Juvenile defenders from all 50 states, juvenile justice advocates and legal experts will convene in Nashville Oct. 22-24 for the national Juvenile Defender Leadership Summit. The summit is held in a different city each year and is co-sponsored this year by the Vanderbilt Child and Family Policy Center.
Summit speakers include: Craig Cooley, counsel for convicted Washington, D.C.-area sniper Lee Malvo; James Garbarino, a national expert on the impact of early childhood trauma and adolescent development; and Daniel Losen, an attorney who will discuss litigation strategies to stem the school to prison pipeline, a phrase used to refer to the potential negative impacts of many schools’ new "zero tolerance" policies.
Other topics that will be covered include: rural issues for juvenile defenders; challenging false and coerced juvenile confessions; representing juvenile sex offenders; strategies to reduce the unnecessary detention of children; and the disproportionate confinement of youth of color.
Public reservations for the summit ended Oct. 8. Members of the media wishing to schedule interviews with summit organizers or with any of the speakers should contact Melanie Catania at 615-322-2706 or melanie.moran@vanderbilt.edu.
WHAT: National Juvenile Defender Leadership Summit
WHERE: Sheraton Music City, 777 McGavock Pike, Nashville
WHEN: 8:30 a.m.-6 p.m. Oct. 22 and 23; 9-10:30 a.m. Oct. 24
Media contact: Melanie Catania, (615) 322-NEWS
Melanie.catania@vanderbilt.edu