Assembly Public Safety Committee Votes to
Close the Division of Juvenile Justice

(Sacramento, CA) Today, families of incarcerated youth and advocates are celebrating an unprecedented victory. Yesterday, the Assembly
Public Safety Committee voted 5 to 2 in favor of closing the notorious Division of Juvenile Justice.

“The passage of this bill out of Committee represents the first step of success. Success for youth who are sent to DJJ for rehabilitation, success for families whose only prayer is redemption for their child,
and success for the people of California who deserve public safety.” (Jakada Imani, Spokesperson, Books Not Bars)

Sally Lieber, Democrat of Mountain View, and Speaker Pro-Tempore of the Assembly authored this bill. “It’s a very dramatic step, and I think one that is really needed,” Lieber said. “The conditions in the
Division of Juvenile Justice are absolutely deplorable.”

With this vote, the committee sent the bill on to the Appropriations Committee, chaired by Mark Leno of San Francisco, who also voted in favor of the bill yesterday. This bold admission that the current
system is not fixable gives great opportunity to transition to a proven, effective model of rehabilitation. Assemblywoman Sally Lieber
testified to the success rate of the Missouri model at a far lower cost to the state.

Books Not Bars is a campaign of the Ella Baker Center for Human Rights in Oakland, California. Books Not Bars represents over 700 families of youth effected by California’s dysfunctional institutions.

NOTE: Books Not Bars staff, as well as “Families for Books Not Bars” members with kids in the system, are available for interviews and in-depth coverage.  For more information visit: www.booksnotbars.org