Home : Criminal Justice : Juvenile Justice

Settlement Approved in Case Alleging Discrimination Against Native American Students in South Dakota On December 10, 2007, a federal district court judge approved a settlement in a class action lawsuit alleging discrimination against Native American children enrolled in the Winner School District. The Winner/Ideal Native American community and the District reached an agreement to settle the case in June of 2007. Learn More >> RESOURCES: >In re Spears: Ensuring Pre-Trial Right to Counsel for Juveniles > J.P. v. Taft: Fighting for Incarcerated Minors' Access to the Courts > Other Efforts to Ensure Adequate Access to Counsel Ensuring Access to Counsel in Ohio In 1967's In Re Gault, the Supreme Court of the United States ruled that children under 18 have the right to counsel to assist with charges against them. More than forty years later, the ACLU is working to defend the legal rights of youth in Ohio. We have petitioned the Supreme Court to make it more difficult for juveniles to waive their right to an attorney, launched a public education campaign to inform young people of their legal rights, and are currently monitoring the State to make sure that incarcerated youth have access to the courts. Learn more about our work to defend Ohio youth's right to counsel >>

ACLU Report Exposes Unjust Detention Of Youth (05/12/2008)
BOSTON – A widespread practice in Massachusetts of locking up youth accused of minor offenses and who pose little or no danger to their communities is unfair, threatens public safety and wastes public money, according to a report released today by the American Civil Liberties Union and the ACLU of Massachusetts.

Dismal High School Graduation Rate Violates Florida Constitution, Says ACLU (03/18/2008)

ACLU Sues Over Failed Privately-Run Alternative School In Atlanta (03/11/2008)
ATLANTA – In a case with national implications, the American Civil Liberties Union and ACLU of Georgia filed a class action lawsuit today against the Atlanta Independent School System (AISS) and Community Education Partners (CEP) for violating students’ constitutional right to an adequate public education. CEP is a for-profit corporation paid nearly $7 million a year by the city to run its alternative school, which is among the most dangerous and lowest performing schools in Georgia.

ACLU, Rep. Bobby Scott Call for Multi-front Steps to Ending Youth Violence (11/28/2007)
RICHMOND, Va. – A group of advocates, including the American Civil Liberties Union, joined Representative Bobby Scott (D-VA) today to call on the Virginia community, as well as political and law enforcement leaders, to end the school-to-prison pipeline, the trend of increasingly funneling young people from the school system to the criminal justice system. Panelists discussed Rep. Scott’s Youth PROMISE Act as part of an alternative, focusing on preventing young people from committing crimes and joining gangs rather than just relying on the criminal justice system to punish youths who have broken the law.

Native American Families and Winner School District Announce Settlement in Case Alleging Discrimination (06/18/2007)
WINNER, SD - The Winner/Ideal Native American community and the Winner School District announced today that an agreement has been reached to settle a class action lawsuit brought on behalf of Native American students attending Winner schools.

A Call to Amend the Ohio Rules of Juvenile Procedure to Protect the Right to Counsel (03/09/2006)
A Briefing Paper by the ACLU, Children's Law Center & Office of the Ohio State Public Defender

DISPROPORTIONATE MINORITY CONFINEMENT IN MASSACHUSETTS: Executive Summary in Spanish (06/02/2003)

ACLU REPORT: DISPROPORTIONATE MINORITY CONFINEMENT IN MASSACHUSETTS (06/02/2003)

DISPROPORTIONATE MINORITY CONFINEMENT IN MASSACHUSETTS: Executive Summary (06/02/2003)

Complaint in Harris et al v Atlanta Independent School System (03/11/2008)

Consent Decree in Antoine v. Winner School District (12/10/2007)
On December 10, 2007, Federal District Court Judge Charles Kornmann approved the settlement in a lawsuit alleging discrimination against Native American students in a mostly-white school district in South Dakota.

Consent Decree in Antoine v. Winner School District (12/10/2007)
On December 10, 2007, Federal District Court Judge Charles Kornmann approved the settlement in a lawsuit alleging discrimination against Native American students in a mostly-white school district in South Dakota.

In Re: Spears - Amicus Brief of the ACLU and Children's Law Center (06/01/2006)

In Re: Spears - Memorandum in Support of Jurisdiction (06/01/2006)
Memorandum in Support of Jurisdiction of Appellant Corey Spears

ACLU Youth Promise Act Letter (12/19/2007)

ACLU Letter to the House of Representatives Urging Opposition to H.R. 5295 Because of Fourth Amendment Infringement (09/18/2006)

Coalition Sign On Letter to House Members Sensenbrenner and Conyers Opposing H.R. 1279 (04/08/2005)

Coalition Letter to the Senate Urging Opposition to Section 206 of S. 1735, the Gang Prevention and Effective Deterrence Act of 2003 (05/11/2004)

ACLU Letter to the Senate Judiciary Committee Urging Opposition to the Capital Sentencing Provisions in S. 1735, the Gang Prevention and Effective Deterrence Act of 2003 (04/28/2004)

Report: Locking Up Our Children (05/14/2008)

Profiles of Kids at Risk - Atlanta, GA (02/26/2008)

Disproportionate Minority Contact (03/28/2006)

Profiles of Kids at Risk - Winner, SD (03/28/2006)

Ensuring Access to Counsel in Ohio: Stories of Children Who Waived (03/09/2006)

Fact Sheet - The School-to-Prison Pipeline in the National Context (03/28/2006)

Harris et al. v. Atlanta Independent School System (03/11/2008)
A class action lawsuit against the Atlanta Independent School System and Community Education Partners (CEP) for violating students’ constitutional right to an adequate public education.

J.P. v. Taft (10/01/2007)
Protecting incarcerated juveniles' access to the courts in Ohio.

In Re Spears (09/27/2007)
Defending juveniles' pre-trial right to counsel in Ohio.

Antoine v. Winner School District (03/28/2006)
The ACLU recently settled this lawsuit, which alleged discrimination against Native American students in a mostly-white school district in South Dakota. The ACLU is now working with the community and the defendant school district to implement changes in the district's schools.