Juvenile Justice

High schooler submits amicus brief in juvenile-lifer case to Michigan Supreme Court

The Michigan Supreme Court has accepted a teen’s amicus brief written on behalf of 450 students—85 percent of the student body—at her Catholic high school in Ann Arbor. The principal author was Matilyn Sarosi, 16, who worked on the brief during several recent snow days, according to a story by…

Feb 20, 2014 4:32 PM CST

ABA resolution urges laws to stop foster kids from transitioning to homelessness

Governments should enact laws and policies to prevent homelessness when foster kids age out of the system, according to a resolution passed on Monday by the ABA House of Delegates. Resolution 109A says governments and courts should provide support for housing assistance to young adults who turn 18 while in…

Feb 10, 2014 5:00 PM CST

ABA resolution backs access to effective appellate representation for juveniles

Juveniles in delinquency cases, including juveniles who qualify for public defender services, should have access to effective appellate representation, according to a resolution approved by the ABA House of Delegates on Monday. Resolution 103A says juveniles should have access to appeals consistent with state statutes and state constitutional provisions. A…

Feb 10, 2014 4:21 PM CST

‘Affluenza’ teen on probation for fatal crash is sent to pricey rehab

In the latest development in a juvenile case that outraged a number of observers, a Texas judge on Wednesday ordered a teenager who drove drunk and caused a crash that killed four people and severely injured two others into a private locked rehab facility. State District Judge Jean Boyd said…

Feb 6, 2014 1:45 PM CST

Girls Court connects vulnerable girls to social services

Carved out of existing juvenile court systems, Girls Courts are popping up across the country to connect the most at-risk young women with social services. In an article this week, the New York Times notes that while the half-dozen or so statewide programs from New York to Hawaii are in…

Jan 31, 2014 11:40 AM CST

Appeals court nixes drowsy-driving conviction, says transcript of police interview was wrong

An Oregon appellate court has reversed a young woman’s conviction for causing a fatal accident because of drowsy driving, based on a de novo finding that a transcript of her interview with police after the crash was erroneous. Sierra Nicole Rigel, 17, was convicted as a juvenile, following a determination…

Jan 30, 2014 6:05 PM CST

Remains of 55 are exhumed at notorious reform school, 24 more than records showed were buried there

Records for a notorious Florida reform school and a 2009 state investigation showed that 31 bodies had been buried on the grounds. Now a research team from the University of South Florida has unearthed remains for 55 people, and DNA is being sought from relatives of boys who went missing…

Jan 29, 2014 5:10 PM CST

Child porn charges reinstated against teen who posted sex video on Facebook

The Pennsylvania Supreme Court has reinstated child pornography charges against a teenager who posted a sex video of two other teens on Facebook. The Morning Call reports on the per curiam decision (PDF) issued Thursday. The video, posted by a teen girl referred to as C.S., showed two other teens…

Jan 27, 2014 2:52 PM CST

Judge mulls retrial in case of 14-year-old black youth tried and executed in 1944

A South Carolina prosecutor agrees that a 14-year-old black youth convicted and executed in 1944 for killing two white girls didn’t get a fair trial by today’s standards. But he argued on Tuesday that the case should not be retried. The prosecutor, Ernest “Chip” Finney III, argued that too much…

Jan 22, 2014 2:01 PM CST

Petition calls for prosecutor to drop charges against bullied transgendered teen

A California prosecutor is taking a lot of heat for his decision to charge a bullied transgendered teen with battery. Jewlyes Gutierrez, 16, was charged with battery after a fight with classmates in November at Hercules High School in Contra Costa County, the Contra Costa Times reports. Gutierrez, who says…

Jan 10, 2014 7:30 PM CST

‘Poor little rich boy,’ 16, gets 10-year probation in DUI crash that killed 4 people

A 16-year-old driver has been sentenced to 10 years of probation by a Texas juvenile court judge after pleading guilty last week to drunken driving and intoxication manslaughter concerning a June chain-reaction accident he caused that killed four people. The youth, who is not identified because he is a juvenile,…

Dec 11, 2013 8:45 PM CST

School called 6-year-old boy’s classroom kiss ‘sexual harassment’ and suspended him

Updated: A 6-year-old Colorado boy was suspended from school for planting a kiss on a classmate. A first-grade student in Cañon City was accused of sexual harassment, KRDO.com reports. “They sent me to the office, fair and square. I did something wrong, and I feel sorry,” the boy told the…

Dec 10, 2013 9:15 PM CST

More schools back away from zero tolerance, including Florida’s Broward County

Several school districts around the country are softening zero-tolerance policies for students’ minor offenses that led to arrests, suspensions and expulsions. Among the school districts stepping back from the tough approach is Broward County, Fla., the New York Times reports. Last month the district signed an agreement with the local…

Dec 3, 2013 8:21 PM CST

School superintendent is charged with obstruction in Steubenville rape investigation

A grand jury in Ohio has indicted the Steubenville schools superintendent on charges of obstruction of justice and tampering with evidence in the investigation of the rape of a 16-year-old girl at a party. Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine announced charges against Superintendent Michael McVey and three other school officials…

Nov 25, 2013 5:56 PM CST

Charges dropped against Florida teens accused of cyberbullying girl who committed suicide

Aggravating stalking charges have been dropped against two Florida teens accused of cyberbullying a 12-year-old girl who committed suicide in September. Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd defended the arrests of the girls, now 13 and 14 years old, the Orlando Sentinel report, the Associated Press andReuters. He said he was…

Nov 21, 2013 1:01 PM CST