Juvenile Justice Landscape Analysis

Punishment to Potential:
A Landscape Analysis of Georgia's Juvenile Justice System

Released May 2025

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The Landscape of Georgia's Juvenile Justice System

Despite landmark reforms to Georgia’s juvenile justice code in 2013, the state continues to grapple with high rates of youth incarceration and significant challenges within the system. In FY2023, more than 7,000 youths were admitted to secure facilities, with Black youth and those with behavioral health or developmental challenges disproportionately impacted. Georgia remains one of only four states that automatically charges 17-year-olds as adults, further compounding these challenges.

Georgia’s juvenile justice system is shaped by a web of agencies and social factors, from healthcare access to education and community resources. Gaps in these systems often push young people deeper into the justice system and hinder their ability to successfully return home.

This report provides a comprehensive analysis of Georgia’s juvenile justice system—its structure, the children and families it serves, and the barriers they

face. Drawing from laws, policies, data, expert insights, and community voices, it highlights key opportunities to reduce incarceration, address racial and behavioral health disparities, and improve outcomes for youth. It offers actionable recommendations to help policymakers, advocates, and stakeholders build a more just and effective system.

Read All Recommendations Here

Report Highlights

We identified five specific groups of youth who face distinct challenges within Georgia's juvenile justice system.

SB 440 Cases: Youth who are transferred or waived into adult court under Senate Bill 440 (1994), leading to more severe penalties and adult prison sentences despite their developmental differences from adults.

Juvenile Life Without Parole Sentences: Youth sentenced to life without the possibility of parole, raising concerns about fairness, developmental science, and national trends moving away from such sentences.

17-year-olds: Youth who, under Georgia law, are automatically charged as adults for criminal offenses, which deprives them of juvenile court protections and services available to younger peers.

Children in Need of Services (CHINS): Youth who are involved in the system due to non-criminal behaviors (like truancy or running away), who may be better served by community-based interventions rather than court involvement.

Crossover Youth: Youth who are involved in both the child welfare and juvenile justice systems, facing compounded risks of poor outcomes due to systemic fragmentation and lack of coordination.

Each population is analyzed in terms of its legal treatment, racial and gender disparities, and the policy and practice gaps contributing to inequitable outcomes. The chapter emphasizes the need for tailored reforms to address the unique vulnerabilities and circumstances of these youth.

Explore the Focus Populations chapter for more details.

We identified critical challenges facing Georgia's Department of Juvenile Justice (DJJ) workforce, particularly focusing on juvenile corrections officers (JCOs).

Key points include:

1. Severe Recruitment and Retention Issues

Turnover rates for JCO Series I and II have exceeded 90% since 2019.
Vacancy rates have remained above 45% since 2020, with a 46% vacancy rate for JCO I as of June 2024.

2. Factors Driving Workforce Instability

Causes include low pay, long hours, emotionally taxing work, insufficient training, lack of wellness support, poor leadership, and challenging working conditions.
High turnover among leadership (22% in 2024) reduces supervisory stability and succession planning.

3. Hiring Practices & Fit Challenges

To fill vacancies, DJJ may hire candidates who meet qualifications but aren't a good fit, leading to early departures.

4. Impact on Youth & Facilities

Understaffing leads to increased use and duration of solitary confinement, with isolation rising from an average of 0.5 days to 1.5 days between FY18 and FY22.
Staffing shortages contribute to higher risks of injuries, reduced service delivery, and compromised facility safety.

5. Mitigation Efforts

DJJ has taken steps to improve retention and recruitment, including:

Salary increases and expanded benefits
Creation of a new JCO III position to broaden career paths
Mandatory leadership training for managers
New employee orientation programs
Competitive salary benchmarks with law enforcement agencies

Workforce instability in Georgia's juvenile justice system has far-reaching effects on both staff and detained youth, with staffing shortages compromising safety, supervision, and rehabilitation goals.

Explore the Workforce chapter for more details.

We identified systemic barriers that hinder efforts to prevent youth involvement in Georgia's juvenile justice system.

Key points include:

1. Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities: Many youth enter the system with unmet mental health needs or developmental disabilities. Georgia faces significant shortages in behavioral health services, with long waitlists and a lack of specialized care, especially for children with complex needs.

2. School-to-Prison Pipeline: School disciplinary policies, such as zero-tolerance approaches, disproportionately impact youth of color and those with disabilities. Suspensions, expulsions, and school policing increase the likelihood of juvenile justice involvement. Despite efforts to expand school-based mental health services, many counties lack access, and the state's student-to-social worker ratio is far below recommended levels.

3. Poverty and Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs): High rates of poverty and ACEs contribute to delinquency risk. Many youth in the system have experienced trauma, family instability, or homelessness, exacerbating behavioral challenges. Prevention efforts are undermined by underfunded community supports, gaps in housing, and insufficient family support services.

4. Fragmented Systems: Prevention efforts are hindered by siloed systems (education, health child welfare) that struggle to coordinate care for at-risk youth. Youth often cycle through multiple agencies without receiving sustained, preventive interventions.

5. Workforce Shortages: Across behavioral health, education, and social services, workforce shortages limit the capacity to provide preventive care, case management, and early intervention.

Mitigating these challenges calls for increased investment in upstream supports - like early childhood education, mental health care, and family stability services - to address these root causes and reduce justice system entry.

Explore the Prevention Challenges chapter for more details.

We highlight the critical role of incorporating youth perspectives in juvenile justice reform. While youth voices is increasingly used in advocacy efforts by community and nonprofit organizations, it remains largely absent from Georgia's juvenile justice system except in reentry planning.

Key findings from a 2023 statewide community feedback survey conducted by the Juvenile Justice State Advisory Group include:

Of 600 total respondents, 43 were youth; 37 of those had current or past involvement with the system.
A majority of youth believed their communities face juvenile crime problems; only 50% reported feeling safe in their communities.
Youth identified gang issues, lack of parental involvement, lack of structured activities, and inadequate services and resources as primary contributors to crime.
Youth cited common youth challenges as substance abuse, mental illness, truancy, bullying, and gang activity.

Youth reported therapy, alternatives to detention, and access to behavioral health services as the most available resources in their communities, yet they rated ease of access at just 50 out of 100. They emphasized a need for more therapy, life skills training, and peer mentoring for youth, and for parent support groups, education classes, and therapy for families.

Explore the Youth Voice chapter for more details.

Key Data at a Glance

Explore highlights of key facts and figures that were revealed in this report. This section highlights the latest data, trends, and insights to help you better understand the landscape of the state's juvenile justice system.