News March 28

Rikers Doesn't Put Teens in Solitary. Other New York Jails Do.

Even after the high-profile death of Kalief Browder, jails in the rest of the state routinely isolate juveniles.

By Taylor Elizabeth Eldridge

Commentary February 28

For Henry Montgomery, a Catch-22

His “meaningful opportunity for release” came with impossible conditions.

Ashley Nellis

News January 7

The Check is in The Mail (For Real)

A California county will issue refunds to parents wrongly billed for their kids’ incarceration.

By Eli Hager

Life Inside December 7, 2017

When Your 18th Birthday Gift Is a Transfer to Adult Prison

A “baby-faced kid” comes of age while incarcerated.

By Anonymous

Commentary December 1, 2017

Cyntoia Brown and Our Twisted System

The process that sent a teenage sex-trafficking victim to prison for life didn’t fail. It worked as it was designed to.

By Donovan X. Ramsey

News November 30, 2017

Adolescence with an Ankle Bracelet

What it’s like to spend your teenage years tethered to Big Brother.

Christopher, as told to Eli Hager

Life Inside August 3, 2017

Going Back to Prison Never Gets Easy

A Yale Law School graduate speaks to young incarcerated people and faces his own past.

By Reginald Dwayne Betts

News August 1, 2017

Ending Solitary for Juveniles: A Goal Grows Closer

Recent rulings in a half-dozen states signal new momentum.

By Eli Hager

Commentary May 15, 2017

Give Juveniles Their Due

Fifty years after a landmark Supreme Court case, juvenile courts still lack due process.

By Prya Murad

News April 28, 2017

Just Another Week in Hell

The news from your local lockup is not good.

By Ken Armstrong

News April 14, 2017

The Fine Print in New York’s Raise the Age Law

Thousands of juveniles could still head right to adult court.

By Eli Hager

News March 12, 2017

Was Evan Miller ‘The Rare Juvenile’ Who Deserved Life Without Parole?

Now 28, he’ll be re-sentenced, unless the court finds him ‘irreparably corrupt.’

By Beth Schwartzapfel

News March 3, 2017

Philadelphia Will Stop Billing Parents When Their Children Are Incarcerated

The announcement comes just hours after we highlighted the practice.

By Eli Hager

News March 2, 2017

Your Kid Goes to Jail, You Get the Bill

For 40 years, many parents have had to pay for their children's incarceration, but that may be changing.

By Eli Hager

News February 12, 2017

If Kids Ran Juvie

Suggestions from the people who know juvenile detention best.

By Eli Hager

Commentary January 24, 2017

What We Can Learn from the Amazing Drop in Juvenile Incarceration

Lesson One: Don’t make policies when emotions are running high.

Ashley Nellis and Marc Mauer

Case in Point January 9, 2017

The Punishing Price of Freedom

Alabama never forgave Phillip Chance for running away.

By Andrew Cohen

Justice Lab October 27, 2016

Who’s a Kid?

Science — and law enforcement — are rethinking young adults.

By Dana Goldstein

News October 17, 2016

Kalief’s Mother on Her Torment “I miss my son. I miss him so much.”

By The Marshall Project

News September 27, 2016

In Some States, Raising the Age for Adult Court Is the Easy Part

But in South Carolina, making the juvenile system more humane will be much harder.

By Eli Hager

News September 22, 2016

The Criminal Justice Reform That Could Actually Reach Obama’s Desk

In a year of inaction, a bill that changes the way we treat juveniles makes some headway.

By Eli Hager

Analysis August 8, 2016

Why is Arkansas Flailing in Juvenile Justice?

Blame the good guys.

By Dick Mendel

Commentary June 15, 2016

Ban the Other Box

Getting suspended or expelled should not be the end of hope.

By Kate Weisburd

Commentary May 22, 2016

Pretty in Pink Handcuffs

We’re going to shackle you while you give birth, but you’ll look great.

By Bill Keller

Justice Talk April 25, 2016

Join Today's Discussion on Juvenile Justice

Today from 11 AM to 5 PM EST, we'll be talking juvenile justice with Digg. Brush up by reading some of the best reporting we could find on the topic, and then bring your questions for the experts.

By Eli Hager and Blair Hickman

Commentary April 18, 2016

Some of Our Best Work of the Past Year

From David Simon's Baltimore anguish to elite police fraternities to teens behind bars.

By Bill Keller

News March 3, 2016

There Are Still 80 ‘Youth Prisons’ in the U.S. Here Are Five Things to Know About Them

They’re harsh, dangerous and isolated — and may be around for a while.

By Eli Hager

Q&A February 17, 2016

What Kalief Browder’s Mother Thinks Should Happen to Rikers

‘There was nothing I could do with him being in there.’

By Alysia Santo

Feature February 2, 2016

What’s Justice for Kids Who Kill?

Kahton Anderson and the raging raise-the-age debate.

By Dana Goldstein

Feature January 27, 2016

Why Some Young Sex Offenders Are Held Indefinitely

Jhon Sanchez already served his time for a series of sex offenses he committed when he was 13. But he’s not free yet. Inside the world of civil commitment.

By George Steptoe and Antoine Goldet

Analysis January 27, 2016

There Are Practically No Juveniles in Federal Prison — Here’s Why

Obama takes bold action, but for a population of fewer than 30

By Beth Schwartzapfel

News January 25, 2016

The Supreme Court May Have Just Granted Thousands of Prisoners a Chance of Freedom

The Montgomery ruling says juveniles sentenced to life without parole must get a shot at a new sentence or parole.

By Andrew Cohen

Feature January 4, 2016

This Boy’s Life

At 16, Taurus Buchanan threw one deadly punch—and was sent away for life. Will the Supreme Court give him, and hundreds like him, a chance at freedom?

By Corey G. Johnson and Ken Armstrong

News January 4, 2016

How We Counted the Juveniles Sent to Prison for Life

A law practice finds thousands whose sentences could be affected by Miller v. Alabama

By John Mills

Feature December 16, 2015

An Unbelievable Story of Rape

An 18-year-old said she was attacked at knifepoint. Then she said she made it up. That’s where our story begins.

By Ken Armstrong and T. Christian Miller

Justice Lab November 18, 2015

Our Prisons in Black and White

The race gap for adults is shrinking. Why is it widening for juveniles?

By Eli Hager

Feature November 11, 2015

When School Feels Like Jail

Isolation rooms and paddling: What some schools in the South are doing to keep students in line.

By Eli Hager

Justice Lab November 3, 2015

Why It’s Hard to Be a Poor Boy With Richer Neighbors

And why it can lead to criminal behavior.

By Dana Goldstein

Analysis September 25, 2015

The Disappearing Precedent

When courts “de-publish” rulings to limit their impact.

By Andrew Cohen

News September 22, 2015

Life Without Parole: For Juveniles, 5 Tough Counties

New study places a quarter of the sentences in a handful of urban areas.

By Beth Schwartzapfel

What You're Saying July 24, 2015

‘Children Do Not Have the Same Capacity as Adults to Control Their Reactions.’

A selection of recent letters from our readers.

By Jasmine Lee

News June 25, 2015

New Jersey Moves to Keep Kids Under 15 From Adult Court

Age restriction would be toughest in the nation.

By Dana Goldstein

Commentary June 22, 2015

Kalief Browder was a Good Kid. Should That Matter?

The not-so-nice kids don’t deserve to be brutalized, either.

By Nell Bernstein

News June 19, 2015

How Germany Treats Juveniles

Inside the German prison system, day four.

By Maurice Chammah

Commentary June 12, 2015

How Do We Hold a Child’s Mind Accountable?

A Colorado judge on why we don’t know nearly enough about the link between the young brains and behavior.

By Morris B. Hoffman

News June 8, 2015

The Possibly Coerced Confession at the Heart of the Bite Mark Case

Re-assessing a videotaped interrogation.

By Carl Stoffers

News June 3, 2015

The 17-Year-Old Adults

States are raising the age of who counts as an adult, but it’s no simple task.

By Maurice Chammah

News May 20, 2015

Life Expectancy

How many years make a life sentence for a teenager?

By Beth Schwartzapfel

Justice Lab May 15, 2015

The Teenage Brain of the Boston Bomber

Is being 19 years old a defense?

By Dana Goldstein

News April 14, 2015

Two Confessions

One by a nervous kid. One by a self-styled hit man. A Detroit whodunnit.

By Andrew Cohen

News April 3, 2015

Gangs of New York

Allegations in Harlem the latest blow to a celebrated anti-violence program.

By Simone Weichselbaum

News March 27, 2015

West Virginia Loosens Anti-Truancy Laws

But does the state go far enough?

By Dana Goldstein

News March 24, 2015

The Worst State for Kids Up Against the Law

It’s Florida, hands down.

By Eli Hager

Commentary March 2, 2015

Reflections on Roper

On the 10th anniversary of the landmark Supreme Court decision about juveniles and the death penalty, what has really changed?

By Andrew Cohen

News February 20, 2015

Just Buy the Boy a Bike

Can classic community policing prevent terrorism?

By Simone Weichselbaum

Justice Lab January 15, 2015

‘Blame Liberals’

A new book faults Ted Kennedy, Joe Biden and the NAACP for our prison state.

By Dana Goldstein

News January 14, 2015

NYC Declares an End to Solitary for Inmates Under 21

Now comes the hard part.

By Clare Sestanovich

Looking Back December 29, 2014

The Willie Bosket Case

How children became adults in the eyes of the law.

By Eli Hager

The Frame December 22, 2014

A Summer in Camden

Andrew Renneisen captures the collateral damage of street violence.

Photographs by Andrew Renneisen

Graphics December 19, 2014

By the Numbers

A guide to the latest stats in the world of criminal justice.

By Gerald Rich, Andy Rossback and Ivar Vong

Justice Lab December 18, 2014

Black Boy, White Boy

Another way justice is not colorblind

By Dana Goldstein

News December 13, 2014

Kids Are Different

The sweet spot in criminal justice reform.

By Andrew Cohen

The Frame December 8, 2014

Tracked

Photographer Zora Murff reveals what it’s like to be a kid in the system.

Photographs by Zora Murff

Feature October 6, 2014

No Country for Young Men

Junior Smith was a troubled kid who needed help. Instead, West Virginia sent him to jail.

By Dana Goldstein