The Legal Aid Society welcomed an announcement from the City outlining reforms to reduce youth detention and improve conditions for young people in custody at the City’s secure youth detention facilities, Horizon and Crossroads. The plan follows years of advocacy by Legal Aid, young people, and families.

Legal Aid has sounded the alarm about overcrowding and dangerous conditions in the City’s secure youth detention facilities since 2023, when young people represented by Legal Aid reported sleeping on the floor and on temporary in classrooms, sleeping in hallways, and lacking consistent access to showers, restrooms, education, and clothing. In October 2025, Legal Aid again called for immediate action, outlining specific reforms, many of which are included in the newly announced plan.

“For years, we have called for meaningful action to address overcrowding and unacceptable conditions in the City’s youth detention facilities and reduce the City’s reliance on secure detention,” said Dawne Mitchell, Chief Attorney of the Juvenile Rights Practice at Legal Aid. “We appreciate the Administration’s commitment today and expect the City to act with the urgency this problem demands.”

“The Legal Aid Society will not rest until every young person has meaningful access to alternatives to detention, and those in custody are treated with dignity and held in safe, humane conditions,” she continued.