Description

In this peer-to-peer session, faculty examine research data indicating that some girls face harsher treatment in the justice system compared to other girls. To address this issue, faculty present how preconceptions and adultification can affect decision-making at multiple stages in criminal matters, yielding harmful inequities in outcomes. The presentation includes a research review, discussion of relevant legal precedent, and interactive case study discussion. The presentation aims to also engage participants in strategic planning based on discussions about the realities of adultification in the courtroom. The session ends with faculty co-facilitating participant discussions to identify practical solutions—tools, resources, practices and alternative approaches—aimed at treating children as children and prioritizing fairness and rehabilitation. 

Faculty

• Rebecca Epstein, Executive Director, Center on Gender Justice & Opportunity, Georgetown University Law Center
• Thalia González, Professor of Law & James Edgar Hervey ’50 Chair of Litigation, Faculty Co-Director, Center for Racial and Economic Justice, UC Law San Francisco