gun report Protect Children, Not Guns 2010 The latest edition of CDF's annual report, Protect Children, Not Guns 2010, using the most recent data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, shows that 3,042 children and teens died from gunfire in the United States in 2007—one child or teen every three hours, eight every day, 58 every week. This report encourages America to help dismantle the pipeline to prison by standing up and taking action to help protect children from the fatal effects of gun violence. related campaign Cradle to Prison Pipeline In 2007, CDF formally launched its Cradle to Prison Pipeline® Campaign, a national call to action to end the crisis at the intersection of poverty and race that puts Black boys born in 2001 at a one in three lifetime risk of going to prison, and Latino boys born in 2001 at a one in six lifetime risk of the same fate. Learn more »

The majority of CDF-California's work in the area of Juvenile Justice falls under our Campaign to Dismantle the Cradle to Prison Pipeline.

In 2007, CDF formally launched its Cradle to Prison Pipeline^® campaign, a national call to action to end the crisis at the intersection of poverty and race that puts Black boys born in 2001 at a one in three lifetime risk of going to prison, and Latino boys born in 2001 at a one in six lifetime risk of the same fate. CDF works to build a common understanding of the root causes of this crisis and lead actions to produce results in critical areas, particularly juvenile justice, and to raise public awareness about this crisis to catalyze action at the local, state and federal levels to form "Cradle coalitions" across the country and to help train a next generation of leaders committed to dismantling the Pipeline.

Addressing the Challenges of Reentry in the Juvenile Justice System

With the largest juvenile justice system in the country, Los Angeles County officials are concerned about the programming juveniles receive while they are incarcerated, as well as the services to support successful reintegration into society after release. Marian Wright Edelman recently joined with Los Angeles County Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas in a press conference to discuss the current state of juvenile reentry and policies to meet the educational, mental health and substance abuse needs of the County's juveniles, and further dismantle the Cradle to Prison Pipeline.

A report on juvenile reentry was prepared for Supervisor Ridley-Thomas' office earlier this year by Michelle Newell and Angelica Salazar, former masters candidates at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government who now both work at the Children's Defense Fund on juvenile justice policy. Supervisor Ridley-Thomas has introduced this report as a motion to the Board of Supervisors in an effort to shed a light on the high recidivism rate and begin to improve the path that youth take when reentering their communities. The report's recommendations include things like strengthening the planning for a youth's transition back into the community, ensuring continuity in care to make sure youth do not experience educational or health disruptions, and improving the data collection and analysis capability of the Probation Department.

Click here to view Supervisor Ridley-Thomas and Mrs. Edelman's press release, Ridley-Thomas' motion to the Board of Supervisors, the executive summary of the report, or the whole report.