Report takes New Hampshire system to task over access, representation

An assessment newly released by the National Juvenile Defender Center says legal representation for young people in New Hampshire is “gravely undervalued,” leading to inadequate access to attorneys and unnecessary rates of probation and court involvement.

The center, which spent a year examining how the state handles juvenile delinquency cases, did praise New Hampshire for dramatically decreasing the number of young people in detention centers and passing legislation that reduces fines and fees for families involved in the juvenile justice system. But it found that, despite having a constitutional right to an attorney, many young people in the state are showing up in court never having met their public defender, and some are waiving their right to counsel entirely.

According to the report, about 3,000 young people are involved in the state’s juvenile justice system per year, but New Hampshire, unlike other New England states, has no specialized juvenile defense unit. Instead, it says, juvenile court is treated as a “training ground” for younger public defenders with already high adult caseloads.

The NJDC also criticized the system that allows public defenders and contract attorneys handling juvenile cases to be paid less — in some cases, just one-eighth of what they would get for an adult case.

Juvenile records

The report also found that “children, particularly those charged with misdemeanors, commonly came to court without counsel.” Some of them waived their right to counsel and pleaded true at arraignments without ever having spoken to a lawyer or been informed of their constitutional rights. (The juvenile court uses the terms true and not-true as opposed to guilty and not guilty.)

“Young people who plead true are often then assigned a number of probation conditions which can be really hard to manage and adhere to,” said NJDC director Mary Ann Scali. “[This] leads to young people being caught up in the court system for years at a time.”

Probation violations typically lead to more court involvement and, sometimes, placement in residential or detention facility.

“At the beginning, people see this as a slap on the wrist,” Scali said. “But in the end, it can absolutely cut off a young person’s opportunities to a future they want to have.”

State officials are currently looking at how to reform the juvenile probation system through a collaboration with George Washington University, according to NH Public Radio.

In addition, Black and Latino people make up less than 10% of New Hampshire’s population but nearly 30% of youth placed on probation, which puts New Hampshire on par or worse than many other states when it comes to racial disparity in the juvenile justice system, according to the report.

And, while juvenile cases are confidential by law, NJDC said it could not find written policies or verification that courts destroy juvenile records five years after a juvenile offender turns 18.

In fact, advocates gave examples of juvenile records affecting their client’s access to college admissions, employment, military eligibility and housing.

The NJDC’s list of recommendations include:

• Clarifying protocol for destroying and expunging records;

• Providing more training and support to juvenile defense attorneys;

• Requiring that all youth have access to an attorney before being interrogated by police or showing up to court;

• Improving data systems to track trends in the juvenile justice system and reduce disparities.