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This article examines the epidemiology of the US juvenile legal system, which disproportionately impacts youth with multiple marginalized identities and exacerbates health inequities. Policy changes that can improve the treatment of children who display disruptive behavior are highlighted, so as to lay out a path forward for supporting children and enhancing health equity while bolstering public safety. Finally, this article concludes that the systemic racism pervasive in the juvenile legal system signals an important role for pediatrics to advance racial equity and transform our approach to childhood., Competing Interests: Disclosure The author has no financial conflicts of interest to disclose. The author volunteers on the Board of Directors of the National Commission on Correctional Health Care., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Historically, youths who are affected by commercial sexual exploitation (CSE) in the United States have been implicated as perpetrators of crime and overrepresented in the juvenile justice system. As an intriguing example of the "smart decarceration" social work grand challenge, policy and practice initiatives have converged to decriminalize cisgender girls and young women experiencing CSE by reframing them as victims of exploitation rather than as criminals. To date, these efforts have largely focused on gender-specific programming for cisgender girls and young women. In this article, the authors describe how federal, state, and local policy and practice innovations have supported reframing CSE as a form of child maltreatment and rerouted girls and young women from the juvenile justice system to specialized services. Using Los Angeles County as a case example, the authors detail how innovative prevention, intervention, and aftercare programs can serve as models of smart decarceration for CSE-affected cisgender girls and young women with the potential to address the needs of youths with diverse gender and sexual identities., (© 2020 National Association of Social Workers.)

Competing Interests: POTENTIAL CONFLICT OF INTEREST: The author has indicated she has no potential conflicts of interest to disclose.

Background: Specialty courts have emerged as a model of care for U.S. youth impacted by commercial sexual exploitation (CSE) to ensure comprehensive service provision. However, there is a lack of published research that documents the extent to which these programs achieve this goal., Objective: We sought to understand a specialty juvenile justice court's role in identifying mental health and substance use treatment needs, providing linkages to services, and facilitating stability for youth with histories of CSE., Participants and Setting: We conducted an exhaustive court file review of the 364 participants in a U.S. based juvenile delinquency specialty court for youth affected by CSE. The observation period spanned 2012-2017., Methods: The research team systematically transferred data from court files into a secure, electronic database. Descriptive statistics and Chisquared tests were calculated to explore potential associations., Results: Participation in the specialty court for youth impacted by CSE suggests an increase in identification of mental health and substance use needs and linkages and referrals to mental health and substance use treatment services. In addition, there was increased stabilization as indicated by decreased substantiated child welfare allegations, fewer running away episodes, and placements and criminal involvement., Conclusions: Specialty courts that incorporate a multidisciplinary, trauma-informed approach offer a promising intervention model for meeting the high treatment needs of youth impacted by CSE., (Copyright © 2019 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Objectives: We sought to understand incarcerated youths' perspectives on the role of protective factors and risk factors for juvenile offending., Methods: We performed an in-depth qualitative analysis of interviews (conducted October-December 2013) with 20 incarcerated youths detained in the largest juvenile hall in Los Angeles., Results: The adolescent participants described their homes, schools, and neighborhoods as chaotic and unsafe. They expressed a need for love and attention, discipline and control, and role models and perspective. Youths perceived that when home or school failed to meet these needs, they spent more time on the streets, leading to incarceration. They contrasted the path through school with the path to jail, reporting that the path to jail felt easier. All of them expressed the insight that they had made bad decisions and that the more difficult path was not only better but also still potentially achievable., Conclusions: Breaking cycles of juvenile incarceration will require that the public health community partner with legislators, educators, community leaders, and youths to determine how to make success, rather than incarceration, the easier path for disadvantaged adolescents.

BackgroundSpecialty courts have emerged as a model of care for U.S. youth impacted by commercial sexual exploitation (CSE) to ensure comprehensive service provision. However, there is a lack of published research that documents the extent to which these programs achieve this goal.ObjectiveWe sought to understand a specialty juvenile justice court's role in identifying mental health and substance use treatment needs, providing linkages to services, and facilitating stability for youth with histories of CSE.Participants and settingWe conducted an exhaustive court file review of the 364 participants in a U.S. based juvenile delinquency specialty court for youth affected by CSE. The observation period spanned 2012-2017.MethodsThe research team systematically transferred data from court files into a secure, electronic database. Descriptive statistics and Chisquared tests were calculated to explore potential associations.ResultsParticipation in the specialty court for youth impacted by CSE suggests an increase in identification of mental health and substance use needs and linkages and referrals to mental health and substance use treatment services. In addition, there was increased stabilization as indicated by decreased substantiated child welfare allegations, fewer running away episodes, and placements and criminal involvement.ConclusionsSpecialty courts that incorporate a multidisciplinary, trauma-informed approach offer a promising intervention model for meeting the high treatment needs of youth impacted by CSE.

Purpose Despite the existence of minimum age laws for juvenile justice jurisdiction in 18 US states, California has no explicit law that protects children (i.e. youth less than 12 years old) from being processed in the juvenile justice system. In the absence of a minimum age law, California lags behind other states and international practice and standards. The paper aims to discuss these issues. Design/methodology/approach In this policy brief, academics across the University of California campuses examine current evidence, theory, and policy related to the minimum age of juvenile justice jurisdiction. Findings Existing evidence suggests that children lack the cognitive maturity to comprehend or benefit from formal juvenile justice processing, and diverting children from the system altogether is likely to be more beneficial for the child and for public safety. Research limitations/implications Based on current evidence and theory, the authors argue that minimum age legislation that protects children from contact with the juvenile justice system and treats them as children in need of services and support, rather than as delinquents or criminals, is an important policy goal for California and for other national and international jurisdictions lacking a minimum age law. Originality/value California has no law specifying a minimum age for juvenile justice jurisdiction, meaning that young children of any age can be processed in the juvenile justice system. This policy brief provides a rationale for a minimum age law in California and other states and jurisdictions without one.

Several U.S. states are considering setting or raising a minimum age of juvenile court jurisdiction. However, there is scant evidence to suggest if a state minimum age law would protect children from developmentally inappropriate proceedings beyond existing capacity and competency statutes. To address this central question, this case study focuses on the state of California and considers (a) existing state laws, (b) state juvenile crime data, and (c) opinions of diverse juvenile justice stakeholders. Triangulated analysis found that a low number of California children below the age of 12 years are petitioned in juvenile court and most are referred for misdemeanor or status offenses. Existing legal protections are present yet inconsistently implemented. A minimum age law would address some of these policy gaps. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aimed to identify substance use initiation among justice-involved adolescents transitioning into adulthood. Lifetime use of 11 substances was extracted from the U.S. Pathways to Desistance Study (N = 1,354) and modeled using latent class/transition analyses. Users were categorized into five classes: no/occasional use of alcohol and cannabis; alcohol, cigarette, and cannabis; stimulants; sedatives and hallucinogenic drugs; and all substance use. Justice-involved youths initiate substance use very early on, with substance users having already initiated substances between ages 16 and 23 on average. Those who used few substances at age 16 on average were likely to initiate illicit substances before age 23. Our findings support the importance of ensuring timely access to substance use prevention for this vulnerable population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose Although incarceration may have life-long negative health effects, little is known about associations between child incarceration and subsequent adult health outcomes. The paper aims to discuss this issue. Design/methodology/approach The authors analyzed data from 14,689 adult participants in the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health (Add Health) to compare adult health outcomes among those first incarcerated between 7 and 13 years of age (child incarceration); first incarcerated at>or=14 years of age; and never incarcerated. Findings Compared to the other two groups, those with a history of child incarceration were disproportionately black or Hispanic, male, and from lower socio-economic strata. Additionally, individuals incarcerated as children had worse adult health outcomes, including general health, functional limitations (climbing stairs), depressive symptoms, and suicidality, than those first incarcerated at older ages or never incarcerated. Research limitations/implications Despite the limitations of the secondary database analysis, these findings suggest that incarcerated children are an especially medically vulnerable population. Practical implications Programs and policies that address these medically vulnerable children's health needs through comprehensive health and social services in place of, during, and/or after incarceration are needed. Social implications Meeting these unmet health and social service needs offers an important opportunity to achieve necessary health care and justice reform for children. Originality/value No prior studies have examined the longitudinal relationship between child incarceration and adult health outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]