For decades, state legislators and criminal justice advocates have worked to reform the juvenile justice system, aiming to enhance access to rehabilitation and prevent young people from reoffending, Stateline reports. During this year’s legislative session, nearly every state has considered some form of juvenile justice legislation, according to a National Conference of State Legislatures database. These efforts across at least 43 states plus Washington, D.C., have seen varied levels of success and come from a diversity of viewpoints. This year, states including Connecticut, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, North Carolina and Tennessee have examined ways to tackle crimes committed by children. Some of these bills would establish independent oversight of juvenile corrections agencies, create new avenues for youth to access diversion programs, or automatically transfer juveniles convicted of certain crimes into the adult legal system.
Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly signed a bill that will allow teens held in the state’s only juvenile corrections facility to attend outside educational and vocational programs or training. The new law will allow teens to explore other vocational programs that align with their career interests and connect them with employment opportunities. The Kansas legislature also allocated $2.5 million to Mirror Inc., a private corporation that provides behavioral health care, prevention programs and residential reentry services, to build a new inpatient juvenile substance use treatment center in south-central Kansas. The Maryland legislature tackled a controversial juvenile justice bill this session, which will extend state oversight to younger juveniles between 10 and 12 years old who have been arrested for serious offenses, including those involving a firearm, motor vehicle theft, animal abuse or a third-degree sexual offense. Minors also could be sent to a diversion program operated by a local prosecutor's office or a community-based organization. The law will establish a commission to review the Maryland Department of Juvenile Services’ education and diversionary programs, research evidence-based programs and investigate deaths involving children under state supervision. It also will allow prosecutors to review complaints and case files of children under state supervision.