Happy Friday Readers! February is the shortest month in our calendar but what some like to call, “the real start to the new year, January is a test run.” February also brings Black History Month and we have some great shares coming your way this month, so keep an eye out on our socials!
ANNOUCEMENT
In a a week or two, OJD will be undergoing a bit of a makeover. Our website is getting a whole new look and feel to better fit the needs of a growing and changing audience. Please bear with us during that time and if you need anything, feel free to email or call and we will make sure you get your motions, forms, and tips. Thanks!
Tip of the Week
Transcript of Admission Tips
Filling out a transcript of admission on any admission of a new offense is important for several reasons. It memorializes the record of admission in writing if subject to an appeal. Reviewing the transcript with your client helps your client better understand the admission and the rights s/he is asserting or waiving. Make sure you complete the transcript with your client present and do so in a confidential space. Consider making a copy of the transcript to keep at the attorney table to help your client answer questions. Stand with your client when the court asks your client the listed questions and be prepared to confer with your client if any issues arise.
Resources
Don’t forget about our guest blogs that have been posted recently. They contain some very important information alongside some extra tips to make our Defenders even better than they already are!
The Kitchen Sink: Written by David Andrews on challenging automatic transfers.
Yasi: Written by Kim Howes and discusses the new Youth Assessment tool and issues to be aware of.
Black History Month – Did You Know?
Juvenile girls, ages 14-17 held in detention. Source: Biography.com
As Defenders and Juvenile Justice advocates, we know that the voice of children can challenge and change the way we think and increase our desire to make the world a better place for them. This is not a new way of thinking and is evident throughout history and here is just one of many stories below:
On May 2, 1963 in Birmingham, Alabama is known as the Children’s Crusade or most notably called, “The Birmingham’s Children’s Crusade.” This was a series of non-violent demonstrations held by children aging from 5-17 and a result of the incarceration of Martin Luther King, Jr and his “Letter’s from a Birmingham Jail” among others detained during civil rights movements in Alabama. The Southern Christian Leadership Conference and Alabama Christian Movement for Human Rights believed that if officers saw young children present, and trained them in non-violent tactics, but that was not the case. 100s of young children were arrested and detained and on the second day, the Commissioner of Public Safety ordered pepper spray to be used on the children, also hitting them with batons and threatening them with police dogs. Under the threat of harm, these children continued to protest the business segregation in Birmingham and lack of civil human rights they were receiving. By May 10, after national visibility and frustration, Birmingham city leaders agreed to desegregate businesses and free all the jailed children and adults from the demonstrations. In response to the Children’s Crusade, Dr. King said. “Even though we realized that involving teenagers and high-school students would bring down upon us a heavy fire of criticism, we felt that we needed this dramatic new dimension…Our fight, if won, would benefit people of all ages. But most of all we were inspired with a desire to give to our young a true sense of their own stake in freedom and justice. We believed they would have the courage to respond to our call.”
THANKS FOR READING!
HAVE A GREAT, SAFE, FUN, AND COZY WEEKEND!