Articles tagged with: Tracy McClard

Thank You! Advocates are a Powerful Voice at MO Council Hearing

Tracy McClard Friday, 13 February 2015 Posted in 2015, Campaigns

FORMJ

On Tuesday, February 10th, the Missouri Consumer Affairs Committee held a hearing on Missouri’s “Raise the Age” bill, House Bill 300. The bill was introduced by the bill champion, Representatives Ron Hicks (R) who began the hearing by highlighting the main provisions of the bill and the positive changes this would have for 17 year olds in the state of Missouri.

He shared with the Committee the fact that treating 17 year olds automatically as adults has been the law since 1905. Today, youth arrests and detention are down in Missouri and the overwhelming majority of youth are arrested for misdemeanor offenses.

Supporters of the bill made sure to have a strong presence, and with the leadership of FORJ’s Tracy McClard, the room was packed with supporters to remove 17 year olds from the adult system in Missouri.

What HB 300 “Raise the Age” accomplishes:

1) Raises the age of juvenile court jurisdiction from 17 to 18: Missouri is currently one of nine states in which a child is automatically charged in the adult criminal system before the age of 18.

2) Prevents most youth from being held in adult jail while they are awaiting trial.

Nearly a dozen individuals representing several organizations provided testimony at the hearing in favor of the bill. While the testimony covered a wide range of issues associated with youth exposure to the adult criminal justice system, there were a few common themes among the testimonies.

Several witnesses focused on the substantive differences between the services offered at youth facilities and adult facilities and the impact that intervention with the appropriate services can have on these individuals. The impact on public safety of charging and housing youth in adult facilities was another popular topic. Several witnesses emphasized that these youth will return to society one day and that services in the juvenile system better prepare these youth for reintegration in the community. Multiple witnesses identified research showing recidivism rates were higher for youth held in adult facilities including findings that, “youth prosecuted in the adult system are 34% more likely to reoffend than those in the juvenile system.” Witnesses also noted that charging and holding youth in adult facilities does not deter crime.

Several witnesses in favor of the bill, including a local sheriff, testified that the recent Prison Rape Elimination Act (PREA) requirements of sight and sound separation for all youth under 18 in adult facilities provides more motivation to pass this bill now. Otherwise, states will lose precious federal dollars in unable to meet the stringent requirements.

No groups or individuals testified in opposition of the bill further paving the way for passage.

The full text of the bill can be found HERE. To receive more information about Missouri’s Raise the Age efforts or get involved, please go to FORJ-MO.

Missouri Passes Resolution to Review Youth in Adult System

Carmen Daugherty Wednesday, 07 May 2014 Posted in 2014, Uncategorised

Yesterday, continuing the move towards improving Missouri's justice system for ALL youth, Missouri's House of Representatives adopted SCR29, a resolution establishing a "Juvenile Justice Task Force" that will make recommendations to the General Assembly by 2015 on:

How the JJDPA Helps to Improve Outcomes for Youth of Color

Anna Wong Friday, 25 April 2014 Posted in 2014, Voices

By Anna Wong
W. Haywood Burns Institute

This week’s blog, How the JJDPA Helps to Improve Outcomes for Youth of Color, is from Anna Wong at the W. Haywood Burns Institute and talks about how we can reduce racial and ethnic disparities in the juvenile justice system and the important role the JJDPA plays in this work.

This is one of four core requirements of the Juvenile Justice Delinquency and Prevention Act (JJDPA), the federal law that sets standards for the care and custody of youth involved in the juvenile justice system and provides critical funding for the administration of juvenile justice around the country.

The 'Sweet Taste of Justice' was a Huge Success!

Tuesday, 10 December 2013 Posted in 2013, Campaigns

The "Sweet Taste of Justice" event, hosted last week by the Campaign for Youth Justice, was a great success! It was a night of celebration of the successes of the campaign and its allies' successes in working towards its mission of ending the practice of trying, sentencing and incarcerating youth in the adult criminal justice system, as well as a surprise award presentation to CFYJ President & Founder, Liz Ryan.

Why Federal Dollars Matter

Sunday, 13 October 2013 Posted in 2013, Across the Country

By Jill Ward

In celebration of Youth Justice Awareness Month, you have been hearing a lot about successful state efforts to keep kids out of the adult criminal justice system. You’ve heard personal stories from the field like the one from Tracy McClard, the mom that started it all advocating for reform in Missouri. You saw the State Trends report from Campaign for Youth Justice (CFYJ) that highlights positive developments in states like Colorado, Connecticut and Mississippi.

But states are not the only arena for reform. For nearly four decades, the federal Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act (JJDPA) has been supporting state efforts to build effective justice systems that keep youth out of adult jails and prisons, provide appropriate support for system-involved youth, and invest in strategies to prevent crime and reduce recidivism.

Last month, on the 39^th anniversary of the passage of this landmark law, I wrote about why JJDPA matters to the state efforts going on around the country and to the thousands of young people who come in contact with our justice system. Strong federal policy, like the JJDPA, sets a standard for how system-involved youth should be treated and brings to bear resources to help states achieve that standard. This helps create a more favorable climate for reform that advocates across the country can leverage.

Whether you are a seasoned state advocate or a young person just starting out, you can use the JJDPA as the basis for advancing policies on the ground. Whether you want to raise the age of juvenile court jurisdiction and keep more youth out of adult facilities, reduce racial disparities, or resource alternatives to the more costly and detrimental practices of detention and incarceration, support for these policies are reflected in the JJDPA.

What happens at the national level can and does influence what happens in states and communities across the country. That’s why CFYJ along with other national and state coalition partners in the ACT4JJ Campaign continue to press Congress to reauthorize and adequately fund this important law.

You can help. As we all take the month of October to recognize the many advances in states across the country, we encourage you to take a few minutes to check out the JJDPA Matters Action Center and let your national leaders know you support the JJDPA and related juvenile justice funding. Let them know that federal policies and programs can be part of the solution for youth in your community. Let them know that the JJDPA matters to you.

Join us this week in continuing the conversation on youth justice issues, follow us on Facebook and Twitter using:

#JJDPAmatters #YJAM #JUSTinvest #youthjustice

6th Annual Youth Justice Awareness Month (YJAM) Kicks Off Today!

Tuesday, 01 October 2013 Posted in 2013, Take Action Now

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By Tracy McClard

The 6^th annual Youth Justice Awareness Month (YJAM) officially launches today. I hope you are as excited as I am!

I started Youth Justice Awareness Month in October of 2008 during the most tragic time of my life. Earlier that year my 16 year old son, Jonathan, died in an adult facility in Missouri. I was so devastated and angry that I wanted to make sure the American public was made aware of how we treat children who come in contact with the adult criminal justice system in this country. YJAM provides families, youth, students, advocates and organizations a perfect opportunity to raise awareness and educate the public about the tragedies that happen when children are placed in the adult criminal justice system. It is also an opportunity for all of us to take action locally, so we can build a movement that will end the criminalization of our children.

It’s easy to get involved in this movement! In the time that I have been YJAM Chair, I have seen student groups, local churches, families, advocates, and state leaders, organize a variety of events that have built awareness as well as launched policy campaigns to end the prosecution of children in the adult system. Events can be as large as leading your own community-wide 5K walk/run or as simple as hosting a film screening or community discussion. Many organizations have also been able to raise awareness on the great services they provide to local youth and families, along with achieving fundraising goals for their work to continue.

For YJAM 2013, I will be running “4 Miles 4 Youth” and blogging about my experience as well as asking people to join me through a virtual run as a way to fundraise for Families and Friends Organizing for Reform of Juvenile Justice (FORJ-MO), an organization I founded to change the Missouri state laws that turn our children into adults, with horrific outcomes, once they enter the adult criminal justice system. If you are interested in participating virtually, please visit, here.

To showcase the amazing reform efforts across the country and in honor of Youth Justice Awareness Month, on October 10^thCampaign for Youth Justice is releasing its newest report, State Trends Legislative Victories from 2011-2013: Removing Youth from the Adult Criminal Justice System. This report demonstrates what is possible when families, youth, and advocates work together to educate policy makers and make justice reform a reality.

I encourage all of you to follow the Campaign for Youth Justice as they spearhead Youth Justice Awareness Month. For more information about events happening nationwide, the 2013 YJAM issue themes, and how you can join us through social media, visit, here. and click on “Awareness Month.”

Also, follow CFYJ on Facebook and Twitter!

Jonathan’s Law Unanimously Clears Legislative Hurdle in Missouri

Friday, 24 May 2013 Posted in 2013, Federal Update

By Tracy McClard

The Missouri legislative session ended in victory for Senate Bill 36 - Jonathan’s Law - which was truly agreed upon and finally passed on the evening of Thursday, May 16, after garnering unanimous votes in the House and Senate. Jonathan’s Law was named after Missouri youth, 17 year- old Jonathan McClard, who after being accepted into Missouri’s highly touted Dual Jurisdiction Program by the Missouri Department of Youth Services (DYS), was denied entry by the judge and given a 30 year maximum prison sentence instead. Seven weeks later and 3 days after his 17th birthday, after losing all hope, Jonathan gave up his life.

The Missouri Dual Jurisdiction Program, created in 1996, by then DYS state director Mark Steward, is one of a kind in the nation and has received accolades from the Annie E. Casey Foundation and Harvard University. It was created specifically for youth who are tried as adults in Missouri. The youth within the program are housed in a youth-oriented, home-like facility. Rehabilitation is the goal and youth can remain within the program until their 21st birthday. Youth receive services for education, mental health/counseling, drug treatment, victim empathy, and restitution with an emphasis on family involvement. Youth who complete the program have extremely low recidivism rates compared to youth who are placed in the Missouri Dept. of Corrections. The latest research places the program at an 83% success rate.

Jonathan’s Law opens the dual jurisdiction program up to more certified youth across the state in a couple of ways. First it addresses the issue of awareness and accountability of the courts by requiring judges to consider dual jurisdiction as a sentencing option for certified youth and issue findings if they go against the DYS recommendation to accept a youth into the program. Second, it allows the courts an additional six months to complete the eligibility process for the dual jurisdiction program. Currently the process has to be complete by the youths 17th birthday, Jonathan’s Law extends the process to 17 years and 6 months. In Jonathan’s case, if the judge had to issue findings, and if his case could have extended an additional 6 months, it most likely would have saved his life.

The fact that Jonathan's Law passed the senate judiciary committee with a unanimous vote speaks to the great desire to bring our children out of the adult system and once again treat our youth as children and not adults.

Jonathan’s Law Unanimously Clears Legislative Hurdle in Missouri

Tuesday, 26 February 2013 Posted in 2013, Campaigns

Yesterday the Missouri State Senate Judiciary Committee unanimously passed, “Jonathan’s Law”, a bill requiring judges to consider giving minors who have been convicted as adults, a juvenile sentence, and requiring an explanation why if they do not.

Jonathan's Law is in remembrance of Jonathan McClard, who committed suicide in an adult facility at the age of 17--fearing he would be sentenced to a long prison term with adults.

Jonathan's mother, Tracy McClard is the founder of Families and Friends Organized to Reform JuvenileJustice (FORJ-MO). McClard has been a champion for the legislation and says its passage could prevent future tragedies like what happened to her son.

“I am very excited by the support for juvenile justice reform we are receiving from Missouri's state capitol,” said McClard. “The fact that Jonathan's Law passed the senate judiciary committee with a unanimous vote speaks to the great desire to bring our children out of the adult system and once again treat our youth as children and not adults.”