Contrary to popular belief, until very recently, juvenile records in Washington were not sealed. That meant, like in many other states, the personal information of thousands of young adults, including their family, education, mental health and substance abuse history, as well as any court records, was available to almost anyone. Some states went so far as to sell juvenile records online for profit.
Thankfully, under the leadership of Rep. Ruth Kagi, the legislature was able to pass the Youth Opportunities Act.
A recent report out from the Juvenile Law Center, the first ever of its kind, ranks states on how well they protect highly sensitive information in juvenile court records. The study looked at two main areas: confidentiality of records during and after juvenile court proceedings, and the availability or ease of sealing. The findings were eye-opening. Almost every state fails to adequately protect juvenile records.
On confidentiality in court proceedings, Washington has much room for improvement – ranking in the worst 10 states. However, due to the passage of the Youth Opportunities Act, Washington is now ranks number 7 in the nation in the sealing or expungement juvenile records.
The mission of our juvenile justice system is supposed to be rehabilitation. We know now that the brains of teens function differently than adult brains; the areas that assess risk and consequences are not fully developed. The vast majority of these adolescent mistakes are most often just that – mistakes. In the words of Riya Saha Shah, the author of Scorecard Report, “Retention of juvenile records does little to improve public safety but creates significant barriers to success for youth who are trying to move beyond the mistakes they made as a kid. Permanent, open records are like a ball and chain that prevents youth from becoming productive adults.”
Combining our scores for both sealing and confidentiality, Washington ranks just 3 points above the national average. We must continue on the path to improving both the confidentiality and sealing of juvenile records. It benefits us all to ensure that these troubled youth receive the consequences and rehabilitation they need to understand and make amends for their mistakes — and, then, are then given the opportunity to become productive, successful adults.