OUR MISSION: KEEP JUVENILES OUT OF ADULT PRISONS! 

R.I.H.D. Youth Initiative

Minority Youth Appreciation Society Learning Center

1803 North 28th Street (Y)

Richmond, Virginia 23223

Year round, after-school, weekend and summer youth programs.  Ages 8 to 16.

Web site: www.rihdyouth.org

Email: rihdyouth@aol.com

Click on Good Search & Support

 RIHD Youth Initiative

Download Comix Book For Youth

"I Got Arrested, Now What"

DON'T THROW AWAY THE KEY

May 17, 2010

Governor McDonnell signed SB 259 into law!

http://leg1.state.va.us/cgi-bin/legp504.exe?101+ful+SB259ER+pdf

 

Kate Duvall

JustChildren Program (LAJC)

1000 Preston Avenue, Suite A - Charlottesville, Virginia

Telephone: 434 977-0553 ext. 146 - Kate@Justice4all.org

 

Great news! This is an important change for Virginia. This bill means thatyoung people who are transferred to adult court and held before trial will not automatically be put in adult jails. They will be able to stay in juvenile detention facilities, where they can get education and age-appropriate services.
Thanks to everyone who worked to make this bill a reality!
Liane Rozzell, Executive Director
Families & Allies of Virginia's Youth (FAVY)
701 S. Wayne Street - Arlington, VA 22204
www.FAVYouth.org - Liane@FAVYouth.org
703-338-FAVY (3289)

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The Justice Department needs to act swiftly and decisively to protect young people who are being battered and raped in juvenile corrections facilities all across the country.

A shocking new study by the Justice Department’s Bureau of Justice Statistics surveyed more than 9,000 young people in custody and found that 12 percent reported being sexually abused one or more times, mainly by staff members. tp://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/15/opinion/15fri3.html

 

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Free Gifts Your Kids Need

Some of the gifts you can give your kids don't cost any money.  The price may still be high – your time, your patience, some days even your sanity – but these are the gifts your kids truly need:
Affirmation.  Your kids need you to be their cheerleader, to point out not only their skills and abilities, but their intrinsic worth.  They need to know that you love them  no matter what happens.
Affection.  It might be uncomfortable, but your kids - even your teens - need you to show them affection.  Whether it's a hug, a secret handshake, or a tousle of     the hair (not recommended for teen girls), be   affectionate with your kids.
Adventure.  Teach your children new skills.  Share      your favorite hobby.  Explore nearby (or faraway) sites and attractions.  Go on adventures together and you'll  not only learn about your children, you'll develop a   strong, lasting relationship. 

As you're buying gifts this year, think about these intangible things your kids need and how you can   give them these important gifts as they continue to   grow.                                       http://www.fatherhood.org/Page.aspx?pid=1165

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The Virginia Prisoner and Juvenile Offender Virginia Prisoner and Juvenile Offender Re-entry Council  Exeutive Order 11 (2010)

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Youth Support & Advocacy Groups

Richmond Midnight Basketball League

http://www.richmondmbl.org/

 

JustChildrenLegal Aid Justice Center http://www.dontthrowawaythekey

http://www.campaign4youthjustice

http://www.fatherhood.org/

http://www.spotlightonpoverty.org/

Voices for Virginia's Children
eMail: info@vakids.org

Family & Corrections Network

http://www.americaspromise.org

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Youth Scholarship and College Admission Fair
Please pass this on to some deserving students (HSJuniors/Seniors)
Saturday, December 12, 2009 @ 9:00am-1:00pm
Richmond City Police Training Academy
1202 West Graham Road, Richmond VA 23227
Target Audience:Minority Youth(African American and Hispanic youth)

Bring the following in an organized portfolio: current high school transcript (2.7 GPA or better), ACT/SAT scores, 3 letters of recommendation, resume, and brief essay entitled "Why I Want to Attend College"
Register at: www.infinitescholar.org/#/fair-registration/4515547985

Battered & Rapes at Juvenile Corrections Facilities

Published: January 14, 2010

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JS Study on Sexual Victimization of Youth in Custody
Alarming new report by the Bureau of Justice Statistics, shows high levelof sexual abuse at Culpepper and Bon Air Juvenile Correctional Centers in Virginia.

Below is a link to the report and some highlights:http://bjs.ojp.usdoj.gov/content/pub/pdf/svjfry09.pdf

WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court on Monday (May 17, 2010) ruled that juveniles who commit crimes in which no one is killed may not be sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. Five justices, in an opinion by Justice Anthony M. Kennedy, agreed that the Eighth Amendment’s ban on cruel and unusual punishment forbids such sentences as a categorical matter. “A state need not guarantee the offender eventual release,” Justice Kennedy wrote, “but if it imposes the sentence of life, it must provide him or her with some realistic opportunity to obtain release before the end of that term.” The ruling marked the first time that the court excluded an entire class of offenders from a given form of punishment outside the context of the death penalty. “ ‘Death is different’ no longer,” Justice Clarence Thomas wrote in dissent. The overall vote was 6-to-3, though that is a little misleading. Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. voted with the majority in saying that the inmate who brought the appeal had received a sentence so harsh that it violated the Constitution. But the chief justice endorsed only a case-by-case approach, saying that an offender’s age could be considered in deciding whether a life sentence was so disproportionate to the crime as to violate the Eighth Amendment. http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/18/us/politics/18court.html?pagewanted=print

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Attorney General Eric Holder at the Fatherhood Town Hall                                                                           December 15, 2009

http://www.justice.gov/ag/speeches/2009/ag-speech-091215.html

Thank you, Mike. I’d also like to thank you, Dr. Franklin, and Morehouse College for hosting this important conversation.   Before I became Attorney General I was a proud member of        the board of the Morehouse Medical School. And I also want to   express my appreciation to my fellow panelists here this    evening.

As Attorney General, I serve as our nation’s chief law  enforcement officer. In that role, I have the responsibility of protecting our national security and promoting public safety.     And yet, there are days when these responsibilities, as grave      as they are, seem manageable in comparison with the awesome responsibilities that I face as a father of three children.              To me, being a responsible and engaged father is every bit as   demanding, and every bit as important, as being the Attorney General of the United States.