SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — Seven in 10 juveniles arrested in Illinois have underlying mental health issues, and advocates are urging lawmakers to offer them treatment rather than jail time.
According to the report “Stemming the Tide,” 30,000 young people have been arrested and 11,000 incarcerated in the state. Public Defender Amy Campanelli is calling on lawmakers to implement a diversion plan like the one that's been successful in the Miama-Dade area in Florida.
It allows officers to issue citations to 8- to 17-year-olds who commit misdemeanors, rather than taking them to jail. The young people are then evaluated to see if intervention is needed.
Campanelli said the key to success is that the program is run by a social service agency, rather than the criminal justice system.
"If you look at the last 40 years, what has punishment done? What have tough-on-crime laws done? What has the drug war done? Nothing,” Campanelli said. “It has incarcerated, the majority, black and brown youths, taken away generations of people from their families, and it has not made us safer."
The Illinois Legislature created a task force to produce the report. The panel made 14 recommendations, including improving mental health screenings for early identification of youth at risk, and having someone check up on those kids after release to make sure they're back in school and receiving treatment.
Jen McGowan-Tomke, co-chair of the task force and associate director of the National Alliance on Mental Illness, said another issue that has to be addressed is the shortage of treatment programs in Illinois.
"Youth that are arrested, about 70 percent, have a mental health condition,” McGowan-Tomke said. “We have a critical need to invest in community-based mental health services as there is a significant shortage across Illinois."
Campanelli said the state also needs to address the impact of poverty and racism in the juvenile justice system.
"These are the next leaders in our country, and we have to stop using this narrative that 'oh, you know, it's the south and west sides,’” she said. “These are real people, they have names, they have lives, they have parents, they have siblings. And we have to look at the individual and what they can give to society."
The report also called for training crisis-intervention teams, and restoring funding for the Mental Health Juvenile Justice Programs.
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Online conferencing was a lifeline for school lessons and business meetings during the pandemic. However, there is concern about the effects of virtual court hearings on Illinois' juvenile offenders.
The "Justice For Children Policy Brief" said minors reported feeling frustrated and anxious during their hearings because they could not understand court procedures. They also said there was a lack of privacy when speaking with their attorneys.
Angie Vigil, a Miami-based attorney specializing in children's rights, opposes digital proceedings for any substantive hearings for children.
"Judges are people and decision-makers are people and when you're in the presence of other people, you make a humanity-based decision," Vigil argued. "When you're looking at a screen you might not make as much of a humanity-based decision."
In 2022, the Illinois House of Representatives passed House Resolution 616, urging the Illinois Supreme Court to require courts to responsibly transition juvenile delinquency proceedings back to in-person hearings, with priority given to those hearings where the interests of liberty are at stake.
Supporters of virtual hearings pointed to no commute time, traffic jams, or courthouse parking fees as reasons to keep them. Parents who rely on public transportation or worry about missing work can just sign on to attend their child's case. Vigil noted a family law attorney often juggles many foster care, child welfare, and juvenile offender cases, and said virtual hearings can ease their workload.
"They are spending less time sitting in court waiting for their cases to be called and more time out in the community meeting the needs of kids," Vigil contended. "It sounds like I'm saying efficiency, but I'm actually talking about more work done for all of the children."
Vigil called the current status of digital hearings a mixed bag. Some courts have returned to in-person proceedings, others use technology for some, but not all, cases. Still other courtrooms use virtual meetings if all involved parties agree. According to the policy brief report, digital hearings will continue to thrive because of funding constraints.
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There is growing concern over what happens to young offenders in Illinois as they await their first court hearing.
A report by European juvenile-justice groups suggests many children worldwide are kept in solitary confinement, and argued the arrangement has the potential for long-term harm. It defined solitary confinement as physical and social isolation more than 22 hours a day, and said detainment should be a last resort and for as short a time as possible.
Elizabeth Clarke, founder of the Evanston-based Juvenile Justice Initiative, said children as young as 10 are regularly locked up and left alone.
"Shockingly, Illinois has no minimum age for prosecution of children in our juvenile court," Clarke pointed out. "Often, they're held in their cell because there simply isn't adequate programming. There's nothing to do with them, and it's very troubling."
Clarke noted there is reason to believe the situation will improve. Last year, the Illinois Legislature passed House Bill 3140, which prohibits the use of room confinement as juvenile punishment unless the youth poses an immediate and serious risk of self-harm or harm to others. It took effect Jan. 1, and Clarke acknowledged it will take time to build up resources under the new law.
An Illinois Department of Juvenile Justice report said the state has 16 detention centers housing an average of 160 youths. A judge closed a Franklin County center last month, citing excessive use of solitary confinement.
Another bill would raise the age to imprison kids for felony convictions. Clarke called it a start, and it is supported by juvenile rights advocates and the Illinois Probation and Court Services Association.
"We do not believe young children ever belong in detention. It's not an appropriate place for them," Clarke asserted. "We want to see this House Bill 2347 pass."
The bill was filed one year ago this week. It said the Illinois Juvenile Justice Commission should review and make recommendations to the General Assembly on raising the minimum detention age to 14.
Disclosure: The Juvenile Justice Initiative contributes to our fund for reporting on Children's Issues, Civic Engagement, Criminal Justice, and Juvenile Justice. If you would like to help support news in the public interest,
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Youth incarceration rates have declined in Indiana and nationwide since 2014. But a new study shows young people of color are more likely to be jailed than their white counterparts - and Indiana is no exception.
The Indiana Juvenile Justice Racial and Ethnic Disparities Plan says almost 30% of Black youths are placed in pretrial facilities, compared to almost 16% of white youths.
Nationally, the figures are even higher. According to The Sentencing Project, Black youths are almost five times more likely to be placed in juvenile detention than their white peers.
But Josh Rovner, director of youth justice at The Sentencing Project, said detention is neither the best nor the only answer.
"I think that we need to find ways to address those misbehaviors outside of the justice system," said Rovner, "because the justice system is so likely to do damage to these kids, where what we really need from them is true accountability and not punishment."
Youth incarceration in Indiana has been on a steady decline for years due to fewer arrests, and an emphasis on diversion programs.
A Juvenile Detention Alternatives Initiative is now in 31 Indiana counties, to redirect public resources from mass incarceration to investing in youth, families and communities.
The Sentencing Project study says 15% of young people in the U.S. are Black, but they make up 42% of those in detention.
Rovner asserted that incarceration isn't about the level or kinds of offenses - it's the result of a justice system that treats youth of color more harshly than whites.
He added that it can't be fixed overnight, and includes many players who bear a collective responsibility.
"There are police, and there are prosecutors, judges; there are sheriffs and wardens," said Rovner. "These are public employees, who are responding to laws that our nation, or our states or counties, have passed and implemented those laws."
Rovner said he hopes lawmakers will examine their own state's progress in the New Year, and notes that poverty and inequality lead to kids being locked up in the first place.
In 2022, Indiana's Legislature passed House Enrolled Act 1359 - which required the state to develop a juvenile diversion plan and community alternatives grant programs.
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