The Sentencing Project

06/12/2026

In The Atlantic: Charging juveniles as adults may not deter crime or reduce recidivism, but it is a great way to “coerce guilty pleas out of kids,” said The Sentencing Project's Josh Rovner. Prosecutors are known to threaten minors with adult sentences to pressure them into taking plea bargains to keep their cases in the juvenile justice system. Young people “value the present over the future, and so they’re likely to accept the guilty plea on something that will send them home faster. They don’t understand the array of collateral consequences that will follow them for the rest of their lives.”

Read the full article: bit.ly/4v19CwK

Lawmakers are finding catharsis in sending children to prison.

06/11/2026

The U.S. Supreme Court just handed down two harmful rulings that severely limit compassionate release. We can’t let this setback silence us!

Tell Congress to pass the Safer Detention Act and the First Step Implementation Act today: bit.ly/4e3T5Cf

06/09/2026

Our Executive Director Kara Gotsch joined Fox 5 DC's In The Courts with Katie Barlow to discuss our recent report on reentry and the barriers formerly incarcerated people face after long-term imprisonment.

You can read the report here: https://bit.ly/4sPvlGc

'In The Courts' is a weekly show about the law and how it works – or doesn't.

06/07/2026

For 40 years, we've been fighting for justice. And for 40 years, we've worked alongside a dedicated community committed to our mission.

Without our community's support, our work would not be possible.

06/05/2026

Decreasing our overreliance on confinement is essential toward addressing concerns around mental health care in juvenile justice facilities.

On June 12, our Senior Research Analyst Josh Rovner will provide testimony to the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights for a briefing on mental health care in juvenile justice facilities.

You can watch next Friday's briefing, starting at 9AM ET:

The U.S. Commission on Civil Rights will hold a briefing on Friday, June 12, 2026, to investigate mental health care and consequences in juvenile justice facilities. The federal government has an obligation to uphold the civil rights of all youth in juvenile justice facilities, including by providin...

06/04/2026

Our latest report provides an overview of the fundamental differences between the juvenile and adult criminal justice systems. Despite their many flaws, juvenile courts are better for youth who break the law than adult courts.

The report dismantles the political narrative that transferring youth to adult court improves community safety. In fact, the data shows the exact opposite: youth prosecuted as adults are actually more likely to reoffend and to commit more serious crimes than those who remain in the juvenile system.

sentproj.org/YouthCourtsVsAdultCourts

06/02/2026

"Maryland moves to recognize that safer communities are built by investing in young people — not by burdening them with lifelong consequences for adolescent errors in judgment,” said The Sentencing Project's Olivia Naugle.

Under the newly signed Youth Charging Reform Act, children under age 16 will not be automatically charged in adult court, except in the most serious cases.

05/30/2026

Share your experience: The Sentencing Project is seeking to better understand how second look resentencing impacts crime survivors.

If you're interested in participating in the research project, contact Cherrell Green ([email protected]) for more info.

05/27/2026

NEW: Our latest report provides an overview of the fundamental differences between the juvenile and adult criminal justice systems. Despite their many flaws, juvenile courts are better for youth who break the law than adult courts.

The report dismantles the political narrative that transferring youth to adult court improves community safety. In fact, the data shows the exact opposite: youth prosecuted as adults are actually more likely to reoffend and to commit more serious crimes than those who remain in the juvenile system.

sentproj.org/YouthCourtsVsAdultCourts

05/26/2026

Today, Maryland Governor Wes Moore signed the Youth Charging Reform Act into law! This landmark legislation marks a significant step forward for a state long defined by some of the highest rates of youth charged as adults in the nation.

This victory is the result of 14 years of sustained advocacy, partnership, and leadership from community organizations, youth leaders, families, and lawmakers who refused to buy into false, sensationalized narratives that criminalize children.

While this progress is meaningful, it is not the finish line. Even after this law is implemented, Maryland will remain among the top five states per capita for automatically charging youth as adults. Children as young as 14 can still face automatic adult charges in some cases. Our work is far from over. We must continue pushing for deep, systemic reforms until every single young person’s case begins in a fully reimagined youth justice system—one rooted in dignity, equity, and the belief that every young person deserves a chance to shape their future.