[Congressional Record Volume 159, Number 182 (Friday, December 20, 2013)]
[Senate]
[Page S9098]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         ADDITIONAL STATEMENTS

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                    JUVENILE JUSTICE REFORM SUCCESS

 Mr. MURPHY. Madam President, as a longtime advocate for youth 
in the juvenile justice system during my time in the Connecticut State 
Legislature and in Congress, I congratulate my home State of 
Connecticut on new evidence that its major juvenile justice reforms 
over the past 10 years have been a resounding success. These reforms 
are based on the principle that children are fundamentally different 
from adults, and they should not be criminalized just like adult 
offenders. While other States have begun to recognize this principle 
and put it into practice, my home State has led the way. I am proud to 
note that Connecticut has achieved the largest reduction in its 
confinement of minors of any state in the United States over the last 
decade.
  Like many other States, Connecticut adopted tough-on-crime policies 
that drastically increased the number of children locked up through its 
juvenile court system in the 1990s and early 2000s. But in the mid-
2000s, the State recognized that these policies were ineffective, 
costly, and worst of all, ended up harming children more than helping 
them. Connecticut began to reform its juvenile system, passing a law in 
2005 that prohibited the detention of youth for violating a court order 
in any status offense case.
  Then, in 2007, Connecticut passed Raise the Age, a law that has ended 
the prosecution of most 16- and 17-year-old teenagers in the adult 
criminal system and returned them to the juvenile system where they 
belong. Not an easy victory, Raise the Age took more than a decade of 
efforts by children and families, youth advocates, and State 
legislators to pass and fully implement.
  Together with other State reforms, the status offense change and 
Raise the Age have led Connecticut to cut its rate of juvenile 
incarceration by 60 percent between 2001 and 2011. This drop--
documented in a report by the National Juvenile Justice Network and the 
Texas Public Policy Foundation entitled ``The Comeback and Coming-from-
Behind States: An Update on Youth Incarceration in the United States'' 
and released just this week--is the largest in the Nation. More than 
any other State, Connecticut has succeeded in locking up fewer children 
and turning to more effective policies instead, such as relying 
increasingly on community-based treatment and cutting back on law 
enforcement referrals for school discipline issues.
  One of the key architects of the Raise the Age effort in Connecticut 
was Liz Ryan, a nationally known and leading juvenile justice advocate. 
Liz is the president and CEO of the Campaign for Youth Justice, an 
organization she founded in 2005, around the same time that advocates 
in Connecticut first formed the Connecticut Juvenile Justice Alliance, 
CTJJA. Liz consulted with the founders of CTJJA to mobilize the Raise 
the Age campaign, and our State was one of the first to receive her 
expertise and support.
  Throughout her career, Liz has worked tirelessly to build and 
strengthen the juvenile justice field by guiding and supporting other 
advocates and organizations. She serves on the National Juvenile 
Justice & Delinquency Prevention Coalition, cochairs the Act 4 Juvenile 
Justice campaign, and serves on the working groups for the National 
Girls Institute and the National Center for Youth in Custody. Along 
with these advocacy organizations, Liz has worked closely with us in 
Congress to raise the profile of juvenile justice issues and push for 
greater reform.
  Unfortunately for the many who have worked with Liz over the years, 
she is now stepping down from her current role. While she is 
irreplaceable and will certainly remain involved in the advocacy field, 
I congratulate her on the work she has accomplished over the course of 
several decades. On behalf of those of us in Connecticut, I also thank 
Liz for her commitment to our State's reform efforts. As was said best 
by the director of CTJJA, Abby Anderson, ``If movements have best 
friends, Liz is the best friend of the Connecticut juvenile justice 
reform movement.''
  Connecticut's success in improving how it treats its youth is an 
example for the rest of the country. More and more evidence shows that 
my home State should be a model for other States as they look to reduce 
costs and improve outcomes for children. I will continue to highlight 
Connecticut's success and to expand its best practices at the Federal 
level so that we can help support other States make these same 
commonsense and humane reforms.

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