All children deserve to learn and grow in an encouraging and supportive environment that reduces the risk of system involvement. Yet, recent legislative changes have led to more children and parents entering the court system for truancy. Truancy is defined as missing three or more days of school or being tardy on three or more days without a valid excuse. Any child who is reported as truant two or more times in a one year [...]
In the region of Kentucky where I grew up – the beautiful Appalachian mountains of Eastern Kentucky – communication is woven into the fabric of communities. The annual Swappin’ Meetin’ held each Fall at Southeast Community and Technical College would showcase that communication through storytelling, songs, and the many conversations of neighbors and friends. While the stories and songs will be saved for our beloved community gatherings, we want to hear from our Appalachian communities [...]
What are Impact Statements? Impact statements are used by local, state, and federal agencies and branches of government to assess implications of proposed legislation, administrative procedures, cases, amongst other decisions. Impact statements can cover topics such as criminal justice, environment, higher education, poverty, open government, amongst other areas of focus. Most widely known are fiscal impact statements which examine budget implications and may include information related to estimated costs and potential savings of a proposed [...]
Many of us grew up watching TV shows and movies where police officers would read someone their Miranda rights, “You have the right to remain silent…”, without ever thinking about the people in our communities who may have experienced that in real life, including kids. More than 50 years ago, the Supreme Court acknowledged that children cannot “navigate the justice system without the “guiding hand” of counsel, including when interrogated by law enforcement”. With everything [...]
The 2014 Kentucky General Assembly wrapped up late last night. The day after, a review of the action taken by legislators in Frankfort this year shows major accomplishments for Kentucky children. Thank you to the many bill sponsors, leaders on budget issues, Governor Beshear, President Stivers, Speaker Stumbo, other members of House and Senate leadership, and all legislators that helped make these accomplishments possible! What do these wins mean? SB 176, sponsored by Senator Denise [...]
The Unified Juvenile Code Task Force spent much of last year gathering information and hearing about research and best practices for the juvenile justice field. If last week’s meeting is any indication, that groundwork is going to start paying off. You can hear the collective knowledge of members reflected in the discussions. Schools play a large role in the juvenile justice system as a substantial number of charges to young people come from schools – [...]
The beginning of summer often means a slowing of pace – schools let out for summer break, summer vacations bring added challenge to meeting scheduling, and the long days keep kids and parents out late in summer activities. While the summer pace may be taking hold throughout Kentucky, the Unified Juvenile Code Task Force met for the first time last week and showed no signs of adapting a leisurely pace. Under the guidance of co-chairs [...]
To view Part I of this post, click here. My birthday is December 25. That makes birthday traditions and Christmas customs mingle together a bit. But one birthday tradition leaps out. It arrives every December in a large Styrofoam box packed with lots of dry ice. And at the bottom of that crate sit – like precious jewels – artisan made bratwursts! When my wife and one of our good friends were on a trip [...]
Tomorrow Terry Brooks, our executive director, will talk on our blog about how kids fared in Kentucky’s General Assembly this year. While I assume everyone will want to read that version, I wanted to provide a slightly more boring, but objective version of what happened in 2013 for kids in our legislature. Kentucky Youth Advocates is part of the Blueprint for Kentucky’s Children which is a collaborative of multiple child serving partners from across Kentucky [...]
The national rate of locking up young people in trouble with the law dropped by more than 40 percent over a 15-year period, with no decreases in public safety, according to a new report released by the Annie E. Casey Foundation today. The KIDS COUNT Data Snapshot indicates that the number of young people in correctional facilities in the United States on a single day fell to 70,792 in 2010, from a high of 107,637 [...]
