Dec 24, 2024 Story by: Editor
A new report by the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) reveals a troubling disparity in Georgia’s school discipline practices: Black students, who account for just over 37% of the state’s student population, make up more than half of all out-of-school suspensions, expulsions, and assignments to alternative schools.
The report, titled “Only Young Once,” outlines six policy recommendations aimed at reducing harm and fostering rehabilitation for Georgia’s youth. These proposals include eliminating jail time for nonviolent offenses and abolishing zero-tolerance policies that often lead to harsh punishments for minor infractions, such as vaping.
“Incarcerating a child comes with a significant cost,” said Delvin Davis, senior policy analyst at SPLC and author of the report. “Once the kid is incarcerated, it’s not just the kid that’s impacted, but it’s the parents, it’s the siblings, it’s everybody in that kid’s community as well.”
The financial implications are staggering. Georgia spends $217,000 annually to incarcerate a single child — a figure more than eight times the cost of incarcerating an adult and over three times the combined annual cost of attending the University of Georgia, Georgia Tech, and K-12 public schools. “I think that’s brought from a lot of the history that Georgia has going back to the mid-’90s,” Davis explained.
Davis referred to former Gov. Zell Miller’s 1995 State of the State Address, delivered after the state enacted a law allowing 13-to-17-year-olds to be tried in adult court. In his speech, Miller stated, “Juvenile offenders … have been increasing rapidly both in numbers and in the seriousness of the crimes they commit, and we’re in the midst of a most massive effort to respond, respond in an unprecedented manner in this state’s history.”
While the report acknowledges progress made under former Gov. Nathan Deal’s eight-year criminal justice overhaul, which redirected nonviolent offenders to treatment programs and contributed to an 80% decline in youth crime from 2000 to 2020, it notes that the law enabling minors to be tried as adults remains in effect.
Current Gov. Brian Kemp has continued to champion tough-on-crime policies. As of November, 44 juveniles in Georgia were sentenced as adults. According to the Georgia Department of Corrections, approximately 86% of these juveniles are Black, with most expected to remain on probation following their release.
Georgia’s juvenile justice system comprises 19 regional youth detention centers and six youth development campuses, with facilities accommodating between 30 and 200 beds. Earlier this year, U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff, chair of the Senate Human Rights Subcommittee, launched a federal investigation into allegations of abuse within these facilities.
Despite repeated inquiries, Georgia’s Department of Juvenile Justice has not responded to requests for comment. Source: WABE
