Juvenile-justice advocates decry Alameda County move to prosecute more teens as adults

As Alameda County District Attorney Ursula Jones Dickson’s tough-on-crime approach breaks from that of her predecessor, juvenile justice commissioners pushed back on Wednesday, criticizing what they described as a “dramatic” rise in juvenile cases being referred to adult court.

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“It’s my opinion that when we transfer children to adult court, we are admitting failure as a society for that child,” Alfonso Mance, an assistant public defender for the county who leads the office’s juvenile defense operations, said Wednesday at a Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Commission meeting. “These are folks who are supposed to be rehabilitated and returned to society. So it’s incredibly important how we deal with them.”

Commissioners criticized Jones Dickson’s attempt to try more juveniles as adults as “draconian,” arguing it will lead children in adult incarceration to be assaulted, traumatized and more likely to die by suicide. Commissioner Vamsey Palaugummi said Jones Dickson’s office is ignoring evidence-based practices that urge greater intervention services within the county’s juvenile justice system.

“Cases that would be ordinarily diverted and dismissed are now being charged multiple times, which is not only antithetical to, I believe, the county’s morals and values. It’s antithetical to the research,” Palagummi told Bay Area News Group in an interview. “Ultimately, the main factor the judge has to decide is whether or not this young person is amenable or can be amenable to rehabilitation through the juvenile justice system.”

Representatives from the district attorney’s office did not attend the meeting. The district attorney’s office did not respond to inquiries from Bay Area News Group.

Since taking office in February, Jones Dickson has sought to transfer six teens from juvenile court to adult court. Each of the teens, between the ages of 14 and 17, is charged with varying degrees of murder, according to Palagummi. From 2014 to 2023, only three juveniles were tried as adults, according to the commission.

Though a judge still needs to sign off on any transfer of the minors to adult detention, Palagummi said the increased number of referrals is a sign that Alameda County is turning back the clock to the 90s-era “superpredator” narrative surrounding juvenile crime, which fueled harsh penalties against juvenile defenders that overwhelmingly affected Black and brown youth. He noted that minor incidents, such as school fights and petty theft, were increasingly being charged as felonies by Jones Dickson’s office – sometimes years after the incident occurred.

The issue is personal for Palagummi, who was tried as an adult at 17 during the height of the superpredator era. He said he spent more than 4 months in solitary confinement, which is now considered a taboo for juvenile detainees, as research showed prolonged isolation increases suicidal ideation and causes brain atrophy.

The pandemic ushered in a historic rise in violent crime and property crime in Alameda County, particularly in Oakland. The fallout fueled a successful recall campaign against former Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price, who attempted to implement progressive reforms in the county’s criminal justice system. This effort included Special Directives 23-02, which stated that, “As a general practice, the Alameda County District Attorney’s Office will no longer move to transfer children to the adult court system.”

When Jones Dickson was selected to replace Price as district attorney in February, she rolled back the special directive, allowing more juveniles to be referred to adult court.

Cynthia Nunes, a campaign coordinator for the youth intervention nonprofit Urban Peace Movement, said the policy change is a “crisis” that is robbing juvenile offenders of a second chance.

“We know that this doesn’t keep our community safer. It actually is stripping our young people of access to the age-appropriate rehabilitation that they are entitled to, and we are subjecting them to more trauma,” Nunes said. “We have two systems for young people and for adults, for a reason. So I’m just trying to understand what the commission is going to do.”

If you or someone you know is struggling with feelings of depression or suicidal thoughts, the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline offers free, round-the-clock support, information and resources for help. Call or text the lifeline at 988, or see the 988lifeline.org website, where chat is available.