Youth justice in Rhode Island depends on where you live. Enter a new legislative study commission.

A young person’s first contact with the justice system should not depend on the city or town where it happens. Yet in Rhode Island, that is still too often the case.

For some children accused of wrongdoing, a first offense can lead quickly to Family Court, where even a closed juvenile process can become frightening and lasting. For others, the path leads to a local juvenile hearing board, where they may write a letter of apology, attend counseling, repair harm, complete community service or reconnect with school before the mistake hardens into a court record. 

Rhode Island’s framework reflects a commitment to the latter path, known as diversion. State law establishes juvenile hearing boards as community-based alternatives to formal court involvement and provides for statewide coordination, training and data collection. The Department of Children, Youth and Families also administers a Youth Diversion Program offering case management, counseling, mediation, school advocacy and family support to youth ages 9 through 17.

The problem is that diversion is not a clear statewide guarantee. In 2024, Rhode Island had 35 juvenile hearing boards, but only 25 were active, according to Rhode Island KIDS COUNT. Each municipality establishes its own board, and the process can look different from one city or town to the next. Some communities send first-time misdemeanor cases directly to a board. Others may not. That difference matters because referral is the moment when a young person either receives community-based accountability or moves closer to court.

Rhode Island has data on the activity and outcomes of juvenile hearing boards, but it’s not public, current and comparable enough. KIDS COUNT uses Family Court data for its research on youth justice in the state, but it has not done a recent comparative analysis across municipalities. Rhode Island for Community and Justice also monitors statewide data for youths arrested by age, race, community, type of offense, and sanctions administered, but families should not have to know which nonprofit to call to understand diversion in their own community.

Municipal websites often do not fill the gap. For example, North Smithfield’s juvenile hearing board is active but has not posted annual reports on its website page since 2018. The town administrator confirmed the board does not receive many juvenile cases, but each one referred to the board is heard within one to two months. Youths are generally given two months to complete sanctions, including curfews, assigned readings, school report card reviews and writing apology letters to a guardian/parent or essays about the offense.

Middletown’s data was not on the town website either, but a report obtained through an inquiry with the town showed five new 2025 cases involving youth ages 12 and 13 were all completed successfully. Sanctions included essays, apology letters, community service, counseling, summer camp attendance, curfews and review of school report cards.

A February report from the Urban Institute gives a partial public picture. Central Falls heard 19 cases in 2024, with one referred to Family Court. Pawtucket heard 11 cases, all involving Hispanic or Black youth, and used sanctions such as community service, essays, apology letters and restitution. Providence heard 35 cases, 33 of which were completed successfully.

Providence shows that even timing can change a youth’s life. Over the last three years, 508 young people were eligible for the Providence Juvenile Hearing Board, but only 108 were referred, and referrals “essentially never happen at night,” according to the City Council. That means access can depend on if the sun has already set, luck or which officer is working. The council recently advanced an ordinance, scheduled for final reading Thursday, July 2, to make referrals automatic for eligible youth arrested for first or second nonviolent offenses, with exceptions.

That is the right direction, and the state should follow Providence’s lead. A bill introduced during the Rhode Island General Assembly’s 2026 session by Sen. Lammis Vargas, a Cranston Democrat, would have automated referrals to juvenile hearing boards for first-time misdemeanors, reestablished a statewide juvenile hearing board coordinator and required annual data reporting. It became a study commission instead. The 19-member commission shall report its findings and recommendations to the Senate on or before Nov. 30, 2027, and shall expire on Dec. 31, 2027.

The commission should not merely ask whether diversion is good. It should assess whether diversion will remain dependent on local discretion, timing and paperwork, or become a statewide guarantee.

The state should set referral standards so eligibility depends on conduct, not geography. It should use common intake assessments so boards understand a child’s needs before assigning sanctions. It should require every municipality to report basic data: referrals, sanctions, completions, Family Court transfers and what happened afterward. When a young person completes diversion successfully, that completion should come with meaningful record relief.

A diversion system rooted in local discretion may produce moments of success. But only a coordinated and transparent structure can ensure that a child’s second chance does not depend on their ZIP code.