In 2020, Governor Gavin Newsom implemented new legislation aimed at offering improved community-based alternatives to youth prisons. However, advocates are now heading to court to resist the creation of what they believe is a fresh, clandestine juvenile system.
Senate Bill 823, introduced as part of California's budget, allocated $89.4 million to support the implementation of a new approach to youth justice. This approach aimed to move away from traditional youth prisons towards community-based alternatives that would provide young people with the support and resources they need to thrive.
Officials from county probation who opposed Governor Newsom's plan, but are responsible for implementing it, have taken an unusual step by forming a nonprofit organization. This allows them to bypass state transparency laws and hold closed-door meetings, avoiding public scrutiny.
However, critics of the new approach argue that the state is simply rebranding youth prisons as "youth wellness centers" to continue incarcerating young people. According to advocates, these centers are just as restrictive and punitive as traditional youth prisons, with the added danger that they are being marketed as a more benevolent option.
Advocates throughout California have endeavored to amplify their opinions in advocating for more progressive measures that prioritize mental health care and other supportive services for incarcerated youth. Prioritizing mental health care and other supportive services would address the underlying issues that led to their incarceration rather than simply punishing them for their past mistakes.
As a legal intern for the Chapman University Fowler School of Law Mediation and Dispute Resolution for Juveniles Clinic, I witnessed the trauma and hardships that detained youth have to endure throughout their sentence. The Clinic provided me with a unique opportunity to work with detained youth and help them find peaceful solutions to their conflicts. By utilizing restorative justice practices, we were able to facilitate productive conversations between youth, their families, and their communities, allowing them to heal and move forward in a positive direction.
I saw it as a long-overdue opportunity to reimagine how incarcerated youth are housed and treated, especially with the proper encouragement and support to develop and use conflict resolution techniques for a brighter future.
If left unaddressed, advocates fear these issues could cause an uptick in youth incarceration, the opposite of what Newsom’s state law was intended to achieve. On February 16, 2023, the California Alliance for Youth and Community Justice released a statement claiming they had filed a lawsuit against the state in response to these concerns, arguing that the new centers are unconstitutional and violate the rights of young people. The lawsuit alleges that the county probation officials created the nonprofit organization to withhold public data it collects and evade state oversight and public scrutiny.
The outcome of the lawsuit remains to be seen, but it highlights the ongoing debate over how best to reform the youth justice system in the United States. While many agree that traditional youth prisons are ineffective and harmful, there is still much debate over what alternatives should be put in their place.
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