tyler and Marcus, found themselves entangled in a heated conflict that threatened to escalate into something more destructive. With the tough-on-crime laws in Oregon, a schoolyard fight could easily turn into an assault charge and result in a felony conviction and prison sentence. With Tyler and Marcus, a minor disagreement had spiraled into a physical altercation, leaving both with bruised bodies and egos, and wounded pride.

The school and local officials decided that instead of resorting to punitive measures, they would embrace the principles of restorative justice. A circle was formed, with Tyler and Marcus sitting across from each other, surrounded by facilitators and community members committed to fostering understanding.

As they began to share their perspectives, it became evident that beneath the tough exteriors were two young individuals grappling with personal struggles. Tyler, feeling stressed by trouble at home and misunderstood at school, had lashed out in frustration. Marcus, dealing with his insecurities, had responded defensively, leading to the confrontation.

The restorative justice circle aimed not only to hold the boys accountable for their actions but also to address the root causes of their conflict. Each was allowed to express their feelings, and the community rallied to support them in finding common ground.

A plan emerged: Tyler and Marcus would engage in joint community service, working together to renovate a local park. Through this shared experience, they discovered common interests and began to see each other as more than adversaries.

As weeks passed, the park transformed into a symbol of reconciliation. The once-bitter rivals had become allies, recognizing the strength that emerged from vulnerability and understanding. The community, witnessing the transformative power of restorative justice, embraced the boys as examples of growth and resilience.

Tyler and Marcus, once on opposite sides of a fight, now stood united, proof that conflicts could be resolved not through punishment but through dialogue, empathy, and a commitment to healing the wounds that divide us.

Accountability for harm caused is necessary. But after examining the juvenile justice system, we are left to question what true accountability looks like and whether our system promotes it. We can recognize that accountability does not need to be based on anger and fear to be effective. Rather, to address harm, it is more productive to use community-based alternatives to address harm, rather than the status quo. Does removing a child from their home, school, and community teach them how to be a better part of their home, school, and community? When keeping them in their familiar setting to the greatest degree appropriate and possible, while working through accountability and repairing the harm they caused in addition to the harm they have experienced, they learn how to be a positive contributor to their communities, families, and friends. Rehabilitation is a much-preferred outcome for everyone involved and increases public safety, as opposed to the current juvenile justice system (VanderPyl and Yoho, 2019).

All interventions and responses should be based on trauma-informed care, recognizing that these undesirable behaviors are in reaction to an unmet need. Working with the youth, their family, school, and community to meet needs in positive and pro-social ways and minimize existing or potential trauma will change future outcomes for everyone involved. That is the only way to truly meet the alleged goal of the juvenile justice system and lead to true rehabilitation and transformation.

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Licenses and Attributions for Reforming the Juvenile Justice System

Open Content, Original

“Reforming the Juvenile Justice System” by Taryn VanderPyl, revised by Jessica René Peterson, is licensed under CC BY 4.0.

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Figure 8.14. “Man Collecting Up Plastic Bottles” by Mikhail Nilo is licensed under the Pexels License.