The use of transformative justice to heal schools and communities; prevent violence and repair harm; hold ourselves, our communities, institutions and officials accountable; and to break America's addiction to incarceration. Part 3 describes the Youth Justice Coalition’s Transformative Justice Process and includes comparisons with the traditional U.S. court system and Restorative Justice.

1. KNOW JUSTICE
KNOW PEACE
Part 3
PO Box 73688, L.A., CA 90003 / www.youth4justice.org / freelanow@yahoo.com

2. Please use the
information here
WITH CREDIT GIVEN TO: THE YOUTH AND FAMILIES OF
THE YOUTH JUSTICE COALITION WHOSE WISDOM AND
EXPERIENCES GAVE RISE TO THIS WORK; JUSTICE
MOVEMENTS THROUGHOUT THE WORLD WHO HAVE
INSPIRED AND GUIDED US; AND THE COMMUNITY
ELDERS AND ANCESTORS WHO LAID THE
GROUNDWORK. AS THE YORUBA PROVERB SAYS,
“If we stand tall, it’s because we stand on the backs of
those who went before us.”

3. KNOW JUSTICE
KNOW PEACE
THIS PRESENTATION IS DIVIDED INTO THREE PARTS:
(1) CITY OF LOST ANGELS explains why the Youth Justice Coalition
(YJC) was forced to address violence and crime, and why transformative
justice was the only logical path for us to take towards peace. (2) ROOTS
OF THE SCHOOL-TO-JAIL TRACK, YOUTH CRIMINALIZATION AND
MASS INCARCERATION covers some of the history that led to America’s
addiction to prisons. (3) BUILDING A MOVEMENT FOR YOUTH JUSTICE
describes the YJC’s Transformative Justice Process and includes
comparisons with the traditional U.S. court system andRestorative Justice.
THIS IS PART 3.

5. Is Number One

7. When police, politicians and the media talk
about violence in L.A., they describe:
• 100,000 gang members in L.A. County;
in L.A. City - over 700 gangs with over 50,000
members
• 250,000 people on Cal Gang (statewide) Database
• Fault of youth and families
They don’t talk about:
• The fact that these numbers refer to alleged gang
members. And that even the police admit that less
then 5% are committing violence.
• L.A. is #1 nationally and worldwide to many things
that harm young people
• The historical roots of L.A.’s Violence
• The failure of suppression to solve violence

8. L.A. LOCKDOWN
#1 worldwide:Incarceration (Prison Spending and Prison Population); Pornography
Production/Export; Gangs Creation/Export; Meth Production/Export; Import/Export of 5
Illegal Drugs; Hand Guns; White Supremacy Gangs and Orgs
#1 nationwide:Gap between rich and poor, Homelessness, Youth in Foster Care - the
majority were “orphaned” by the prison system, “Riots,” Children and People Living in
Poverty, Immigration and Deportation

9. L.A. is home to:
• The world’s largest county jail system
with as many as 180,000 people a year
cycling through as many as 8 county
jails.
• The world’s largest juvenile halls -
Eastlake, Barry J. Nidorf and Los
Padrinos - with as many as 20,000
youth a year detained.
• The world’s largest Probation
Department - with over 20,000 youth
and 40,000 adults on Probation.
• The world’s largest youth prison
system - L.A. has nearly as many
Probation “camps” - 19 - as
community colleges (20).
• The United States has 5% of the
world’s population but 25% of the
world’s prison population. The U.S. is
#1 in prisons, China with 1/3 of the
world’s population is #2.
• California leads the nation in the
number of people locked up: (over
200,000 a day in state prisons, youth
prisons, youth camps and ranches,
jails, juvenile halls and those held in
detention with ICE - Immigration and
Customs Enforcement - holds.

10. the Youth Justice Coalition

11. THE YOUTH JUSTICE COALITION
is working to build a youth, family and prisoner-led movement to challenge
race, gender and class inequality in Los Angeles County’s and California’s
juvenile injustice system. The YJC’s goal is to dismantle a system that has
ensured the massive lock-up of people of color, widespread police violence
and corruption, consistent violation of youth and communities’
Constitutional and human rights, the construction of a vicious school-to-jail
track, and the build-up of the world's largest network of jails and prisons.
We use direct action organizing, advocacy, political education and activist
arts to agitate, expose, and pressure the people in charge in order to upset
power and bring about change.

12. YJC members, ages 7 to 24, are the young people L.A. has labeled as
criminals, gangsters, thugs and hoodlums - in other words, we’re
disregarded, dismissed, and generally dissed. To most people, we are
invisible and forgotten, locked away in dusty corners of LA
County, behind barbed wire and concrete - in juvenile halls, county
jails, Probation camps and youth authorities. We’ve been pushed out
of the school system into Continuation and Probation Schools where
the teachers are overworked and under-trained, the books and
materials are in short supply, and there are more Probation Officers
than guidance counselors. We report to Probation and Parole on the
regular, and have gotten use to routine police searches and peeing in a
cup on demand.

13. The YJC has made a commitment to building youth leadership by promoting a
voice, vision and action plan for community justice that is developed, led and
staffed at all levels by people who have experienced the justice system first-
hand. The project represents one of the nation's few organizing projects led by
young people who have been, or are currently under arrest, on probation, in
detention, in prison, on parole, who have been deported or face deportation, or
whose parents/guardians, brothers or sisters have been incarcerated for long
periods of their lives. Parent and family leaders as well as liberated lifers are
also active as organizational leaders.

14. Organizing Campaigns:
1.Impact conditions of confinement at juvenile
halls, camps, county jails and prisons, including
challenging LIFE WITHOUT PAROLE and other
extreme sentences. (Assembly Bill 1270, Senate Bill
9 and Welcome Home L.A.)
2.End California’s War on Gangs including ending
the use of gang databases and gang injunctions.
3.Reduce L.A. County’s over-reliance on
incarceration and increase community based
alternatives to arrest, court, detention and
incarceration, with a goal of reducing lock-up by
75% in ten years, including closing CYA/DJJ youth
prisons, and stopping the building of any additional
cells at all levels.
4.Dollar for Dollar - Move law enforcement dollars
to youth jobs, peace/intervention workers and youth
centers. (In L.A., just 1% = 100 million a year.)
5.End the school-to-jail track (no truancy
tickets/truancy sweeps, free metro passes, replace
police in schools and school push-out with
intervention workers and Transformative Justice.
6.S.T.O.P. Police Violence.

15. Engages in Transformative Justice

16. LIKE MOST ORGANIZING GROUPS, WE WERE CAUGHT UP IN THE BATTLE -
OVERWHELMED BY THE MASSIVE NUMBER OF YOUTH WHO WERE GETTING
CAUGHT UP IN THE STREETS AND THE SYSTEM - WE HARDLY HAD TIME TO
BREATHE TRYING TO MONITOR CONDITIONS IN THE LOCK-UPS AND PUSH
TO CLOSE YOUTH PRISONS. BUT, MORE AND MORE YOUTH WERE ALSO
FACING REAL DRAMA IN THEIR LIVES - FIGHTS, NEAR DEATH EXPERIENCES,
FAMILY MEMBERS MURDERED, AND EVERYONE WAS GETTING PUSHED OUT
OF SCHOOL…IT WAS GOING TO TAKE A LIFETIME TO SEE THE
CHANGES WE NEEDED IN OUR COMMUNITIES. IN THE
MEANTIME, WE HAD TO DO MORE TO IMPROVE YOUNG
PEOPLE’S IMMEDIATE LIFE CHANCES.

17. We prioritized 5essential services for our work:
LEGAL EDUCATION INTERVENTION TO PREVENT AND
REDUCE CONFLICTS - ESPECIALLY BETWEEN NEIGHBORHOODS
AND CREWS.
COURT SUPPORT INTERVENTION TO PREVENT AND
REDUCE CONFLICTS - ESPECIALLY BETWEEN NEIGHBORHOODS
AND CREWS.
FREE L.A. HIGH SCHOOL TO PROVIDE STUDENTS
RETURNING HOME FROM LOCK-UPS OR THOSE PUSHED OUT OF
OTHER SCHOOLS AN OPPORTUNITY TO EARN THEIR HIGH SCHOOL
DEGREE, PREPARE FOR COLLEGE AND A CAREER, AND LEARN
ORGANIZING.

19. We prioritized 5essential services for our work
continued :
THE FAIR CHANCE PROJECT TO SUPPORT LIFERS
WITH WRITS, APPEALS, SUPPORT IN RETURNING HOME, AND “WALK
THE YARD” - TO CONNECT YOUTH GOING INTO PRISON WITH LIFERS
INSIDE TO MENTOR THEM IN AVOIDING POLITICS AND WRITE-UPS,
RUNNING POSITIVE PROGRAMS, PREPARING FOR PAROLE, AND
STAYING SAFE.
&PEACEBUILDING - INTERVENTION AND
TRANSFORMATIVE JUSTICE TO PREVENT AND REDUCE CONFLICTS
AND RETALIATION - ESPECIALLY HOMICIDES BETWEEN
NEIGHBORHOODS AND CREWS.

20. Abolition of Juvenile
and Criminal Injustice Systems
Ideal Becomes Reality
THINK OUTSIDE THE CAGE
Major Changes to System
YJC’s Mid-term Campaigns to Win Larger Changes
and Contribute to Powerful Movement
STARVE THE BEAST
What we can change with today’s realities & YJC’s current
power. Campaigns for short-term systems change,
transformative justice and triage (emergency services) to
save lives, pull people out of the system and keep them out.
Where We Are
What’s happening today.
Modern Roots
What We Lost, a.k.a.
Where We StartedRoots U.S. Lockdown - How We Got the
Current System
In Restorative Justice - What We
Had
< 500 years Last 500 years through 2002. 2003-2006 2007-2020 2020-? RIP PIC

21. YJC’s Strategies for
Creating Change
Campaign Development,
Implementation
and Evaluation
Leadership Development
(Transformative Justice - Political)Troublemakers, Street
University, legal education and court support delivered to people
inside lock-ups and out, LOBOS, Fair Chance Project,
YJC’s FREE L.A. High School
Leadership Development (Transformative Justice - Personal) Healing ourselves, our
families and communities. Taking responsibility for and repairing the harm we have caused.
Replacing the code of the streets and/or our reliance on police and courts to solve conflict.
Base Building Legal Education, Radio and Video, Public Ed Materials and Events,
Community Outreach/Surveys to BuildYouth, Family and Prison Membership and Vision
for Change, and to Build Allies
Movement Building
Chuco’s Justice Center + Local, State and National Coalition Work
Infrastructure/Organization Building

22. From the YJC’s start we partly practiced Transformative
Justice, but we didn’t know that’s what it was.We started
by telling stories in circles and small groups. As we told
our stories began to heal from the the shame and
isolation that convicted people and our families
experience. We realized that we weren’t alone. We
were - each of us - one of millions. We started to take
responsibility for things we had done and tried to repair
relationships and make things right. We described harm
that had been done to us, and tried to find a way to
forgive. We found that holding on to the hurt was killing
us and pushing away everyone we cared about. And we
always used circles to make decisions and to hold each
other accountable.

23. Share and document our
own stories. Our common
experiences build peace
and unity within our center,
families and communities.
Develop media Put our
and popular stories
education to At the of
Transformative together
communicate with data
our vision to Justice Is Telling to build a local,
different Our Stories county and
statewide
audiences. analysis.
Create visions for
the type of justice system
we want. Research where
our vision is at work in the
world. (e.g. Brazil, South
Africa, Chiapas, Canada, the
U.K., New Zealand.)

24. One of the spiritual leaders - Manny Lares of Barrios Unidos -
observed the way the group was organizing itself. He reminded
us that indigenous communities throughout the world are always
organized in circles, and that this is a key reason why the modern
court, government and corporate structures are so isolating for
poor communities and communities of color. Peacebuilding is part
of our human nature and collective memory.

25. Or how Henry Sandoval - a YJC Youth Leader - always reminds
us of his favorite quote:
“We just have to
de-learn to re-learn.”

26. We used theLakota Medicine Wheel, Zulu symbol for
tribes/community and Adinkra symbols for strength,
intelligence and unityas the inspiration
for our organizational structure:

28. Restorative Justice

29. RESTORATIVE JUSTICE
THE MOST COMMON ALTERNATIVE TO COURT AND
INCARCERATION IS AN ANCIENT TRADITION ROOTED
IN ALL INDIGENOUS CULTURES WHERE DISPUTES
WERE HANDLED THROUGH COMMUNITY CIRCLES.
THROUGHOUT THE WORLD, FROM CANADA TO THE
UNITED KINGDOM, FROM THE SOUTH PACIFIC TO
SOUTH AFRICA, NATIONS ARE TURNING TO
RESTORATIVE JUSTICE TO DIVERT PEOPLE FROM
THEIR EXPENSIVE AND INEFFECTIVE COURT AND
INCARCERATION SYSTEMS.

30. Internationally,
Restorative Justice
transforms
relationships
between
individuals,
but also radically
transforms
the roles of
police, court
and prisons.

31. NEW ZEALAND
RJ developed as a response
to the over-incarceration
of people of color, particularly
the indigenous Maori community.
RJ implemented
nationwide
for youth and practices
reflect Maori
principles of justice.
RJ used for all
offenses except murder and manslaughter.

32. OAXACA,
MEXICO
RJ programs - located in community-
based centers - have replaced nearly
all youth court transactions in the state
of Oaxaca.

33. CHIAPAS:
ZAPATISTA
TERRITORY
Community circles - “caracoles”
are central to what Zapatistas
refer to as “good government,”
and are used for all community and
territory-wide decision making.
This includes the setting of laws,
resolving of disputes, and determination of
accountability. Legal “promoters” from the
community are chosen to facilitate mediations and
to handle conflicts with the Mexican government
and others outside Zapatista territory.

34. SOUTH AFRICA
Following the end of Apartheid,
South Africa’sTruth and
Reconciliation
Commission
heard over 10,000 cases
in which people responsible
for extreme violence
sought amnesty in exchange
for complete disclosure
and accountability,
performing restitution
and apologizing for their acts.
Similar commissions are being
established in the Congo,
Liberia and Rwanda.

35. BRAZIL
Brazil’s new constitution includes a
Child Rights Statute. The “statute
written by a thousand hands”
was created by thousands of youth,
organizers, advocates, street workers
and teachers - including the
Movement of the Little Landless
and the Street Children’s Movement.
It creates a separate court system for
community members to bring complaints regarding
government wrongdoing such as police violence. No youth
can serve more than 3 years in custody regardless of the
charges. It is considered the responsibility of the system to
rehabilitate any youth behavior and prepare a young person
for work and educational success within 3 years.

36. With RJ as It Is Often Practiced in the U.S.

37. There are many incredible organizations and
individuals engaged in RJ in the U.S. We included a
list of resources at the end of this presentation that
includes just a few of them. However, we had
several concerns about RJ as it was often
practiced in the U.S.

38. In the U.S.,
Restorative
Justice
usually does not
seek to
significantly
challenge or
dismantle the
traditional
structures
of policing,
courts or prisons.

39. Problems with many RJ
models in theU.S.
1. Usually tied to, directly supervised by,
accountable to and/or a project of
law enforcement or the traditional
court system. In most cases the
“stick” for someone who “fails to comply”
with program is return to court and/or custody.
2. Studies indicate that the majority of U.S.
RJ models as well as other “diversions”
actually “widen the net.” In other words
they bring people into the system who
wouldn’t normally be in court or custody
rather than pulling people out of the system
ordiverting people from arrest, court or custody.
3. Many mirror the traditional court process in language and
practice - from using terms such as “victim” and offender, juvenile,
etc., to assuming a party who has caused harm or committed a
crime and a party who is an innocent.

40. Problems with many RJ models
in the U.S. Continued
7. Because RJ in the U.S. are primarily
non-profit or government-run programs,
most require background checks and
fingerprinting of volunteers and staff
eliminating most people with a conviction
history that are often in the best position
to reach youth in trouble as well as to use
street-based relationships and trust to solve
the majority of community-based violence.
8. Indigenous practices, language/song,
materials and rituals are sometimes used
by people that are not from that group without
permission, significant knowledge and skill,
or adequate or accurate credit given.
9. Given all these factors, accountability is arguably not to the
community. And few programs are actually community-based, owned
and operated.

41. Problems with many RJ models
in the U.S. Continued
4. The majority of programs require
a guilty plea in order to be accepted
into the program. People who believe
themselves to be wrongfully accused
or only partly responsible have no
recourse but the traditional court process.
5. Nearly all are funded by and/or
accept referrals from court and/or
law enforcement. Files and information
is often shared. In most cases
people have even less due process
rights - and no right to legal representation -
as they have in traditional court.
6. Most programs are designed and
operated by system professionals -
defense attorneys, judges, Prosecutors,
Probation officers, police officers,
social workers, etc. - and do not often
seek or reflect the problem solving and
justice approach envisioned by youth
and other community members.

42. In addition, we questioned the name RJ.
We wondered, “How can we restore
something we’ve never had?”
(At least not for centuries.)

43. Transformative Justice Process

44. In order to
avoid the
problems
we saw with
RJ in the U.S.,
the YJC
developed
a process
we call “transformative”
justice based on our own
experiences, our vision
for community justice
and inspired by several
movements and indigenous
practices throughout the world.

45. There are other groups that
may use this term or
similar terms and
concepts. We want to
be clear that this
presentation only
outlines the YJC’s
practice, and doesn’t
mean to compete with or
claim superiority to any
other peacebuilding
process. We encourage
everyone to use from this
presentation what makes
sense for your community.
We also welcome any
critique of this work, and
see ourselves as life-long
learners.

46. GOALS OF TRADITIONAL COURT VS. RJ
Criminal and Restorative Justice:
Juvenile Court: 1. Who was harmed?
1. What law was broken?
2. What are the needs and
2. Who broke it?
responsibilities of those
3. What punishment is
warranted?
involved?
4. Competition between lawyers 3. How do all affected parties
- assumes two opposing sides. together address needs
5. Assumes guilty and innocent and repair harm?
parties - victim and perpetrator. 4. Is non-adversarial. Seeks an
6. Not responsible for outcome all parties can
determining or addressing root agree to.
causes of conflict. From Alicia Virani,
RJ In Schools

47. Most Common RJ Models in U.S.
• “Victim-Offender” Mediation
– The person accused and the “victim” are worked with first separately
and then brought together
– Generally utilized when the youth is already adjudicated and may be
in detention
– Almost always requires a guilty plea
• Family Group Conferencing
– Family members play an important role
– Often a family caucus is called during the process to think of a
proposal for the plan, which is then brought back to the “victim”
• Sometimes Builds on Indigenous Practices
of Peacemaking Circles
– Community and family members are essential
– Often a talking piece is passed around, and each person takes a turn
to speak while holding the talking piece
– Not always in response to a “crime” From Alicia Virani,
RJ In Schools

48. FOR THE YJC: TRANSFORMATIVE JUSTICE (TJ) HAS SOME OF THE SAME
GOALS AS RJ, BUT ADDS COMMUNITY AND SYSTEM ACCOUNTABILITY:
Criminal and Transformative Justice:
Juvenile Court: 1. Who was harmed?
2. What are the needs and
1. What law was broken?
responsibilities of those
2. Who broke it? involved?
3. What punishment is 3. How do all affected parties together
warranted? address needs and repair harm?
4. Competition between lawyers 4. Is non-adversarial. Seeks an
- assumes two opposing sides. outcome all parties can agree to.
5. Assumes guilty and innocent 4. What are the root causes of
the conflict?
parties - victim and perpetrator.
5. What community and/or
6. Not responsible for societal change is needed to
determining or addressing root change relationships, conditions
causes of conflict. and power?

49. TRANSFORMATIVE JUSTICE
Builds Further on Indigenous Practices
of Peacemaking Circles
– Is conscious and appreciative of the historical roots of the practice
and does not engage in cultural customs or rituals without
permission and guidance/mentorship.
– Representatives from the indigenous community are in leadership
– Community and family members are essential, but the circle also
holds larger community, institutions and system accountable
– Trusts that all members of the community can serve as
peacebuilders; enables opportunities for many people to be circle
keepers or facilitators
– Responsibility for repairing harm includes community responsibility
to address injustice

50. TRANSFORMATIVE JUSTICE ALSO -
• Addresses the harm caused to all parties involved, as well as the
community at large.
• Also addresses root causes; challenges and seeks to end
injustice and inequality that leads to violence and crime.
• Focuses on improving existing relationships and building new
relationships in order to prevent future conflict/harm.
• Replaces prosecution, punishment and incarceration. Serves as a
true diversion from the system - does not use return to police,
court or custody as a threat for participation.
• Transfers problem solving skills to individuals and community -
trusts that families and communities have the skills to solve most
disputes, and offers opportunities for all people to be trained and
to use peacebuilding skills.
• Similarly, recognizes that all of us can and do harm others, and
allows for all people to be held accountable regardless of their
status, position, authority, age, race or wealth.

51. ADDITIONALLY, TJ -
• Does not assume there are wholly “innocent” and “responsible”
parties and rejects language such as victim and offender that
assumes guilt and innocence.
• Similarly, does not use “labels” for anyone involved, and seeks to
recognize the humanity in all people - does not use
disempowering terms such as ward, juvenile, minor, inmate,
offender, victim, convict, gang/gang member, pregnant teen,
addict, or derogatory terms for law enforcement.
• Gives people an opportunity to address if they were wrongfully
accused. Does not require that people plead guilty or accept
responsibility in order to participate.
• Is a strengths based approach rather than deficit based.
(Focuses on youth/people as assets rather than on identifying a
person’s pathologies and “fixing” them.

52. The YJC Also Promotes that Community Intervention/
Peacebuilding is a Key Component of Transformative Justice
Community Intervention/Peace Workers:
• Have a “license to operate” - the community permission, trust and
relationships necessary to prevent and address violence. Often
have histories as former shot callers in the community, giving
them additional respect and influence among those most
engaged in violence.
• Provide rumor control.
• Intervene to prevent/stop/solve bullying, conflict and fights.
• Serve as first responders at the scenes of violence and provide
life-saving care, safe entry for emergency medical personnel,
crowd control, calming of emotions, and prevention of retaliation.
• Build truces and cease fires between rival neighborhoods and
crews.
• Build with people most involved and impacted by violence, and
support, mentor and train them to reduce harm.
• Support people who want to leave neighborhoods to exit safety.
• Provide safe passage to and from school.

53. Job and Cost Comparisons Between Law Enforcement and Intervention

54. How We See Each Other

55. FROM VICTIM, OFFENDER, PREDATOR, JUVENILE,
MINOR, DELINQUENT, WARD, PROBATIONER,
ILLEGAL ALIEN/IMMIGRANT, CONVICT, MINORITY,
HIGH RISK YOUTH, INMATE, PRISONER…

56. TO HUMAN BEING: (PEOPLE/YOUTH IN PRISON, CONVICTED PEOPLE, YOUTH
IN CONFLICT WITH THE LAW, UNDOCUMENTED PEOPLE.)

57. FROM GANG MEMBERS

58. TO CHILD SOLDIERS

59. FROM YOUTH ARE MONSTERS

60. TO THE SYSTEM IS MONSTROUS

61. FROM PUNISHMENT WORKS

62. TO TRANSFORMATIVE JUSTICE,
INCLUDING TAKING REPONSIBILITY AND REPAIRING HARM

63. FROM “DO ADULT CRIME, DO ADULT TIME.”

64. TO NO YOUTH IN ADULT COURTS, JAILS OR PRISONS.
AND FAIR AND HUMANE TREATMENT FOR BOTH
YOUTH AND ADULTS.

65. THIS INCLUDES ENDING OUR USE OF DEROGATORY
TERMS FOR LAW ENFORCEMENT

67. of both RJ and TJ

68. RJ and TJ GIVES PEOPLE A VOICE AND THE
CENTRAL ROLE IN DECISION MAKING
• People most hurt by violence and other crime
usually have no say in whether they wish to
pursue criminal charges or not.
• Similarly, impacted people also have no say in
the sentence
– For example, some DV survivors request anger
management classes instead of prison time
• The person impacted by a crime can be
subjected to a harsh “blaming the victim” style of
questioning by the defense.

69. RJ and TJ GIVES PEOPLE A VOICE- Continued
• Lawyers fully dominate the debate and both the defendant
and the person seen as the victim in the case have no
opportunity to speak except through very controlled testimony
from the stand.
• The argument is about winning not about discovering core
truths. Thus the root causes of conflict are rarely solved,
resulting in a continuation - and often an escalation - of the
tension and harm.
• During the police investigation and throughout the court
process, no contact is allowed between “sides.” In fact, the
person labeled the “perpetrator” or anyone from their family or
community can be charged with “tampering with a witness” or
“terrorist threats” for any attempt to communicate. It is rare
for either of the impacted parties to have their questions
answered or to feel that “justice” is served.

70. Preventing Permanent Labeling and
Further Criminalization
• TJ and RJ can replace suspension, expulsions and arrests in
schools and can also build safer learning environments for
everyone.
• “Adjudications” in juvenile court are not convictions for immigration
purposes but can provide conduct-based grounds for transfer to
ICE custody and deportation. For people age 18 and over, any
system contact - no matter how small - can lead to deportation.
• In some districts, youth may be suspended or expelled from school
for a “delinquency” adjudication in juvenile court. For all youth,
involvement in juvenile court dramatically impacts the way they are
seen and treated at school, by their family, and in their community.
• Adjudications of “delinquent” in juvenile court and convictions in
adult court can eliminate or severely reduce a person’s access to
employment, education, financial aid, housing, and military
enlistment.

71. Preventing Permanent Labeling and
Further Criminalization Continued
• Even an arrest without adjudication or conviction in court can lead to an
individual’s - and in many cases an entire family’s eviction from public
housing or Section 8.
• Youth adjudicated “delinquent” and adults convicted for many minor
charges (such as public urination or “statutory rape” where the “offender”
is only 1 to a few years older than their partner in a consensual
relationship) can be labeled as “sex offenders,” and entered onto a
statewide “sex offender database” and lose numerous job and housing
options.
• If a person is ordered to pay a fee for a traffic citation, they cannot get
their driver’s license until they pay the fee.
• Courts can require that people register as “gang” members as part of their
sentence or adjudication. This also adds them to the statewide gang
database (Cal Gangs) permanently labeling them as a “gang member,”
and also subjects them to further gang enhancements in court.

72. Preventing Permanent Labeling and
Further Criminalization Continued
• Youth adjudicated “delinquent” for a felony offense are
required to submit a sample to the California State DNA
database.
• People serving time for a felony and those on parole in
California can not vote. Even people 18 and over in camps
and jails serving time for a misdemeanor, and people over 18
detained in juvenile hall or jail while going back and forth to
court on either misdemeanor or felony convictions are not told
about their right to vote and are often denied access to
registration forms and absentee ballots. In some states, a
felony conviction permanently eliminates your right to vote.
• Sealing or expunging a criminal record can often be a
confusing and burdensome process. The criminal label is
often something that people endure for the entire lifetime.

73. for Restorative and Transformative Justice

74. SUCCESSES OF
RJ and TJ
• A study of six “victim-offender mediation” programs in
California found that five out of six programs decreased
recidivism;
• All six programs increased restitution actually paid;
• And all six programs reported over 90% of youth and
affected people were satisfied with the process.
• In one year, Restorative Justice for Oakland’s Youth
(RJOY), working in an Oakland Middle School
decreased the suspension rate by 87%.
• For every $1 spent on Restorative Justice, $8 is saved
in the long-run.

76. for Restorative and Transformative Justice

77. Just
Even as our states and counties
are in a fiscal crisis, we have enough
money for what we need. Across the
U.S., we must challenge the notion that
1%
police and prison budgets are untouchable.
of L.A.’s Courts, LAPD,
Sheriffs’ District
Attorney’s, Probation’s
and City Attorney’s
Budgets = $100 Million
and would pay for: 500
full-time peacebuilders/
intervention workers; 50
youth centers open from
3pm - midnight, 365 days a
year; and 25,000 youth jobs.

78. Additional Savings: In Los Angeles, each murder costs $1 million to
Investigate and averages $16 million more in Jail, Court and
Incarceration costs. With drastic decreases in homicide across the
nation, the money saved should be reinvested in our schools
and communities.

79. The cost of
incarceration in
California is $50,000
a year, per person in
state prison - and
more than $100,000 a
year for people who
are elderly, disabled
or seriously ill;
$120,000
a year in juvenile hall
or Probation camp;
and as high as
$261,000 a year for a
The costs to lock up one of these youth in the state’s
youth for a year - arrest, court and youth prison system.
incarceration costs - could provide The failure rate
programming in this park for (recidivism) of those
systems is between
2,000 youth from 3pm - midnight, 70 and 81%.
year-around, including hiring 25 youth.

80. The cost of RJ/Tj
and other
community and
school-based
alternatives to
arrest, court,
detention and
incarceration is
between $1,000
and $30,000
(residential
treatment)
a year, per person -
and has a
recidivism rate
“Big Mike” Cummings’ safe passage program to get less than 30% .
youth safety to and from school saves hundreds of Seventy percent of
thousands of dollars a year in hospital, police, participants do
court and incarceration costs. When he is paid, Big not cycle back into
Mike makes 1/3 what a rookie police officer makes. the system.
Many years, he volunteers due to lack of funding.

81. Transformative Justice Circles

82. PRACTICING TRANSFORMATIVE JUSTICE CIRCLES
Use the YJC’s TJ Process Worksheets that outline several incidents, as well as the
steps to facilitating a circle. Contact the YJC for a copy at freelanow@yahoo.com.
Each scenario is based on true events within the YJC’s FREE L.A. High School. We
also use the same process to address issues outside of school.
1. Create a team or teams of 5 or more people. Give each team a
scenario. Review the scenario and select roles. Remember you are
representing another person’s position. You want to make it as real as
possible without stereotyping or dehumanizing the person you are playing.
Quotes indicate statements made by characters.
2. The facilitator will also be playing a role within your school. Try to
conduct the circle from start to finish as though it is real.
3. You will be practicing the Youth Justice Coalition’s Transformative
Justice process. But, there are many models and resources for circle
facilitation in the U.S. and throughout the world. Feel free to use the
YJC’s process, add to it or shape your own.

83. for Transformative and Restorative Justice

84. INTERNATIONAL MODELS
Truth and Reconciliation Commission, South Africa - http://www.justice.gov.za/trc/
Zapatista Army of National Liberation - EZLN - http://www.ezln.org.mx/
New Zealand - http://www.restorativejustice.org.nz/cms/default.aspx
Child Rights Statute, Brazil - http://www.unicef.org/sowc96/lbrazil.htm
Role of Youth in Creating Child Rights Statute, Brazil -
http://www.culturalsurvival.org/ourpublications/csq/article/childrens-involvement-making-a-new-constitution-
brazil
Oaxaca’s New Youth Justice - http://envisioningjustice.blogspot.com/2009/11/oaxacas-new-juvenile-justice-
system.html
RESTORATIVE JUSTICE - U.S.
The California Conference for Equality and Justice - www.cacej.org
Circles of Peace (Nogales, Arizona) - www.circlesofpeace.us
Office of Restorative Justice, Los Angeles Archdiocese -
http://www.archdiocese.la/ministry/justice/restorative/index.php
Community Conferencing (Baltimore) - www.communityconferencing.org
Loyola Law School, Center for Restorative Justice (L.A.) - http://www.lls.edu/crj/
Community Justice for Youth Institute (Chicago) - http://cjyi.org/
Restorative Justice for Oakland’s Youth / R-JOY - www.rjoyoakland.org
Community Justice Network for Youth (Nationwide) - http://www.cjny.org/
Positive Behavior Intervention and Supports (Nationwide) - www.pbis.org
TRANSFORMATIVE JUSTICE - U.S.
Generation Five - www.generationfive.org
Transformative Justice Law Project of Illinois - www.yjlp.org
Youth Justice Coalition - www.youth4justice.org