All rise. The second annual Judicial Forum is now in session. The honorable youth of Kalamazoo, presiding.
Laughing and determined children and teens filled the Douglass Community Association, guided by youth leaders who ushered them into their seats, not just to listen, but to lead the conversation.
The Campaign for Criminal Justice Transparency (CCJT) hosted its second annual Judicial Forum on Oct. 23, but this time it kicked off with a session by and for young people. Probate, 8th District, and 9th Circuit Court Judges Namita Sharma, Kenneth Barnard, Alisa Parker-LaGrone, Becket Jones, Christine Morse, Tiffany Ankley, and Curtis Bell spoke with the youth attendees about their roles and answered their questions.
The panel questions were crafted by Kalamazoo youth as a group, and two seniors at Kalamazoo Central High School, Layla and Lauren, moderated the event with help from CCJT’s director of youth justice services, DaNetta Julian. (We are not using the full names of the youth moderators to protect their identity because the parents/guardians were not present to give permission.)…