By Tashi McQueen
AFRO Staff Writer
tmcqueen@afro.com
As complex discussions around youth-involved crimes continue across the state, the Maryland Office of the Public Defender hosted a session titled “In Defense of Us – Championing for Children: Childhood Protected, Rights Respected”on Oct. 21.
The event focused on child well-being and criminal justice reform, highlighting strategies to keep children out of the legal system and strengthen communities.
The panel discussion took place at the Baltimore County Public Library in Catonsville and included Dayvon Love, director of public policy for Leaders of a Beautiful Struggle; Erinique King, assistant director of intensive advocacy for the Choice Program at the University of Maryland Baltimore County and Donna D. Brown, project manager for the Citizens Policing Project at Beyond Youth Organizing.
Maryland Public Defender Natasha Dartigue said the goal is to move Maryland from a punitive system to one rooted in prevention and care, especially for Black children.
“Black children are five times more likely to be detained,” said Dartigue. “Children of color represent 72 percent of all children that are charged as adults, despite only making up 38 percent of the juvenile population.”
“We should be creating bridges for children to go from places where they may be struggling or having a difficult time, but instead, what we have created is essentially a trap door,” she continued. “We must always remember as we discuss our children that they are, in fact, children.”
Dartigue said solutions to juvenile crime must be science-based, without youth being automatically charged as adults.
“The science and research has shown us that the human brain does not become fully developed until age 25,” said Dartigue. “We also know that the part of the brain that controls our judgment is the part of the brain that is developed at the slowest pace.”
She highlighted data showing the harm of rushing to charge youth as adults.
Children charged as adults are 34 percent more likely to be re-arrested for violent crimes than those in the juvenile system.
“Children in adult facilities are five times more likely to be sexually assaulted, twice as likely to be beaten by staff, and 36 times more likely to attempt suicide than those who were brought into juvenile facilities,” said Dartigue.
Love emphasized the need for culturally sensitive programming that centralizes “notions of self-love, cultural self-respect,” and gives youth “tools to navigate the world in a way that is more responsive and honoring of their own humanity.”
Love also stressed the importance of political organizing to change the juvenile justice system.
“We need to engage the political landscape from the vantage point of, you’re either going to do what we want you to do or we’re going to hurt you politically,” said Love.
“We should not be in the business of trying to convince White folks that our kids deserve to be treated like they are human beings. “We need to organize for power.”