Useful Websites/Resources
DC COVID-19 Resources for DC Youth & Youth Defenders
In response to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, the Juvenile Justice Clinic & Initiative is committed to providing resources to ensure the health and safety of our local community.
The National Juvenile Defender Center
The National Juvenile Defender Center (NJDC) provides support to public defenders, appointed counsel, law school clinical programs and non-profit law centers to ensure quality representation in urban, suburban, rural and tribal areas. NJDC offers a wide range of integrated services to juvenile defenders, including training, technical assistance, advocacy, networking, collaboration, capacity building and coordination.
The National Juvenile Justice Network
The National Juvenile Justice Network (NJJN) exists to support and enhance the work of state-based groups to promote the reform of America’s critically flawed juvenile justice system at entry level. Through education, community-building and leadership development, NJJN enhances the capacity of juvenile justice coalitions and organizations in 37 states to press for state and federal laws, policies and practices that are fair, equitable and developmentally appropriate for all children, youth and families involved in, or at risk of becoming involved in, the justice system. NJJN seeks to return the U.S. to the core ideals that led to the formation of the juvenile court more than 100 years ago, when our country realized that youth are fundamentally and categorically different than adults.
The Juvenile Law Center uses legal advocacy, research, publications, public education and training, to ensure that the child welfare, juvenile justice and other public systems provide vulnerable children with the protection and services they need to become happy, healthy and productive adults.
The Center for Children’s Law and Policy
The Center for Children’s Law and Policy (CCLP) is a public interest law and policy organization focused on reform of juvenile justice and other systems that affect troubled and at-risk children, and protection of the rights of children in such systems, through a range of activities including research, writing, public education, media advocacy, training, technical assistance, administrative and legislative advocacy, and litigation. CCLP capitalizes on its location in Washington, DC, by working in DC, Maryland, and Virginia, as well as in other states and on national efforts such as the MacArthur Foundation’s Models for Change and the Annie E. Casey Foundation’s Juvenile Detention Alternatives Initiative.
The District of Columbia Department of Youth Rehabilitation Services (DYRS)
DYRS provides citywide services for delinquency prevention and control to the protection of the community and the rehabilitation of youth. Specifically, DYRS provides security, supervision, and residential and community support services for committed and detained juvenile offenders and juvenile Persons in Need of Supervision (PINS). Clients are engaged in a variety of educational, therapeutic, recreational, and cultural enrichment programs.
The District of Columbia Family Court
The District of Columbia Family Court has jurisdiction over the following types of cases: abuse and neglect, juvenile, domestic relations, domestic violence, paternity and support, mental health and retardation and adoptions. To the greatest extent practicable, feasible and lawful, cases involving members of the same family are heard by one judge in order to minimize court appearances, reduce the risk of conflicting court orders and ensure quality decisions based on the full knowledge of the issues affecting the family.
The Children’s Law Center provides direct legal services to children in the District of Columbia, including in abuse and neglect cases, in healthcare advocacy, housing advocacy, and policy advocacy.
PDS provides and promotes quality legal representation to indigent adults and children facing a loss of liberty in the District of Columbia and thereby protects society’s interest in the fair administration of justice.