West Virginia has made significant criminal justice reforms in reducing harsh sentences for children, according to the latest report from The Sentencing Project but it does not help those who were sentenced before the reforms went into effect.

The report found more than 8,600 people behind bars with sentences of life without the possibility of parole, for crimes committed when they were children.

Ashley Nellis, co-director of research for The Sentencing Project, said West Virginia set an example for other states when it reformed its youth sentencing laws in 2016.

"West Virginia actually got rid of life without parole for juveniles," Nellis pointed out. "And also does not report any individuals who are serving life with parole or virtual life sentences for crimes committed when they were under 18."

The state also continues to see a downward trend in the number of youth in juvenile facilities. A one-day count of young detainees in 2019 found almost 500 children under 18 were in detention facilities in West Virginia. Two years later, the number had dropped to 345.

Nellis noted a growing body of neuroscience research showed critical differences between developing and adult brains related to decision-making, compulsive behavior and changes in parts of the brain responsible for "fight or flight." Most research now suggests the brain continues to develop into the mid-20s, calling into question the fairness of prosecuting and sentencing juveniles in the adult system.

"You're still biologically a teen, even though you've been transferred into the criminal legal system and taken out of the juvenile system," Nellis explained.

Nellis added states continue to have leeway in how they choose to sentence minors.

"The U.S. Supreme Court has weighed in on life without parole for juveniles and severely limited the allowable use of life without parole for young people," Nellis stressed. "But they stopped short of telling the states how to implement."

Overall, the number of young people arrested has drastically dropped since the mid-1990s, and the number held in juvenile facilities fell from more than 108,000 in 2000, to around 27,000 in 2022, a 75% decline. However, youth of color are much more likely than white youth to be held in juvenile facilities.


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Two Kentucky laws recently went into effect are expected to increase the number of incarcerated children in the state, according to a new report from the Kentucky Center for Economic Policy.

House Bill 3 requires any child charged with a violent felony offense be detained for up to 48 hours, not including weekends or holidays, pending a detention hearing in front of a judge. It could affect a significant number of juveniles because Kentucky law is much broader than most states in what it categorizes as a violent offense.

Kaylee Raymer, analyst at the Kentucky Center for Economic Policy, said hundreds of additional children are likely to be detained.

"Not only because detention is harmful for young people regardless of how long they're there, but because Kentucky's juvenile facilities are struggling with staffing," Raymer explained. "There's a Department of Justice investigation going on."

Raymer pointed out the law comes amid widespread staffing shortages in Kentucky's juvenile detention facilities, and a class-action lawsuit against the state's Department of Juvenile Justice. Louisville's detention facility, which House Bill 3 appropriated more than $17 million to renovate, remains incomplete, meaning children in Jefferson County will be detained hours away from their families.

Another piece of legislation, Senate Bill 20 would require kids be tried as adults in some instances where there is an allegation a gun was involved in a crime but not necessarily used.

Raymer emphasized the law reverses three-year-old reforms ending automatic transfer of children to adult court and placed discretion back in the hands of the judge.

"This means it takes a lot of discretion away from the judge," Raymer contended. "We're going to see a lot more cases going to adult course."

Research shows trying kids as adults does severe damage to mental health and does not deter committing future offenses.

One study found the prevalence of psychiatric disorders among youth transferred and detained in the adult court system is nearly double that of adults. According to data from the Annie E. Casey Foundation, in 2022 slightly more than 13 out of every 1,000 Kentucky children aged 10-19 were booked into a secure juvenile detention facility.


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Formerly incarcerated Mississippians will share their stories about rebuilding their lives at the "Redemption Over Retribution" fall conference next month.

Mississippi has one of the world's highest incarceration rates.

Pastor Wesley Bridges, CEO of Clergy for Prison Reform, a faith-based organization that supports families with incarcerated loved ones and amplifies their voices, said the conference will offer resources and feature people who've been released from prison in a vairety of roles - including preaching, singing, teaching and workshops.

"We're doing that again, to shine the light on the fact in Mississippi that second chances work," he said. "So, we did that in Jackson in April. We're going to do it in Columbia, Mississippi, again in September. And we hope again to have it 100% of people that are formerly incarcerated - because nobody can tell the story like they can tell the story."

The in-person conference will be Sept. 27-28 at New Life Fellowship Church in Columbia.

Bridges said the organization was established in 2015, at the height of turmoil within the Mississippi Department of Corrections. This period saw rampant gang violence and arson, as tensions boiled over in prisons because of living conditions and related issues.

Bridges emphasized that Clergy for Prison Reform aims to enlighten legislators and the people of Mississippi about the importance of recognizing the humanity of individuals behind bars. He said the group collaborates with like-minded organizations to advance their goals.

"And we advocate for laws that are antiquated to be removed from books, laws that don't make moral or fiscal sense for the State of Mississippi," he said. "We advocate for compassionate release. We advocate for suffrage for those that are released, who've paid their debt to society, to have something to return to."

He said he's convinced Mississippi could decrease its prison population by re-examining some cases. As an example, he cited an 85-year-old woman whose parole was recently denied and won't be reconsidered for another five years. He added that implementing more compassionate release policies could lead to more efficient use of state resources.


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Property crime in California is near record lows, according to the latest statistics from the California Department of Justice.

A new report from the Center on Juvenile and Criminal Justice finds property crime is down 53% statewide since 2005, and 16% since 2009, when criminal justice reforms began to take effect.

Mike Males, senior researcher with the Center on Juvenile and Criminal Justice, said people on television who claim otherwise are cherry-picking local statistics while ignoring the larger trend.

"All these insinuations we're seeing nationwide across the political spectrum and in a lot of media is that California crime is out of control. And it's just not true. Just the opposite is the case," he said.

This fall, Golden State voters will decide on Proposition 36, which would reverse parts of Prop 47, a criminal justice reform bill from 2014. More thefts would be deemed felonies - sending more people to jail - by lowering the cutoff on the value of property stolen. It would also classify certain drug offenses as treatment-mandated felonies and increase penalties for some drug crimes.

Prop 36 is supported by some law enforcement groups. The largest contributors include Walmart, Target and Home Depot.

Will Matthews, a spokesperson for the nonprofit Californians for Safety and Justice, pointed out that Prop 47 has saved the state $850 million so far in incarceration costs, and diverted that money to programs that combat the drivers of crime - such as poverty and addiction.

"We can't put all of our safety investments into just responding to crime and harm after they occur. We also have to be investing in community-based crime and harm-prevention programs," said Matthews.

The California Legislative Analyst estimates that Prop 36 could cost the state hundreds of millions of dollars per year in increased incarceration costs, and could reduce funds going to mental health and drug treatment programs, K-12 schools and crime victims.