Youth in Adult Court

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Sample Motion in Opposition of Mandatory Transfer to Criminal Court

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“It Don’t Matter Anyhow”: How the Americans with Disabilities Act Has Become (Mostly) Irrelevant to the Criminal Trial Process

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Georgia – Only Young Once: Dismantling Georgia’s Punitive Youth Incarceration System

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This report challenges the notion that Georgia’s youth legal system is built to rehabilitate and suggests measures that protect the health and humanity of all the state’s children. First, this report will explore the myth of the “superpredator” and its impact on perceived Black youth criminality. Second, it will detail the state’s school-to-prison pipeline and…

Disposable Children: The Prevalence of Child Abuse and Trauma Among Children Prosecuted and Incarcerated As Adults in Maryland

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This report details the results of the first-ever state-wide Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) survey administered to people currently incarcerated for crimes they committed as children (under eighteen). The trauma measured from ACEs surveys include physical, sexual, and emotional abuse; physical and emotional neglect; separation from parents; mental illness or substance abuse in the home; parent…

Juvenile Law Center et al., Amicus Brief, People v. Czarnecki

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Human Rights Watch, et al. Amicus Brief, O.G. v. Superior Court

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This amicus brief supporting the petitioner O.G. asks the California Appellate Court to uphold the passage of SB 1391, which eliminated transfer of 14- and 15- year old to adult court. The amicus brief outlines why the law ensures age-appropriate services for young people as well as protecting public safety by reducing recidvisim and strengthening…

Sample Motion Opposing Transfer Under Tennessee’s Transfer Statute

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This sample motion from Tennessee outlines why transfer is unconstitutional in Tennessee under the 8th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, and Tennessee’s purpose clause. The brief highlights Supreme Court jurisprudence, scientific and medical research, and evolving standards of decency. 

State v. Quijas, 457 P.3d 1241 (Wash. Ct. App. 2020)

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The Court of Appeals of Washington remanded a transfer case to the superior court and offered the following language in support. “Our Supreme Court has made clear that trial courts must be vigilant in addressing the threat of explicit or implicit racial bias that affects a defendant’s right to a fair trial. We hold that…

Florida – Only Young Once: The Systemic Harm of Florida’s School-to-Prison Pipeline and Youth Legal System

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Florida routinely pushes Black children out of schools and into a legal system with well-documented harms. In recent years, the state has made significant investments in school law enforcement and self-proclaimed “tough love” youth legal system policies, purportedly in the name of public safety. However, these investments have yielded a system that disparately disciplines, arrests,…

Still Cruel and Unusual: Extreme Sentences for Youth and Emerging Adults

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The evidence provided in this brief supports bold reforms for youth and emerging adults sentenced to extreme punishments.

State v. Fletcher, 555 P.3d 1046 (Alaska Ct. App. 2024)

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Policing and Punishing Childhood

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The answer, then, is not to simply reform the system of punishment, but to stop surveilling and punishing kids and instead invest in the things that set kids up for success, like education, family support, and access to healthcare. We need to start seeing children as children, not as criminals, and giving them the tools…

 Characteristics of Cases Judicially Waived from Juvenile Court to Criminal Court

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This one-page infographic from the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention illustrates statistics on waiver from juvenile to criminal courts.

Unheard: The Epidemic of Severe Childhood Trauma Among Girls Tried as Adults

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This research article explores the history of girls prosecuted as adults in courts across the United States. It explores the effects of childhood trauma and victimization on brain and physical development and the connection to involvement in the criminal legal system as children. The article describes the results of a survey of young women who…

In the Matter of the Personal Restraint of Miller

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Commonwealth v. Sheldon Mattis

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Miller v. Alabama, 567 U.S. 460 (2012)

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Selected Bibliography on Transfer/Waiver

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An annotated bibliography of research on transfer/waiver from Dr. Antoinette Kavanaugh Ph.D., ABPP including research on transfer and recividism, studies on how juvenile court judges weigh transfer factors, and demographic data and analysis on who is transferred to adult court. 

“Two Battlefields”: Opps, Cops, and NYC Youth Gun Culture

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The Center for Justice Innovation conducted an exploratory, participatory action research study of 103 youth ages 15-24  who reported carry guns in a neighborhood of Brooklyn. The research evaluates why these youth carry guns and proposing a collaborative approach to public safety.   From the report: “The increase in gun violence experienced in many U.S.…

Incarceration of Youths in an Adult Correctional Facility and Risk of Premature Death

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Youths incarcerated in adult correctional facilities are exposed to a variety of adverse circumstances that could diminish psychological and physical health, potentially leading to early mortality. In this cohort study of 8951 youths, the survival model suggested that being incarcerated in an adult correctional facility may be associated with an increased risk of early mortality…

Fletcher v. State, 532 P.3d 286 (Alaska Ct. App. 2023)

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 Registering Youth in the Sunshine State: A Report on Florida’s Harmful Sex Offender Registration Laws

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From the introduction: “This report focuses on individuals who were under the age of 18 at the time the sexual offense occurred and who were adjudicated delinquent in the juvenile justice system or tried and convicted in adult criminal court. While significant research shows the ineffectiveness and harm of registration for individuals who were 18…

State v. Sum, 511 P.3d 92 (Wash. 2022)

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The Washington Supreme Court ruled the trial court was required to consider an accused person’s race and ethnicity in the totality of the circumstances when determining whether a person was “seized” in Washington state constitution’s prohibition against unlawful seizure.   The court offered the following language in support: As noted above, the article I, section 7…

State v. Thomas, 269 A. 3d 487 (N.J. Super. Ct. App. Div. 2022)

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Student Arrests in Allegheny County Public Schools: The Need for Transparency and Accountability

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From the introduction: “One of our goals in producing this report is to inform school administrators, board members, and parent and student stakeholders, giving details about which groups of students are disproportionately arrested and about the gaps that exist in data reporting. We also want to provide guidance on how to address these issues. We…