Pro-Kid Policy Plan — Juvenile Justice: Meet Hazel & Jeremiah

Finding a village.

Over the past four weeks, we have shared real stories of real Nebraska children and families who have been impacted by Voices for Children’s work within four core policy pillars. In this final week, our focus is on the policy pillar of Juvenile Justice. We know that when young people make mistakes or are going down the wrong path, they need meaningful accountability that helps them grow – not punishment that defines their future and cuts off their chances at a healthy adulthood.

Nebraska’s youth justice system should be rooted in fairness, rehabilitation, and opportunity. Research shows that harsh, punitive responses often make things worse: increasing the likelihood of reoffending and deepening trauma, and by extension, making communities less safe. That’s why our work focuses on keeping youth out of detention whenever it is safely possible, expanding access to community-based supports, and ensuring that every young person has a chance to turn around the choices they’ve made. We advocate for policies that reduce reliance on incarceration and detention for youth, expand diversion and restorative justice programs that address harm and build accountability, ensure racial equity and fairness in how youth are treated by the system, and provide access to mental health care, education, and family supports that help young people thrive.

Voices for Children in Nebraska believes that system change must start with people’s lived experiences, which is why we are committed to creating spaces where voices are heard and honest conversations can occur.

For Hazel and her son Jeremiah*, navigating the juvenile justice system felt overwhelming and isolating.

“For three years, Jeremiah and I have felt that the judicial system and the support and advocacy for us have been hard to navigate,” Hazel says. “We thought the only help we could have was from probation-supplied programs… While these programs were great on their own, they weren’t given to us the first time Jeremiah got in trouble, which meant we didn’t have the resources to prevent him from getting in trouble again.”

When Jeremiah faced a second charge, Hazel learned that the waitlist for those programs was long—so long that Jeremiah would remain in detention until services became available. “This would keep him from help and home,” Hazel recalls.

Then, Hazel and Jeremiah attended Voices for Children’s Youth Accountability Roundtable during Youth Justice Action Month, a space designed to bring together youth, families, policymakers, and system leaders to rethink what accountability should look like.

“Voices for Children’s Youth Accountability Roundtable was a game-changer,” Hazel says. “It gave Jeremiah and me a village we so desperately needed. It showed us there were so many more resources we knew nothing about. We found people who listened, who didn’t judge, and who understood that the system was broken and wanted to hear what these youth thought.”

For Jeremiah, the experience was transformative. “Jeremiah felt heard, in a world that feels like when you do one thing wrong, that defines your whole life,” Hazel explains. “He met men who had been where he was and had overcome—that their past didn’t define them. That was what he needed.”

For Hazel, it was hope. “Meeting people who told me not to give up—that’s what I needed. It made me realize probation should have been able to give me all these other resources. Every day I’m thankful I got to meet these amazing advocates who gave me a voice.”

Hazel and Jeremiah’s story reminds us that youth justice should be about healing and growth, not punishment and isolation. When we create spaces for youth and families to be heard, we can uncover solutions that work. When we invest in community-based supports, we can keep kids connected to their families, schools, and their futures. When we sit down and listen, we create a village where every child is valued and feels their worth.

That’s what our Juvenile Justice pillar is all about: building a system where mistakes don’t define a lifetime, and every young person has a chance to succeed.

*Names have been changed to protect the family’s identity.