Students participate in Teen Court at Durango Juvenile Court Center
Excited, sharply dressed teens filed into Commissioner Dyer’s courtroom. The students participating in Teen Court look forward to this day every year.
President Dwight D. Eisenhower established Law Day in 1958 to celebrate the role of the courts and laws in America. Every year, to recognize Law Day, Teen Court is invited to the Maricopa County Juvenile Department, where they observe real juvenile cases that have been diverted from traditional courts as part of a restorative justice program.
This Law Day, the youth were conducting a mock trial based on a case they had taken last month. In the room, watching were a handful of attorneys and judges. Law Day not only provides the youth with a real courtroom to conduct their court in but is also a day where youth get to meet and hear from attorneys, judges, and commissioners on what it’s like working in the industry.
“You do not have to come from a lot to go into law.”
Youth were inspired by Commissioner Dyer’s story on how she went from being a student at Central High to going through law school with a child, to being a commissioner with the department. She also discussed the importance of mentorship and thanked retired Judge Carol Scott Berry, who was also in attendance.
Commissioner Nicole Hartley, along with others in attendance, met individually with youth and answered questions like “What college programs should I go into?” and “What scholarship opportunities are there?” from youth.
“We have leaders that are in action; they are doing what they need to do to help their peers stay out of the formal court process by providing restorative consequences instead of punishments. We want to make sure teens stay out of court and learn more about law,” shared Pamela Neal, the teen court educator.
It can be very difficult for youth to get out of the system once they’ve been formally charged. Youth who are successfully diverted from formal charges don’t require all the resources required by probation or detention. Teen Court gives a community of peers the ability to see that restorative justice is taken and can help heal the damage done to a community.
The theme this year for Law Day is Voices of Democracy. Teen Court, especially on Law Day, reminds students that they are leaders in their community and encourages them to continue being leaders by exposing them to different careers and mentors in the field.