How California can help juveniles get back on track

As a pediatrician and the leader of a health foundation, it was music to my ears to hear that Gov. Gavin Newsom envisions a California where we stop sending children to prison and instead prioritize health and education as the best strategies for getting young lives back on track.

Newsom’s idea of shifting oversight of the state’s Division of Juvenile Justice to the state Department of Health and Human Services is an encouraging first step. But to truly move from punishment to prevention, we must go much further and understand who gets caught up in the youth justice system and why.

That means addressing the far-reaching impact of childhood trauma and confronting racial injustice.

Most youth who end up in the justice system are survivors of childhood trauma — violence, neglect and other forms of adversity that interfere with the healthy development of young bodies and minds. Youth exposed to trauma are more likely to have a “fight or flight” response in moments of crisis, as the brain goes into survival mode. This can lead to poor decisions and sometimes tragic mistakes.

The first question that a physician trained in trauma will ask is “What happened to you?” not “Why did you do that?” If we want to help young people learn from mistakes and get back on track, we need to address the root causes.

For example, three-fourths of youth are locked up for nonviolent behavior like theft, vandalism, drug use or running away. If a young person is abusing drugs, what is the pain they are trying to numb? Is it because she has been a victim of sexual violence? If a young person stole something from a grocery store, was it because he was hungry? Incarceration isn’t going to solve these problems.

A better way to hold youth accountable in a trauma-informed way is called restorative justice. Instead of being locked up, young people come face to face with the people they have harmed, hear about the impact of their actions and make amends. Youth also receive services and support for themselves and their families. Alameda County youth who went through a restorative justice program were 47 percent less likely to be convicted again, and 91 percent of crime survivors who participated said they would do it again.

Youth arrest and incarceration rates are at historic lows in California, and that is encouraging. However, the decline is primarily due to fewer white youth being offered alternatives to arrest. Racial disparities in the juvenile justice system are worse, with more than 80 percent of incarcerated youth being black or Latinx. We must ensure that effective community-based alternatives to arrest are available to all youth, regardless of skin color or neighborhood.

The challenges in reinventing youth justice are daunting, but I am optimistic for three reasons.

First, there is a growing movement of California youth leaders who have a vision for change that goes far beyond reducing arrests. They imagine a system of youth development that is proactive in meeting the needs of youth, so that an encounter with police isn’t the only way to obtain support and services. We need to listen to them.

Second, there is a growing chorus of law enforcement and public safety officials who recognize that young people need support instead of incarceration.

And finally, we have a new governor who wants to take on the broken juvenile justice system. His first move was to go to a Stockton youth prison to hear from incarcerated young men about what happened to them and what they need for a brighter future.

California is ready to reinvent youth justice, so let’s get started.