By Elaine Jarvik
March 27, 2026
In the United States, circa 1960, skipping school, drinking alcohol, and violating a curfew were the kinds of “status offenses” that could send a teenager to jail.
But in 1974, Congress enacted the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act, which mandated that minors be referred to less restrictive, community-based programs.
Still, between roughly 1980 and 2020, the national rate of juvenile incarcerations steadily increased—climbing most precipitously in the 1990s as arrests for males tripled compared to females. Data from the Office of Juvenile Justice Delinquency Program show youth detention rates in the U.S. rising and peaking—then, remarkably, falling rapidly.
Between 2000 and 2020, the number of incarcerations in juvenile facilities across the U.S. dropped by 77%. A similar 20-year trend held in Utah, with an even greater decrease:
In Utah, the number of incarcerations in juvenile facilities peaked in 2001, then plummeted 83% by 2021
Source: One-Day Count of Youth Held in Utah Juvenile Justice Facilities, 1975-2023
The decrease was spurred in part by exposés of cruel behavior—a 2011 report from the Annie E. Casey Foundation, “No Place for Kids,” documented violence and abuse in juvenile facilities across 39 states.
But other changes were afoot, too, and Susan Burke, former executive director of Utah’s Juvenile Justice & Youth Services, was part of that transformation. Burke, who led JJYS from 2011 to 2018, believed that juveniles should never be treated as if they were inmates.
Susan Burke, director of JJYS between 2011-2018
Susan Burke, director of JJYS between 2011-2018
“The role of the staff was not to punish kids,” she says. Like many others who worked in juvenile justice, she believed that a short-term stay in detention would help offenders get back on track. She championed residential work camps and extolled the camps’ virtues at the Utah Legislature in 2012.
But then two things changed her mind. The first was pivotal research by Anna Aizer, Joseph Doyle, and others, which showed that even short stays in detention might lead young people to commit more crime, not less.
The researchers also found that, even when young people were incarcerated for just a short time, they were:
13%
less likely
to graduate from high school
Source: Juvenile Incarceration, Human Capital, and Future Crime, 2015
23%
more likely
to be jailed as adults
Source: Juvenile Incarceration, Human Capital, and Future Crime 2015
Other national research into morbidity and mortality also points to significant impacts on incarcerated youth:
In a study of 3,645 formerly incarcerated youths in the state of Ohio, the all-cause mortality rate was
5.9x
higher compared to youth who hadn’t been incarcerated
Source: Mortality and Cause of Death Among Youths Previously Incarcerated
Homicide was the leading cause of death among formerly incarcerated youths, accounting for
56%
of all deaths
among the group
Source: Mortality and Cause of Death Among Youths Previously Incarcerated
Concerned about the harsh effects of youth incarceration, Burke interviewed teens who had gone through the work camps and learned that it was hard for them to integrate back into their communities. Many struggled to reconnect with friends and classmates, even after returning home. She also learned a similar lesson when her own son went to a day-treatment program for less than three months and came back to school feeling like he could no longer fit in. Burke began to champion reform.
In 2017, the Utah Legislature passed the Juvenile Justice Amendments Act, which did away with the work camps and other programs that took kids away from their families. The 26-year partnership between the University of Utah College of Nursing and JJYS models a similar attitude of compassion.
Nurses work on-site, building trust with teenagers and young adults who are often skeptical of authority or struggle to open up with health care providers. Nurses foster friendships with incarcerated youth, helping them overcome their fears while addressing trauma and addiction. The partnership represents a large historical shift in attitudes toward incarceration, favoring rehabilitation over punishment to help youth reintegrate into the community once their sentence ends.
Brett Peterson, JD, executive director of JJYS between 2018 and 2025, emphasized the importance of the College of Nursing partnership in advancing that mission.
“The biggest benefit is that we have this committed group of individuals who understand our work [with incarcerated youth],” said Peterson, who left JJYS in 2025 and founded the nonprofit Justice Path Advisors. “Most importantly for us is the expertise we get access to. All sorts of issues come up with this complex population, and our outstanding partners at the College of Nursing help to connect us with the broader university.”
First Steps to Redemption:
Data Supplement
March 27, 2026
Editorial Credits
Writing by Elaine Jarvik
Research & Editorial Support by Lauren McKinnon
Design by Wesley Thomas
Art Direction by Jesse Colby
Editing & Publishing by Nick McGregor
For additional information, email jennifer.clifton@nurs.utah.edu
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