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1
HOUSE RESOLUTION

 
2    WHEREAS, The current youth justice system is not applied
3fairly or equitably and can thus not provide the best possible
4outcomes for our nation's children, families, or public safety;
5and
 
6    WHEREAS, 2015 Bureau of Justice statistics show that more
7than 5,000 youth are incarcerated in jails and adult prisons on
8any given day in the U.S.; and
 
9    WHEREAS, According to the NAACP, 2019 statistics show that
10African American children represent 52% of children whose cases
11are judicially waived to the criminal court, though they
12comprise only 16% of youth in the U.S.; and
 
13    WHEREAS, The justice system as currently designed does not
14adequately recognize the different developmental stages of
15young people and the opportunities that these stages offer for
16their life trajectories; and
 
17    WHEREAS, There is considerable ambiguity around the
18appropriateness and involvement of younger children as there is
19no age limit for entry into our delinquency system; and
 
20    WHEREAS, There is a growing understanding of how trauma can

 

 

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1materially impact brain growth and behavior and how punitive
2responses to behavior often do not result in desired behavior
3or the well-being of children and families; and
 
4    WHEREAS, Youth are more likely than adults to be
5permanently traumatized by the harsh realities of the adult
6prison system; according to the National Prison Rape
7Elimination, "more than any other group of incarcerated
8persons, youth incarcerated with adults are probably at the
9highest risk of sexual abuse"; and
 
10    WHEREAS, As of 2016, there are more than 3,700 youth still
11in adult prisons; youth convicted in the adult system receive
12little or no rehabilitative programming, which is mandated in
13the juvenile system; and
 
14    WHEREAS, A study by the Department of Justice found that 76
15percent of prisoners under the age of 25 when released were
16rearrested within three years, and 84 percent were rearrested
17within five years; and
 
18    WHEREAS, A 2015 study by the Campaign for Youth Justice
19found that incarcerated youth are at the highest risk for
20sexual abuse, and to protect them in adult facilities, children
21are often placed in solitary confinement, where they are kept
22in their cells for 22-23 hours a day; and
 

 

 

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1    WHEREAS, The current system arranges individuals into two
2categories, juveniles and adults, and it does not recognize the
3"emerging adults", individuals 18-25 years old who have
4distinct needs; and
 
5    WHEREAS, According to a study by the U.S. Department of
6Justice, black male emerging adults comprised nearly 40% of all
7emerging adults admitted to state and federal prisons in the
8U.S. in 2012, and they are 7-9 times more likely to end up in
9prison compared to their white peers; therefore, be it
 
10    RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE
11HUNDRED FIRST GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that
12we urge legislators, municipalities, law enforcement
13officials, judicial system decision makers, legal
14professionals, school systems, and key stakeholders to achieve
15more fair, just, equitable, and effective outcomes by embracing
16a developmental approach to the treatment of children and
17emerging adults in the justice system through:
18        (1) Reducing disproportionality and disparities based
19    on race, ethnicity, gender, ability status, and sexual
20    orientation or gender identity and expression among
21    children and emerging adults in the justice system;
22        (2) Ensuring youth and emerging adults in the justice
23    system maintain supportive relationships and have

 

 

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1    appropriate guidance and counsel from legal professionals
2    and caregivers;
3        (3) Implementing policies and practices to reduce harm
4    and improve outcomes for justice-involved youth in
5    accordance with knowledge from developmental science;
6        (4) Ensuring that for those youth and young adults in
7    the justice system, policies and practices prioritize the
8    health and educational needs and avoid causing harm;
9        (5) Ensuring that through all developmental stages of
10    young people, including emerging adult, our justice system
11    provides age and developmentally appropriate services and
12    supports, life skills development, rigorous education, and
13    fresh starts so young people have the best opportunity to
14    successfully transition into law abiding and productive
15    adulthood; and
16        (6) Promoting a strong collaboration among impacted
17    communities, governmental agencies and the non-profit
18    sector, along with partnerships with diverse community
19    stakeholders who will provide technical assistance,
20    support, and engagement with decision-making; and be it
21    further
 
22    RESOLVED, That we urge Congress to enact legislation that
23supports and ensures the justice system utilizes a culturally
24responsive and trauma-informed developmental approach to youth
25justice; and be it further
 

 

 

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1    RESOLVED, That suitable copies of this resolution be
2delivered to the President of the United States, the Vice
3President of the United States, members of the United States
4House of Representatives and the United States Senate, and
5other federal and state government officials as appropriate.