Currently, children as young as 10 are held behind bars while awaiting trial in Illinois, and now, juvenile justice reform groups are calling for the minimum age to be set at 13.

Legislation to raise the age from 10 to 13, House Bill 111, passed in the House of Representatives but stalled in the state Senate this spring.

Luis Klein, executive director of the Juvenile Justice Initiative in Evanston, said children under 13 should be released to their parents while awaiting trial.

"International human rights instruments, such as the Convention of the Rights of the Child, called for an end of prosecution, let alone detention, of young children under the age of 14," Klein pointed out. "Canada ended prosecution of children under the age of 12 in 1984. And Germany has long ended prosecution of children under the age of 14."

Illinois currently has no minimum age for criminal prosecution. Children up to 18 are tried in juvenile court. Reform groups would like to allow youths under 21 charged with misdemeanors to be tried as juveniles rather than in the adult court system. A bill to adopt the change passed the House this spring, but it, too, died in the state Senate.

Opponents in the law enforcement community cited concerns about rising crime and accountability.

Rep. Robyn Gabel, D-Evanston, said incarceration traumatizes young people who are already in crisis.

"Research shows that this event changes the trajectory of a child's life," Gabel stressed. "They are more likely to have poor life outcomes; recidivism, to drop out of high school, to be unemployed, and to have behavioral health problems. That's something that is unconscionable."

Nate Balis, director of the Juvenile Justice Strategy Group for the Annie E. Casey Foundation, said the focus of the juvenile justice system needs to pivot from punishment to rehabilitation for youths.

"Our job is to help them pursue their hopes and dreams," Balis asserted. "As opposed to just, 'How can we stop them from doing this bad thing?' That's when the system can become more humane."

Advocates stated they would like to see both bills be reintroduced when the legislature convenes for its next regular session in January.

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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