YLC Trains Juvenile Court Professionals at Beyond the Bench

YLC presented in two workshops at the Beyond the Bench XXII Conference, sponsored by the Center for Families, Children and the Courts, and held December 2–4, 2013 in Anaheim California.  This year’s theme was “Equal Access to Justice for Children and Families: The Legacies of Clarence Earl Gideon and Martin Luther King, Jr.  YLC Staff Attorney Sue Burrell  was part of a workshop on “Gideon’s Promise: Making it Real in California Juvenile Justice.”  With Patti Lee of the San Francisco Public Defender’s Office and Bob Schwartz of the Philadelphia-based Juvenile Law Center, she explored the successes of the past 50 years in juvenile delinquency defense, as well as the challenges to adequate representation that still exist. Sue also presented in a second workshop, “The New Science of Adolescent Development: How Will It Change Delinquency Law and Practice in California’s Future?”  With David Steinhart of the Commonweal Juvenile Justice Program, and James Bell of the W. Haywood Burns Institute, Sue explored recent research findings on adolescent development and brain science confirming key developmental differences between adolescents and adults. The panel then moved to a discussion of the implications of the research for juvenile justice law and policy.