At the Louisiana Center for Children’s Rights, we understand that juvenile arrest can be symptomatic of greater issues going in the child’s life. That’s why we listen. We learn. And we help. When we first met “Taron” in March 2019, he was a high school sophomore struggling with untreated mental illness. He would lash out teachers and family, and disappear for days on end. Sadly, this would result in frequent hospitalizations. While he had initially been arrested for simple theft, his continued erratic behavior resulted in more arrests, and more hospitalizations. When our social worker, Lana, began working with Taron, […]

CELEBRATION FOR CHILDREN’S RIGHTS CANCELED With concerns about COVID-19 continuing to weigh heavily on everyone’s minds, we have decided to cancel this year’s Celebration for Children’s Rights event. The safety of our guests is just too important to jeopardize with a party. We hope to see you next year!​ ——————— [slideshow_deploy id=’6688′]   Our lawyers, social workers, and policy advocates work tirelessly in support of our kids all year long. But on this night, we celebrate. Join us on Thursday, June 18th at our annual benefit event: the Celebration for Children’s Rights, presented by Milbank. We’ll be recognizing our successes […]

So many of our young clients do everything they can to put the justice system behind them, but are met with roadblock after roadblock. That was certainly the case for “Kendrick,” who we first met in 2017.  At the time, he was 15 and had just been sentenced to two years in juvenile prison for a robbery. During monthly visits with his LCCR youth advocate, Jarrett, Kendrick liked to sketch portraits and talk about his favorite Marvel movies. But he also confided in Jarrett about his emotional struggles, which prison only exacerbated. When Kendrick was finally released, his reentry was […]

At age 13, Lynell has lived through more trauma than most people experience in a lifetime, but has never received the help he needs.

LCCR’s fiscal year came to a close on June 30. Here’s a glimpse at what your support helped accomplish. We’re on the front lines every day, protecting the rights of young people impacted by the justice system: Standing With Kids. LCCR attorneys defended the rights of more than 600 children in Orleans Parish courtrooms this past year. Meanwhile, our social workers and youth advocates connected our kids with the resources they need to grow up healthy and leave the justice system behind for good. Support from people like you helped: 111 children enroll in school 114 children connect with jobs […]

With NOPD strictly enforcing juvenile curfew, it's important that young people understand their rights if they are stopped by the police.

The measure will keep more children out of jail across the state.

“The world needs to know that people in prison can change. I’ve done it and I’ve witnessed others do it.”

At the Louisiana Center for Children’s Rights, we understand that an arrest can often coincide with other crises going on in the life of a child. That’s why we listen. We learn. And we help. LCCR social worker Nell had been working with “Corey” all summer long on his probation case, and the 13-year-old was making great strides. Then a crisis struck: Corey’s mom lost her job. Soon after, his family was evicted from their home with nowhere else to go. Even though Corey had been doing well on probation, his family’s sudden homelessness put his progress, and his very […]

We know that when a child is arrested, there are usually greater issues going on in their life. That’s why we listen and learn before we work with them on a plan. We met “Jason” after his first arrest in 2016. He was struggling greatly in school and skipping class so frequently that he was eventually expelled. Meanwhile, as the eldest of three children in a single income household, he was under tremendous pressure to go out and get a job to help support the family. He was on the verge of dropping out of school in the 10th grade. Like so many of […]