Justice-Involved Youth

This guide provides professionals in the fields of education, social services, and law enforcement with information to help identify and respond to youth who may be homeless. The guide recommends prosecutors, judges, and probation officers review juvenile cases for possible homelessness at each stage of the judicial process. The guide emphasizes the importance of re-entry planning with this population. The federal definition of youth homelessness is provided as well as questions professionals can ask youth to determine their housing status. 

This brief discusses the significant overlap between two populations—youth involved with the juvenile justice system and youth who experience homelessness. Youth who lack safe and stable housing often become involved with law enforcement and the justice system because of status offenses, public ordinance violations, or survival crimes. This brief outlines the possible long-term effects of youth homelessness and justice involvement, including physical and mental health problems and poor educational and vocational outcomes. It outlines seven areas where youth-serving organizations, including juvenile justice systems, runaway and homeless youth program, health departments, schools, community-based providers, and philanthropists, can collaborate to make an impact, including: 1) undertaking or funding research; 2) educating stakeholders; 3) investing in prevention and diversion opportunities; 4) improving re-entry planning; 5) advocating for change; 6) ensuring efforts reach youth of color and LGBTQ youth; and 7) partnering with youth and giving young people who have experienced homelessness and juvenile justice involvement leadership roles. In 2016, the Coalition for Juvenile Justice launched the Collaborating for Change: Addressing Youth Homelessness and Juvenile Justice project.  

In this brief, the American Youth Policy Forum (AYPF) summarizes how the organization collaborated with key stakeholders at the national, state, local, and institutional level to develop accountability systems for alternative education programs. AYPF outlines the seven lessons learned about what these settings do well, areas that need improvement, opportunities for innovation, and issues requiring further inquiry. (author abstract modified)

This brief from the American Youth Policy Forum (AYPF) presents three key lessons the organization has identified as critical to promoting pathways to postsecondary education, training, and careers for youth involved in the juvenile justice system, foster care, or both. These three lessons are leveraging authentic youth voice, providing youth with a wide range of comprehensive supports and transitional services, and strategically aligning youth-serving systems and policies. The brief includes best practice spotlights for each of the lessons learned.

The Urban Institute published this brief as part of a series of policy recommendations from a project called Building Ladders of Opportunity for Young People in the Great Lakes. This brief describes how crime and justice involvement impact youth development and opportunity in general, and specifically in six Great Lakes states: Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, and Wisconsin. The brief presents policies and practices that may help increase safety while reducing juvenile justice and criminal justice involvement and their negative effects on youth. (author abstract modified)

This brief from the American Youth Policy Forum focuses on social and emotional learning (SEL) programs for three traditionally underserved groups: students with disabilities, English language learners, and youth involved in the juvenile justice system.  The risk factors and consequences experienced by system-involved youth often create barriers to their social and emotional development. In addition to reviewing current research and practice related to SEL for these three student populations, the author explores possible applications of SEL programs to better prepare these students for success in school and life. (author abstract modified)

The National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges (NCJFCJ) passed a resolution during the organization’s 80th annual conference in Washington, D.C. to address the needs and issues related to homeless youth and families involved with the juvenile and family court systems. The resolution outlines strategies for judges to better serve young people experiencing homelessness and opposes the criminalization of youth for status offenses related to their lack of safe and stable housing. Juvenile and family court judges can lead the effort within their jurisdictions to improve the outcomes of youth with safe and stable housing, substance abuse and mental health services, life skills counseling, and family reunification when deemed appropriate. The resolution provides concrete steps for judges to convene child welfare and juvenile justice system stakeholders to develop a coordinated response to effectively identify and secure housing and services for homeless youth.

This report provides key findings from a study of two juvenile justice systems, Snohomish and Kitsap counties, in Washington to develop a court-based strategy to prevent youth homelessness. The development team conducted this study in response to the high rate (75 percent) of homeless youth who have contact with police, with more than 50 percent experiencing arrest. They developed the Youth Housing Stability (YHS) model to minimize this contact while providing youth needed supports and services to remain housed. The development team designed the YHS model to address both system-wide and program-level needs to prevent housing instability for an estimated 100 to 150 youth within each jurisdiction each year. In addition, this model helps build community capacity for effective prevention through the implementation of services accessible to youth referred by non-court agencies. (author abstract modified)

The U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP), developed this toolkit to help young people in juvenile corrections and treatment programs prepare for successful reentry into the community. The guide provides instructions for youth to follow first while they are still in placement and second once they are released. It discusses common barriers that youth may experience upon reentry and provides action steps to address those barriers with the help of a caring adult. The guide outlines how transitioning youth can seek assistance from a parent or guardian, mentor, friend, teacher, and other key people. Topics include building a reentry team; connecting to support services; planning for school and work; and following probation, parole, and court requirements.

This journal article expounds on three of the 20 strategies presented in the National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges Resolution titled Addressing the Needs of Homeless Youth and Families in Juvenile and Family Courts. The first strategy discussed is the need to improve coordination between the child welfare and juvenile justice systems, particularly related to transition and re-entry planning for youth who are involved in both systems. The second strategy discussed is the need for judges to ensure youth within their jurisdictions receive high quality legal representation and that courts and counsel are aware of the increased risk of system-involved youth becoming homeless. The third strategy discussed is for an increase in sound judicial leadership to improve outcomes for youth experiencing homelessness. The authors state that juvenile and family court judges can help change the prevailing public perception that all system-involved youth are “bad kids.” The article includes an excerpt from the personal story of Keyona Cooper, MSW, who entered the child welfare system at age 10, and later experienced homelessness when she aged out of the system.  It also includes a case study about Davidson County, Tennessee, which is a system actively working to decriminalize youth homelessness. Information is provided about the concurrent efforts of the Coalition for Juvenile Justice and the American Bar Association’s Homeless Youth Legal Network to remove legal barriers and improve outcomes for youth and young adults experiencing homelessness.