Our organization advocates for juvenile reforms that are informed by youth brain development research and more accurately reflect the rehabilitative goals of the juvenile justice system.

The ability to educate and advocate on behalf of children requires specialized knowledge about the juvenile system. Historically, the primary goal of the criminal justice system has been to sanction adults proportionate to their offense. In contrast, the goals of the juvenile justice system are geared toward the rehabilitation of youth who offend. The historical distinction between the goals of the two systems is due to years of scientific research demonstrating that children commit offenses for different reasons than adults and the responses to their behavior should therefore be different.

The United States Supreme Court has held that due to a juvenile’s characteristics—immaturity, recklessness, and impetuosity—they are less likely to consider potential consequences to their actions. See Miller v. Alabama (2012). The United States Supreme Court has also held that youths are different from adults in their level of culpability and therefore less deserving of the most severe punishments within the criminal justice system. See Graham v. Florida (2010); see also Montgomery v. Louisiana (2016).

Despite these differences, the Utah juvenile justice system uses the adult code section, section 76, to charge juveniles with delinquent offenses. Therefore, it is imperative for legislators to understand how any amendment to section 76 can impact youth.