SPRINGFIELD, Ill. -- There's a new call to better protect children awaiting trial in Illinois during the COVID-19 outbreak. A number of organizations are expressing concern over what they call a lack of transparency and protections from the Illinois Supreme Court for the state's juvenile-detention centers.

Jennifer Vollen-Katz, executive director with the John Howard Association, said many of these centers lock up children as young as 10 before trial.

"This is a really vulnerable population," Vollen-Katz said. "And what this might be doing to their stress levels, their anxiety levels, particularly when they are separated from family and loved ones, is incredibly difficult and potentially dangerous to their mental health."

The groups, including juvenile-justice and youth-advocacy organizations, sent a letter to the Illinois Supreme Court, requesting that juvenile courts be directed to release children at risk of COVID-19, stop new admissions to juvenile-detention placement facilities, and release young people being held for low-level offenses. Vollen-Katz noted these protections are in line with those already taken by the Department of Juvenile Justice for youths convicted of a crime.

Vollen-Katz contends these measures are needed to protect both the health of detained youths as well as those who work at juvenile-detention facilities. She said the pandemic is bringing to light the need to move away from the use of pre-trial detention.

"There are a lot of people that may be charged with a crime who do not pose a risk to anybody and can go on about their business until their case is resolved," she said. "And that will not only maintain public safety but - in this instance - really go a long way towards our public health outcomes."

The Illinois Supreme Court has suspended the right to a speedy trial as part of its response to the COVID-19 outbreak, which Vollen-Katz said makes it is even more critical to ensure detention is used as a last resort. This is the second letter sent demanding better emergency protections for juvenile-detention facilities during the crisis.

More information is available at JJustice.org.



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Two bills aimed at reforming the juvenile justice system in Illinois are close to becoming law.

Senate Bill 1784 proposes raising the age of detention from 10 to 13 and Senate Bill 2156 seeks to ensure front-line responders can access the appropriate services for children in crisis to avoid detention, if possible.

Elizabeth Clarke, founder and executive director of the Juvenile Justice Initiative, said research shows jailing children for any amount of time is harmful and can cause long-term consequences, affecting their quality of life, especially for children of color.

"The Juvenile Justice Commission has filed numerous reports over the years looking at the children who are actually detained," Clarke pointed out. "And in every report, it is disproportionately used for children who are Black and brown."

She added for children ages 10-12, the racial disparities are even more dramatic. Both bills passed the state Senate. Senate Bill 1784 passed a House committee Tuesday.

Efforts to end detention of young children across the state have been ongoing. Illinois currently has 14 juvenile detention centers covering 102 counties, with only three regularly meeting basic standards. Clarke pointed out besides the fact jailing children does not guarantee an increase in public safety, it is also costly.

"These two bills together offer a unique opportunity to help our children and help our taxpayers as well," Clarke asserted. "By front-loading resources so that you use the least expensive and most effective interventions to keep children out of the justice system."

Clarke emphasized a key aspect of one bill is to create a task force to help identify the resources needed for front-line responders. Probation departments would report monthly on service gaps to facilitate resource allocation.

"Whether it's a crisis that leads to some sort of prosecution or a behavioral health crisis, whatever it is, people want to do the right thing," Clarke observed. "But law enforcement, who are often the first responders, don't always know exactly where to turn, or how to do the right thing."

A new report examined differences in state juvenile justice system financing, looking at how local control can improve outcomes.

The report, "Transforming Juvenile Justice Through Strategic Financing," compared seven states and highlighted Ohio's RECLAIM initiative as influential. RECLAIM began in 1993 and encouraged courts to implement community-based alternatives to youth incarceration, with the aim of decreasing the likelihood of repeated arrest.

Gabriella Celeste, policy director for the Schubert Center for Child Studies at Case Western Reserve University, said RECLAIM and its recent updates have transformed the state's juvenile justice system.

"In the last 10 years or so, it's really upped its game, the state of Ohio, in ensuring that the kinds of interventions are based on what works with kids," Celeste explained. "That's where we see the new kind of iterations of RECLAIM, the Targeted RECLAIM, and especially Competitive RECLAIM."

Ohio has seen declines in youth incarceration over the past two decades, with the average daily youth population in correctional facilities falling from nearly 1,700 in 2005 to around 500 in recent years. The number of young people on parole declined 84% over the same period.

The average cost to house a juvenile in prison nationally is estimated to be $500 per day, or more than $200,000 a year, with some states above $500,000. The report found community-based programs are far cheaper with some costing as little as $75 a day.

Celeste pointed out alternative placements have been effective at reducing recidivism and improving other measures of youth well-being.

"With kids we want to be thinking about other wellness-related outcomes," Celeste outlined. "Are they engaged in school? Are they discontinuing use of substances? Are they progressing with a treatment program? But we tend to just look at one thing when it comes to kids in the justice system, and that's recidivism, which is important, but safety includes a number of other factors."

Alternative placements often include community services, which can more readily meet individualized needs among kids in the justice system. Courts can mandate individual and family therapy along with addiction programs. Celeste said mentorship programs have also gained popularity.

"There's increasingly a recognition that people who themselves have had experience or lived experience, whether in the system or as family members connected with loved ones in the system," Celeste observed. "They are themselves, kind of credible messengers, and they can play a really effective mentoring role with kids and young people."

The report looked at funding dynamics and programs in 11 localities among the seven states.


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A Missouri children's advocate is urging the justice system to focus on healing for youths, noting trauma and broken relationships often drive their actions.

Research shows Missouri has seen fluctuating juvenile delinquency rates, with urban areas such as St. Louis and Springfield facing rising youth crime. The St. Louis Police Department reported a 57% increase in juvenile shooting incidents so far this year compared with 2024.

Alex Lecure, board president for the group Advocating For Children in Crisis and Transition, has fostered numerous at-risk teens. He emphasized people who have been hurt, hurt people.

"The response to that can't be, 'Here's the rules, and if you don't follow those, then there's going to be consequences.' It needs to be done to the context of a relationship," Lecure explained. "There's a lack of connection and positive connection in their lives."

Lecure acknowledged youths must face consequences for their actions but stressed rules without relationships lead to rebellion.

Statistics show exposure to childhood violence is associated with a 40% increase in violent behavior during adolescence, as well as struggles with mental health issues such as anxiety, depression and post-traumatic stress disorder later in life. Lecure highlighted a common thread seen in delinquent youths.

"The common thread of trauma that we see across many if not most delinquent youths is just absent parent, for whatever reason," Lecure noted. "Either, maybe Dad's not there and Mom's working two jobs and doesn't have the time of day, but not getting that solid foundation connection from your parents is a trauma on its own."

Lecure stressed the need for the juvenile justice system to address broken connections in youths' lives by restoring relationships or fostering new ones.


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