Press Coverage

Denver Post Justice unbalanced for Hispanic youths, report says By Carol Kreck Denver Post Staff Writer

Friday, July 19, 2002 - Hispanic kids are treated worse by the juvenile justice than whites and the problem is worsening nationwide, according to a report released Thursday.

"Latinos are stopped more often, arrested more often, detained more often, waived to adult court more often, confined more often and confined for longer periods of time," said Nancy Walker, co-author of "Donde Esta la Justicia?" or "Where Is The Justice?" released by Building Blocks for Youth in Washington, D.C.

The proportion of Hispanic youths in the nation's detention centers rose by 84 percent between 1983 and 1991, compared with an 8 percent increase of white youths and 46 percent for youths overall, the report said.

Minority youths in Colorado also are overrepresented in the juvenile justice system, said Pat Cervera, manager of the state's Office of Juvenile Justice. But Cervera said Colorado is addressing the problem with grants for local governments.

The report used an index to measure the presence of Hispanic youths in detention compared to their presence in the population as a whole. An index of 1 would mean that the Hispanic population in detention was the same as Hispanics in the general population, but in Colorado the index of Hispanics in detention was 1.9. That compared with Connecticut at 4.8, Arizona at 1.5 and New Mexico at 1.2.

Colorado was one of eight states with a higher proportion of Hispanic youths in the general population than the U.S. average, according to the report.

The statistics tend to undercount the presence of Hispanics throughout the juvenile justice system because reporting methods vary so widely, said Francisco Villarruel, another report author.

Villarruel said some youths are detained because of immigration status and not because they have broken any laws. Crackdowns on gangs may also contribute. In communities where gangs operate, "youths walking together down the street can be harassed by police and charged with something that didn't necessarily happen."

The Hispanic community "has a history of accepting this kind of thing," said Rudy Balles with the Gang Rescue and Support Project in Denver. Hispanics are "conditioned to accept intimidation by police. They grin and bear it."

Hispanics sometimes don't report police abuse because they're Mexican nationals, Balles said.

In Colorado, a disproportionate number of low-risk youths held in detention are minorities, Cervera said.

Cervera said the state uses Mesa County as an example of how things can change: The community built a coalition to address the problem. Among other things, the county hired a bilingual family advocate to work between the justice system and families. The advocate also sometimes goes to court to translate.