Free Child Rights Foundation
Facts, stories and evidence about children behind bars, and why locking them up does more harm than good.
Why this site exists
We want to change that. This site brings together verified numbers, documented stories and research on what prison does to children. Every figure comes with a link to its source, so you can check it yourself.
In their words
The detention of a child shall be used only as a measure of last resort and for the shortest appropriate period of time.
There can be no keener revelation of a society's soul than the way in which it treats its children.
Children's rights are human rights, which means child equity and substantive age equality.
Each of us is more than the worst thing we've ever done.
Every child deprived of liberty shall have the right to maintain contact with his or her family.
Liberal values of freedom mean nothing when a child is imprisoned.
In numbers
children held in jails and prisons around the world every year.
UN Global Study on Children Deprived of Liberty, 2019 · sourceyoung people in juvenile facilities in the United States on a typical day.
The Sentencing Project, 2023 data · sourcechildren under 18 held in U.S. adult jails and prisons.
The Sentencing Project, 2023 data · sourceCrimes children are imprisoned for
Children have fewer rights than adults, yet there are offenses that only a child can be charged with. These are called status offenses. In 2023, about 777 young people were held in U.S. juvenile facilities for status offenses alone (Prison Policy Initiative).
Truancy means missing school without an accepted excuse. More than 14.7 million U.S. students were chronically absent in the 2021–2022 school year, missing at least 10 percent of school days (National Conference of State Legislatures).
Absence is usually a sign that something is wrong at home, at school or in a child's health. Treating it as a matter for the courts punishes the child instead of solving the problem.
Incorrigibility describes a child who is considered unruly or beyond the control of their parents. Children given this label have been arrested and detained for behavior that is not a crime, such as disobeying a parent.
Locking children up for being difficult removes them from school and family at the moment they most need support.
Curfew laws make it an offense for young people to be in public after a set hour without permission. The rules are meant to protect children and keep public order.
Arresting children for being outside at night brings them into the justice system for something that is legal for adults, and the consequences can follow them for years.
Running away means leaving home without a parent's permission. Many children who run away are escaping violence, neglect or conflict at home.
These children need safety and care. Treating them as offenders adds a second harm to the first.
Facts
Verified figures from research organizations and official data. Each figure links to where it comes from.
Latest
We follow new research, reports and court decisions, and update this page when something important happens.
October 2026
Researchers at Georgetown University’s Forgotten Children Initiative have identified the graves of more than 1,000 children near juvenile institutions in 29 states. In Cheltenham, Maryland, more than 230 Black boys are buried in the woods across from a youth detention center that is still in use. Maryland has set up a commission to identify the children.
Source: NPR, October 7, 2026
September 2026
On 28 September 2026 the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child adopted General Comment No. 27 on children’s right to access to justice and to an effective remedy. The final text is expected on the Committee’s website shortly. Read our summary under Know your rights.
September 2026
About 374 young people were held at Horizon and Crossroads, New York City’s two youth detention centers, which have a certified capacity of 244, according to the Legal Aid Society. City Council members called for at least 150 young people to be released to community programs by December. The city says it is working to reduce the number of young people in detention.
Source: Amsterdam News, October 1, 2026
March 2026
Juvenile courts placed nearly 2,000 more young people in residential facilities in 2023 than in 2022, an increase of 6%. It is the second year in a row that youth confinement has gone up after two decades of decline.
Source: Prison Policy Initiative, Mass Incarceration: The Whole Pie 2026
March 2026
In San Francisco, young people facing felony charges who took part in restorative conferencing instead of court had a 44% lower rearrest rate. In Hennepin County, Minnesota, the rate was 50% lower, and 97% of victims in a Los Angeles program rated the process good or excellent. Only seven states give restorative justice significant support.
Source: The Sentencing Project, Restorative Justice Diversion (2026)
Around the world
The UN Global Study on Children Deprived of Liberty (2019) is the most complete global count. Its authors say the real number is most likely much higher, because many countries do not collect or report the data.
Children per year. Bars drawn to scale against the upper estimate of 680,000. Source: UN Global Study on Children Deprived of Liberty, 2019, as reported by Human Rights Watch. See also OHCHR.
United States, on a typical day
The United States confines more children than almost any other country. Nearly a third of the young people in juvenile facilities have not yet been found responsible for anything.
2023 data from the Census of Juveniles in Residential Placement. Sources: The Sentencing Project (juvenile and adult facilities), Prison Policy Initiative (before a hearing, status offenses).
Who is locked up
The gap starts early. Black youth are more likely than white youth to be arrested, then more likely to be detained, then more likely to be committed to a facility.
Youth in placement per 100,000 young people, United States, 2023. Source: The Sentencing Project.
More facts
drop in U.S. youth confinement since 2000, from 108,800 to 29,300 young people on a typical day. Fewer children locked up did not make communities less safe.
The Sentencing Projectof youth arrests in 2024 were for serious violent crimes as the FBI defines them. Most children who are arrested are not a danger to anyone.
The Sentencing Projectchildren were charged as adults in 2019, down from about 250,000 a year around 2000.
The Sentencing Projecthave no minimum age for juvenile court, so even very young children can be prosecuted. Florida's minimum age is 7. The UN recommends at least 14.
National Juvenile Justice Network, 2025young people confined in the United States is held in an adult jail or prison, not a juvenile facility.
Prison Policy Initiative, 2023 dataU.S. students were chronically absent from school in 2021–2022. In many states, missing school can bring a child before a judge.
National Conference of State Legislaturesmore young people were placed in juvenile facilities in 2023 than in 2022. It is the second annual increase in a row.
Prison Policy Initiative, 2026rise in the number of children held in adult jails and prisons from 2021 to 2022, after 25 years of decline.
The Sentencing Projectyoung people are held for breaking the rules of their probation, not for a new offense.
Prison Policy Initiative, 2026Sources
Stories
Documented cases, each with a link to independent reporting. Behind every number is a child.
Kalief was arrested in the Bronx at 16, accused of stealing a backpack. His family could not pay $3,000 bail, so he was sent to Rikers Island to wait for a trial that never came. He spent about three years there, much of it in solitary confinement, and refused to plead guilty to something he said he did not do.
In 2013 the charges were dropped and he was released. He tried to rebuild his life and went to college, but the years inside stayed with him. He died in 2015.
What it shows: a child can lose years of his life because his family cannot afford bail, even when the case against him is never tried.
Sources: The New Yorker, "Before the Law" (2014) · Wikipedia
Grace was on probation when schools closed during the COVID-19 pandemic. She has ADHD and struggled with remote learning. In May 2020 a judge found that not completing her online schoolwork violated her probation and sent her to a juvenile detention center.
After her story was reported nationally, the Michigan Court of Appeals ordered her release at the end of July 2020. She had spent more than two months in detention for unfinished homework.
What it shows: children can be locked up for behavior that is not a crime at all.
Source: ProPublica (2020)
Bresha grew up in a home where, according to her family, her father abused her mother for years. In 2016, at 14, she shot and killed him. Prosecutors charged her with aggravated murder and sought to try her as an adult.
Advocates against domestic violence campaigned for her. In 2017 she accepted a plea in juvenile court that ended with a short further period in detention and mental health treatment, instead of a possible adult prison sentence.
What it shows: children who act in the middle of abuse and trauma need protection and care, and the threat of adult prosecution raises the stakes enormously.
Source: NBC News (2017)
Evan was 14 when he took part in a killing. Under Alabama law the court had no choice: he received a mandatory sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole, with no room to consider his age or his childhood of abuse and neglect.
His case reached the U.S. Supreme Court. In Miller v. Alabama (2012) the Court ruled that mandatory life without parole for children is unconstitutional, because children are different from adults and have a greater capacity to change.
What it shows: the law has begun to recognize that children cannot be judged as adults.
George, a Black 14-year-old, was accused of killing two white girls. He was convicted by an all-white jury after a trial that lasted only hours, with almost no defense, and was executed less than three months after his arrest. He is the youngest person executed in the United States in the 20th century.
In 2014 a South Carolina judge vacated his conviction, finding that he had been denied a fair trial.
What it shows: the ultimate cost of a system that treats a child as an adult and denies him a real defense.
Source: Death Penalty Information Center
Why not prison
Nine reasons, each backed by a source you can check.
Nine reasons
International law says a child may be detained only as a last resort and for the shortest possible time.
UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, Art. 37Kalief Browder spent three years on Rikers Island because his family could not pay $3,000 bail. He was never tried.
The New Yorker, 2014Young people held in U.S. facilities in 2023 only for status offenses, such as skipping school or running away from home.
Prison Policy Initiative, 2023 dataYoung people locked up in the United States on a typical day who have not yet had their case heard.
Prison Policy Initiative, 2023 dataBlack children in the United States are locked up at 5.6 times the rate of white children.
The Sentencing Project, 2023 dataOf youth in U.S. juvenile facilities reported sexual victimization in 2018. 5.8 percent reported misconduct by staff.
Bureau of Justice Statistics, 2018Every child deprived of liberty has the right to stay in contact with their family through letters and visits.
UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, Art. 37(c)Children cannot vote or stand for office, yet they are judged under laws written by adults, as if they had the same rights.
Free Child Rights FoundationIt is the only UN member state that has not ratified the Convention on the Rights of the Child.
UNICEFThe research
Chance of finishing high school
−13 to −39
percentage points for young people who were incarcerated.
Chance of prison as an adult
+23 to +41
percentage points for young people who were incarcerated.
A study of about 35,000 young people in Chicago compared similar cases assigned to stricter or more lenient judges. Source: Aizer and Doyle, Quarterly Journal of Economics (2015), summarized by The Journalist's Resource.
Children in custody face isolation, violence and trauma. Depression and anxiety often get worse, and a record follows them into school, work and housing.
Youth confinement has fallen 73 percent since 2000 while youth arrests have fallen by more than three quarters since their peak (The Sentencing Project). Locking fewer children up has not led to more youth crime.
Diversion programs steer young people away from court and toward counseling, education and mentoring. Restorative justice brings young people, victims and communities together to repair harm. In San Francisco, young people facing felony charges who took part in it were 44% less likely to be rearrested than those sent to court (The Sentencing Project, 2026).
The courts
Children in delinquency hearings have the right to notice of the charges, to a lawyer, to confront witnesses and to remain silent.
A court may not lock someone up for failing to pay a fine without first asking whether the person was able to pay.
The death penalty may not be imposed for crimes committed before age 18.
Life without parole is barred for children convicted of crimes other than homicide.
A child's age must be considered when deciding whether police questioning required Miranda warnings.
Mandatory life without parole for children is unconstitutional. Courts must weigh age, background and the capacity to change.
Miller applies retroactively, opening new sentencing hearings for people sentenced as children.
Judges do not need to find a child "permanently incorrigible" before imposing life without parole.
Get help
General guidance for families in the United States, and organizations that can help today.
General information, not legal advice. Rules differ from state to state. For a specific case, speak with a lawyer.
Organizations working today
Supports juvenile defense lawyers across the United States.
Litigation and policy for children in the justice and foster care systems.
Works to end extreme sentences for children.
Frees wrongfully convicted people and works to prevent wrongful convictions.
Represents people facing extreme sentences, including children.
Research and advocacy on youth justice and incarceration.
Knowledge is power
Carolyne Willow · Policy Press, 2015
Built on research and first-person interviews, the book shows what life in custody is really like for children.
Nell Bernstein · The New Press, 2014
A case against juvenile prisons, told through the young people held in them.
Bryan Stevenson · Spiegel & Grau, 2014
A lawyer's account of defending people the system condemned, including children sentenced to die in prison.
Know your rights
What the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child say about children who come into contact with the law.
The Convention
The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child was adopted in 1989. It is the most widely ratified human rights treaty in history. Every UN member state has ratified it except the United States.
The UN Committee on the Rights of the Child, a body of 18 independent experts, monitors how countries live up to the Convention. It also publishes General Comments that explain how the articles should be applied.
Every right in the Convention applies to every child, whatever their race, sex, language, religion, origin, wealth, disability or other status.
In all actions concerning children, including in courts, the best interests of the child shall be a primary consideration.
States must guarantee an environment that secures the child's optimal development: physical, mental, spiritual, moral and social.
Every child has the right to express their views, and to be heard in any judicial proceedings that affect them.
Articles 37, 39, 40 and 41
The words of the Convention, followed by what they mean in practice.
No child shall be subjected to torture or other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment. Neither capital punishment nor life imprisonment without possibility of release shall be imposed for offences committed by persons below eighteen years of age.
What it means: No death penalty and no life sentence without the chance of release for anything done before the age of 18.
No child shall be deprived of his or her liberty unlawfully or arbitrarily. The arrest, detention or imprisonment of a child shall be in conformity with the law and shall be used only as a measure of last resort and for the shortest appropriate period of time.
What it means: Locking a child up must be the very last option, and even then for as short a time as possible.
Every child deprived of liberty shall be treated with humanity and respect for the inherent dignity of the human person, and in a manner which takes into account the needs of persons of his or her age. In particular, every child deprived of liberty shall be separated from adults unless it is considered in the child's best interest not to do so and shall have the right to maintain contact with his or her family through correspondence and visits, save in exceptional circumstances.
What it means: A detained child must be treated with dignity, kept apart from adults and allowed letters and visits from family.
Every child deprived of his or her liberty shall have the right to prompt access to legal and other appropriate assistance, as well as the right to challenge the legality of the deprivation of his or her liberty before a court or other competent, independent and impartial authority, and to a prompt decision on any such action.
What it means: A detained child has the right to a lawyer quickly, and to have a court decide quickly whether the detention is legal.
States Parties shall take all appropriate measures to promote physical and psychological recovery and social reintegration of a child victim of any form of neglect, exploitation, or abuse; torture or any other form of cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment; or armed conflicts. Such recovery and reintegration shall take place in an environment which fosters the health, self-respect and dignity of the child.
What it means: Children who have been harmed, including children harmed in custody, have the right to help to recover and return to society.
States Parties recognize the right of every child alleged as, accused of, or recognized as having infringed the penal law to be treated in a manner consistent with the promotion of the child's sense of dignity and worth, which reinforces the child's respect for the human rights and fundamental freedoms of others and which takes into account the child's age and the desirability of promoting the child's reintegration and the child's assuming a constructive role in society.
What it means: Even a child accused of a crime must be treated with dignity, and the aim must be to help the child return to society.
Every child accused of a crime has at least these guarantees:
States Parties shall seek to promote… the establishment of a minimum age below which children shall be presumed not to have the capacity to infringe the penal law; whenever appropriate and desirable, measures for dealing with such children without resorting to judicial proceedings, providing that human rights and legal safeguards are fully respected.
What it means: Every country must set a minimum age of criminal responsibility, and should deal with children outside the courts whenever possible.
A variety of dispositions, such as care, guidance and supervision orders; counselling; probation; foster care; education and vocational training programmes and other alternatives to institutional care shall be available to ensure that children are dealt with in a manner appropriate to their well-being and proportionate both to their circumstances and the offence.
What it means: Countries must have alternatives to locking children up, and any response must be proportionate.
Nothing in the present Convention shall affect any provisions which are more conducive to the realization of the rights of the child and which may be contained in the law of a State party or international law in force for that State.
What it means: The Convention is a minimum. Where national or international law protects children better, the stronger protection applies.
Source: UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (OHCHR). Article 40(2) is summarized; the other articles are quoted.
General Comment No. 24 (2019)
General Comment No. 24 on children's rights in the child justice system is the Committee's most detailed guidance. It replaced General Comment No. 10 from 2007, which had set 12 as the lowest acceptable minimum age of criminal responsibility.
Countries should raise the minimum age of criminal responsibility to at least 14 years, with no exceptions, even for serious offences.
Paragraphs 22 and 25The child justice system should apply to everyone under 18. No child should be tried as an adult.
Paragraphs 29 and 30Diversion should be the preferred way of dealing with children in most cases, through community service, guidance, family conferencing and restorative justice.
Paragraphs 16 and 17Behavior that is only an offence because of a child's age, such as truancy or running away, should be removed from the law.
Paragraph 12Every child facing criminal charges should have effective legal representation, free of charge.
Paragraph 51A detained child should be brought before a judge within 24 hours, formally charged within 30 days and have a final decision within six months.
Paragraph 90Every child deprived of liberty is to be separated from adults, including in police cells.
Paragraph 92Solitary confinement should not be used for a child.
Paragraph 95(h)No child should be sentenced to death or to life imprisonment without the possibility of release or parole.
Paragraphs 79 and 81Source: UN Committee on the Rights of the Child, General Comment No. 24 (2019).
General Comment No. 27 (2026)
The Committee adopted General Comment No. 27 in September 2026. It explains what it means for a child to be able to claim their rights and get redress when those rights are violated. The adopted text will be published in the coming weeks. Until then, the summary below is based on the 2025 consultation draft.
Access to justice means that a child can obtain a just and timely remedy for violations of their rights, through avenues adapted to children.
Draft paragraph 9There should be mechanisms that children can use directly, without parental consent. If parents cannot or will not act, a court can appoint a guardian for the child.
Draft paragraphs 29–30States are encouraged to remove financial obstacles and provide free legal aid, as well as free paralegal and social support.
Draft paragraphs 31 and 40Children have the right to information about their rights and the remedies available to them, in a way they understand.
Draft paragraph 37Procedures should be non-traumatizing and non-adversarial and avoid harming the child again. The child must be heard and their views given due weight.
Draft paragraphs 44–45Redress within a reasonable time is part of an effective remedy. Delays can harm a child's development, with potentially lifelong consequences.
Draft paragraph 35Children deprived of liberty must have full access to legal and social support, a confidential and independent complaint mechanism, and unannounced visits by independent monitors.
Draft paragraph 48Reparation includes restitution, compensation, recovery and reintegration, satisfaction and guarantees that the violation will not be repeated. Support for recovery should be free of charge.
Draft paragraphs 51 and 59Children must not be punished for seeking a remedy. Remedial mechanisms should be independent and impartial.
Draft paragraph 34The draft also encourages States to extend or remove time limits for bringing cases about violations suffered in childhood, and to ratify the Optional Protocol on a communications procedure, which lets children bring complaints to the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child.
Source: UN Committee on the Rights of the Child, draft General Comment No. 27. Paragraph numbers refer to the 2025 consultation draft and will be updated when the adopted text is published.
Other UN standards
UN Standard Minimum Rules for the Administration of Juvenile Justice. Placing a child in an institution must always be a last resort and for the minimum necessary period.
UN Rules for the Protection of Juveniles Deprived of their Liberty. They set out how any child who is detained must be treated.
UN Guidelines for the Prevention of Juvenile Delinquency. They focus on support through family, school and community instead of punishment.
Contact
Write to us
contact@freechildrights.compress@freechildrights.comWe welcome tips on stories and data, corrections, and contact from lawyers, researchers and funders. We cannot take on cases yet. If a child needs help now, see Get help.
