We first met “Amira” as a high school senior arrested for simple battery. At the moment of her arrest, Amira had already endured more hardship than most people face in a lifetime.
Amira’s childhood was marked by abuse, death, and family imprisonment. As result, she spent most of her childhood in foster care. The instability of her early years left deep scars, and she struggled with depression and anger. Despite her efforts, she hadn’t been able to finish high school and had sought help at a hospital for her mental health.
After her arrest, Amira was faced with compounding challenges. While navigating her court case, she aged out of the foster care system, leaving her homeless and without a safety net. Concerned for her safety but without a real solution, the judge overseeing her case ordered Amira to be held in jail until a plan could be developed. That’s when her LCCR attorney, Kayla, stepped in to create a release plan to get Amira out of jail and into a shelter.
Upon her release, Amira was placed in one of the few homeless shelters in the city. However, the conditions there were far from ideal for a young girl. One of the terms of her release included wearing an ankle monitor and staying at the shelter, but she was being harassed while living there. Feeling trapped and unsafe, Amira made the difficult decision to leave, knowing it would violate her release conditions and risk her own reincarceration.
Without family to support her and no other available shelters, Amira became increasingly vulnerable. Her LCCR team noticed warning signs that Amira was being trafficked. She was moving between homes, staying with different people every week, and could only be reached through someone else’s phone. To make matters worse, her ankle monitor alerted authorities that she had left the shelter, leading to a warrant for her arrest.
Kayla and the rest of Amira’s team knew she needed help fast. Kayla reached out to a friend who had been through what Amira was struggling with, arranging for the two to talk. After their conversation, Amira saw a glimpse of the life she wanted— a life where she could be safe and independent. Kayla then reached out to a women-only shelter specializing in supporting survivors of violence. They secured a spot for Amira the very next day. The following morning, Amira met with Kayla and her LCCR youth advocate, Curry, to complete her admission paperwork. For the first time in a long while, Amira had a safe place to recover and heal.
Since moving into the shelter, Amira has made remarkable progress. She enrolled in a HiSET program to finish her education, started working with Curry to apply for jobs, and is participating in group therapy to address her mental health. She’s also taking financial literacy classes to prepare for her future. Her team is optimistic that her juvenile case will close next month, freeing her to focus entirely on building the life she wants.
Amira’s story underscores the harm the juvenile legal system can inflict on young people who need compassion and support, not surveillance and incarceration. The courts often defer to “protecting” girls by prolonging their legal system involvement. The measures imposed on Amira—imprisonment for her “safety” and requiring an ankle monitor despite her homelessness—did nothing to protect her. Instead, it left her more vulnerable to exploitation and could have had dangerous consequences.
Amira is a determined young woman who radiates positivity. She has always stood up for what is right and fought to protect others, even when it came at great personal cost. With the support of her team, Amira is creating the life she deserves. We are excited to see what she will achieve.
