Legal services for youth is a core program strategy that aims to help youth overcome obstacles that get in the way of their success. We target our services to youth in Yakima, King, Spokane and Pierce Counties who are at high risk for juvenile justice involvement. We also provide legal services to youth who are incarcerated in our state’s juvenile prisons. Youth often feel hopeless about getting back on track after things go wrong. TeamChild’s legal advice and representation can help a youth get onto an education or employment track, secure stable and safe housing, build support for health and well-being, and reduce more episodes of incarceration and juvenile court involvement.
TeamChild’s legal services are free. Since starting as a pilot project in 1995, TeamChild has received over 13,000 referrals and served close to 10,000 youth in Washington State.
We can help youth facing a barrier or challenge like
- Not being in school (suspension, expulsion, truancy, dropped out, not allowed to enroll)
- School isn’t working (need more support for learning, feel unsafe or bullied, feel discriminated against, other parts of life make it hard to focus and be successful)
- Feeling unsafe at home or don’t have a home (homeless, conflict with family, couch surfing, living on the street, in a bad relationship, running from foster care)
- Trouble getting health care or counseling (have unmet or unidentified health care needs, services or care denied or reduced)
- Being locked up in detention (probation violations, warrants, police or school resource officer attention, truancy or running away, parents won’t help)
- Landing a job or housing because of a juvenile record, court fines and fees, or a registration requirement
How to get help:
Anyone can make a request for TeamChild services. We accept referrals by:
- Phone – call your local office directly
- Fax and email – Fill out a referral form and fax or scan/email it to your local officeReferral Form
Have questions? Contact any of our offices. If the youth and family need language or other assistance in communicating with our office, please clearly indicate these needs when making your referral.
Once we receive a referral, we will follow up with the referral source and contact the youth directly to talk about the legal services we offer.
I met Sam after her public defender referred her to TeamChild. I learned that Sam was in juvenile court because she pushed a police officer after he had slammed her brother to the ground during an arrest. Sam plead guilty to assaulting the officer and avoided juvenile prison through an alternative disposition.* A few months later, her probation officer set a court hearing to revoke this alternative disposition. Sam was struggling in middle school and her suspensions and expulsions violated the conditions of the alternative disposition.
When I met with Sam, who had a special education plan because of disabilities, she said she needed more help and different strategies. Here’s how systems can work against youth: insufficient supports lead to expulsions which result in jail time. We stepped in. I reviewed Sam’s special education program and brought the school’s attention to the ways in which it had not met its duties under federal special education law. As a result of this advocacy and a formal complaint, the school made major changes to Sam’s program and offered her hundreds of hours in tutoring to help her catch up after missing so much school.
I stood with Sam at the juvenile court hearing and explained to the judge that Sam’s problems in school stemmed from how the school had fallen short of its obligation to support her. I shared information about Sam’s new special education program, and the additional tutoring she would get. The judge did not revoke the alternative disposition, recognizing how the school had fallen short. Our advocacy gave Sam a second chance. She was able to meet all of the court’s expectations, avoid incarceration, successfully put her juvenile court matter behind her, and move on with her life.
*”Disposition” is what juvenile courts in Washington call the “sentence” in a juvenile criminal case