Reports: Juvenile Justice System Fails Native Youth

The juvenile justice system is failing Native American youth. That’s what a series of recent reports have shown. In June the Tribal Law and Policy Institute reported that state courts are twice as likely to incarcerate Native teens for minor crimes like truancy and alcohol use, than any other racial and ethnic group. All three recent reports call for reform.

Juvenile detention facilities around the country have a disproportionately high number of Native American youth according to the Indian Law & Order Commission report. On the reservation, it’s different.

The day I visited the Navajo juvenile detention center in Tuba City, it was quiet, too quiet. It was empty. Corrections Lieutenant Robbin Preston said even though they have 36 beds at the facility, the average population is only one or two teens a day.

http://www.fronterasdesk.org/content/10062/reports-juvenile-justice-system-fails-native-youth