From the Courts: Alaska and Rhode Island
In 2023, the Alaska Court of Appeals ruled that the state's constitution requires a judge to consider the "attendant characteristics of youth" before sentencing a young person to what is functionally life without parole. Last August, the court affirmed that the new constitutional rule is to be applied retroactively.
According to the ruling, "Making [Fletcher v. State] fully retroactive would advance an important constitutional principle—namely, ensuring that juveniles tried as adults in the Alaska courts are not subject to cruel and unusual punishment and that only juveniles who have been found to be 'irreparable corrupt' will remain sentenced to de facto life without parole sentences."
While Alaska has not codified a juvenile life without parole law, the sentencing provisions in adult court allow a judge to order a maximum term of 99 years. Winona Fletcher, a teenager at the time she was found guilty of murder in 1986, was sentenced to three consecutive 45-year terms for a total of 135 years in prison.
Like Alaska, Rhode Island's supreme court has recently taken up the matter of juvenile life without parole. In July, the court ruled that young people ordered to multiple sentences have the right to parole after serving 20 years. At issue was whether individuals serving more than one sentence, are eligible for parole under existing state law which mandates that young people convicted for any offense committed prior to age 22 (except offenses that result in a life without parole sentence) be permitted a parole hearing after 20 years of time served.
Sonja Deyoe, attorney for one of the respondents, stated, "The science supports the position that juveniles and young adults do not have the same impulse control that adults do. Accordingly, if they can prove they are rehabilitated, it makes sense to parole these now adult men and women to the community."
Reducing Barriers to Reentry: Justice-Involved Youth and Medicaid
By Jan. 1, 2025, states must submit Medicaid and Children's Health Insurance Plan (CHIP) amendments to the Centers for Medicaid and CHIP Services to be in compliance with the 2023 Consolidated Appropriations Act.
The new federal law requires states to provide Medicaid-eligible youth and young adults under age 21 who are in secure confinement with medically necessary screenings and/or diagnostic services 30 days prior to release. Additional services such as case management and community-based follow-up treatment must also be provided 30 days prior to and at least 30 days after release from a secure facility. The same is true for CHIP eligible youth up to age 19, and foster youth up to age 26.
The law also allows states to cover youth who are in detention to be eligible for Medicaid and CHIP services, but this is optional.
Before the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2023 was signed into law, inmate exclusion policies prohibited Medicaid funds to be allocated to individuals while they were incarcerated. These policies often created barriers to resuming or connecting to medical treatment in the community post-incarceration.
According to a recent letter from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), "[i]ncarceration during adolescence and early adulthood is associated with worse physical and mental health later in adulthood, as well as increased risk of adult incarceration […] Providing screening for physical and behavioral health needs while incarcerated and facilitating linkages to physical and behavioral health care in the community will support youth who are incarcerated with transitioning more successfully back to the community."
Justice-involved youth often present with medical and mental health needs that go untreated. For example, CMS notes that while approximately two-thirds of young people in the correctional system report at least one substance use disorder (SUD), 12% of these youth are in out-of-home placements that do not offer SUD treatment. Moreover, justice-involved youth die by suicide at rates that are two to three times higher than young people in the general population.
While few studies have examined healthcare use as it relates to young people in the justice system, emerging research suggests a possible decreased in the likelihood of readmission to a detention facility by youth who accessed primary care compared to those who did not. Furthermore, recent findings from Northwestern University show that 48% of justice-involved youth younger than 18 with a mental health diagnosis received treatment within five years following detention compared to 9% of justice-involved youth 18 or older.
As of July 2024, nine states' Medicaid section 1115 demonstration waivers have been approved and 14 states' and the District of Columbia's waivers are pending approval.
To learn more visit NCSL's Medicaid Toolkit and Connecting Recently Released Prisoners to Health Care-How to Leverage Medicaid.
On the Fiscal Front: AmeriCorps and the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention to Fund Reentry Programs
Twelve Second Chance programs from around the nation will receive federal funding from the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) and AmeriCorps to support reentry services for justice-involved youth. The $2.5 million from OJJDP in conjunction with state and national AmeriCorps funds will be used to support 4,000 AmeriCorps members working to help young people transition from out-of-home placement back into the community.
"We couldn't be more proud to partner with AmeriCorps to help system-involved youth overcome the barriers they face during reentry and provide them the opportunity to contribute to their communities, foster civic engagement, and improve lives. These young volunteers will gain critical experience and resources, while their communities get stronger. It is the ultimate win-win for public safety," said OJJDP Administrator Liz Ryan.
As stated in a press release, by funding these reentry programs, the partnership between OJJDP and AmeriCorps "aims to create a comprehensive support network that fosters rehabilitation, growth and community integration for young individuals."
Programs receiving grants will use approaches such as credible messengers, career development, education advancement and connections to affordable housing to assist young people reintegrate into the community following detention in residential or correctional facilities.
Click here to see a list of the programs receiving grant funding.
The Latest in Data: Overall Youth Incarceration Has Declined, But Disparities Remain
A report published by The Sentencing Project demonstrates that while youth incarceration has declined by 75% from 2000 to 2022, racial and ethnic disparities remain. Key findings include that In 2021:
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Black youth were placed in juvenile facilities at a rate of 228 per 100,000 compared to a rate of 13 per 100,000 for Asian American youth.
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Tribal youth were ordered to a juvenile facility at a rate of 181 per 100,000.
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Latino youth were ordered to a juvenile facility at a rate of 57 per 100,000.
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White youth were ordered to a juvenile facility at a rate of 49 per 100,000.
In 2020, Black youth were 2.3 times more likely than white youth to be arrested. White youth were 31% more likely to have their cases diverted compared to their Black counterparts in 2021. In 2021, Black youth were 60% more likely to be detained following referral to juvenile court compared to white youth. 1,900 minors were held in adult jails and 437 minors were serving sentences in adult prison in 2022.
Juvenile Justice Publications and Resources
See the latest research and publications on juvenile justice policy.
What's Trending in Youth Justice?
Lawmakers across the country are working to strike a balance between healthy development of children and adolescents and the need to hold young offenders accountable and keep communities safe. Learn more at NCSL Base Camp 2024, online Oct. 29-30. Register now