A statewide task force has found that Pennsylvania locks up far too many first-time and low-level youth offenders.
The bipartisan task force says black youth in particular are disproportionately yanked from their homes and prosecuted as adults.
The group says reforms are urgently needed to make the state’s juvenile justice system more fair and more effective.
The task force included state lawmakers, Wolf administration officials, local officials and others.
It released a plan on Tuesday to reduce the population of young people in residential facilities by nearly 40% in five years.
