PHR Library

March 14, 2005

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Juvenile Defenders Harmed by Adult Justice System, Study Finds

On March 14, 2005, the Coalition for Juvenile Justice, a national resource on delinquency prevention and juvenile justice issues, issued a new study, Childhood on Trial: The Failure of Trying and Sentencing Youth in Adult Criminal Court. The study examines the current trend toward charging youthful offenders as adults and discusses its negative impact, including higher recidivism rates and lack of rehabilitation. Of the over 250,000 youth charged as adults every year, roughly 82% are youth of color and the majority of them are first-time or nonviolent offenders. Physicians for Human Rights participated in the release of the CJJ report.

Physicians for Human Rights (PHR) mobilizes the health professions to advance the health and dignity of all people by protecting human rights. As a founding member of the International Campaign to Ban Landmines, PHR shared the 1997 Nobel Peace Prize.