Everything Under The Sun: Better Treatment For Youth In Trouble

Promoting Prop 57 on the California ballot.

Any time I notice an organization or group of organizations that are committed to decreasing incarceration of youth and improving their lives, I'm all in favor. Children and youth are our future and they deserve all of the help and assistance that we can muster to boost their chances in life. In that regard, I have for years noticed the criminalization of certain behaviors that, in the past, would never be viewed that way and the dumping of children into the adult criminal justice system.

An organization, THE CALIFORNIA ALLIANCE FOR YOUTH AND COMMUNITY JUSTICE (CAYCJ), a coalition of more than forty organizations, was formed with the goal of reducing the massive incarceration of youth and to improve outcomes of youth already engaged in that system. The types of organizations within the alliance comprise such areas as advocacy, research, organizing, along with affected parents and youth.

The elections that were held this year provided a venue for CAYCJ's recent activities. A ballot initiative, Prop. 57, was developed after several rewrites, much public angst, and even lawsuits. It was an initiative that proposed that nonviolent offenders be able to use prison time to improve themselves. In addition, it also placed the decision of whether to try a youth in juvenile or adult court in the hands of the judge, removing it from the authority of the prosecutor.

Essentially, the portion of the initiative directed to inmates, encourages them to participate in rehabilitative programming, rather than just sitting around and waiting for their time to be up. The new system actually provides inmate credits that can be reviewed when that inmate appears before the parole board. Proponents of the initiative view it as a step forward in determining which rehabilitative programs actually work and, in future, helping to reduce re-offending. The outcome of the election was that Prop. 57 was passed.

The organizations within CAYCJ utilize the backing of research regarding brain development in children and youth. The research shows that adolescents are still undergoing significant brain development and concomitant psychological changes that affect how they react. Adolescents are more inclined to react and act impulsively, are more influenced by their peers and are more likely to engage in risky behaviors as they seek to develop their identities. Often enough this stage of development can result in negative acts with negative consequences that are not reflective of overall character.

CACYJ logo.

Besides the stage of development in which youth are engaged, there is also the fact that the adult system is inappropriate for youth offenders. One issue is that adult prison personnel are unfamiliar with the impulsivity and stages of brain and psychic development characteristic of youth. The other is that because of youth vulnerability, youth frequently end up being placed in secure housing units where they are kept in isolation for 23 out of 24 hours per day. They end up missing key development skills that can only be learned by socializing with other youth and adults in their lives. Add in the fact that adult prisons are designed more for punishment than rehabilitation and you have youth being thrown away, with very little options for improving themselves. And that is why the need for such alliances as CAYCJ is so vital. And every State should have one.