March 29 2021 – The pandemic has made it more difficult for justice-involved youth to receive fair treatment in the justice system, according to a report by the National Juvenile Defender Center (NJDC).
“What has passed as due process in this time of COVID threatens to unravel the fabric of the Constitutional protections that stand between young people and injustice,” wrote the authors of the report, entitled “Due Process in the Time of COVID.” They warned that the pandemic has “magnified” communication, access and racial bias issues in the already-troubled youth justice system, and threatens to cause permanent damage.