Forty-five states are incarcerating more than 32,000 people who received prison sentences as children, according to a new report from nonprofit Human Rights for Kids.
The report also found that of those who were sentenced as children, about a third received life sentences or lengthy sentences of 40 years or longer.
“The laws of the 80s and 90s that made it easier to try children as adults are still with us today,” Human Rights for Kids CEO James L. Dold said during a virtual press conference on Tuesday.
Decades ago, a national “tough on crime” policy movement led to state and federal laws that increased the use of incarceration. That push also limited access to public assistance, including housing assistance, for people who have previously been incarcerated.
More juvenile justice news:
- From The Colorado Sun: A state bill that would have increased the minimum age at which kids can be prosecuted failed for the second year in a row. Colorado law allows children as young as 10 to be prosecuted.
- From Kansas Reflector: Six years after Kansas lawmakers approved a juvenile justice reform law, the state still hasn’t spent millions set aside for juvenile crisis centers and other improvements to the system.
- From The Texas Tribune: The Texas Juvenile Justice Department wants to send more kids to adult prisons.
Contact Streetlight editor Mollie Bryant at 405-990-0988 or bryant@streetlightnews.org. Follow her reporting by joining our newsletter.
Streetlight, previously BigIfTrue.org, is a nonprofit news site based in Oklahoma City. Our mission is to report stories that envision a more equitable world and energize our readers to improve their communities. Donate to support our work here.
