Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office Secures Funding to Launch Unprecedented Pilot Program Offering Alternatives to Pretrial Detention for Juveniles
CHICAGO — The Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office (CCSAO) has secured more than $1 million in funding from the Cook County Justice Advisory Council (JAC) and a private foundation to launch an innovative pilot program that will provide academic support and after-school wraparound services, including cognitive behavioral therapy, tutoring, intensive mentoring, and family engagement, as an alternative to pretrial detention for male youth who are charged with committing serious offenses. The pilot, crafted by CCSAO in collaboration with justice system stakeholders and community partners, offers long-term strategies to improve public safety and will provide meaningful interventions to prevent at-risk youth from engaging in violent crime.
Participants in the pilot are required to remain enrolled in and attend school, and they will receive approximately 20 hours of after-school wraparound services to address untreated trauma and stressors that are highly prevalent in the juvenile offender population. Expected to launch in early 2026, the pilot will be intentionally limited in scope and draw from a single juvenile courtroom that involves crimes committed in the Lawndale and Little Village neighborhoods — both in the Chicago Police Department’s 10th District. All cases in the pilot will be heard and monitored by Judge Frausto-Sandoval.
“Young people need structure and activities, and they also need a community that cares,” State’s Attorney Eileen O’Neill Burke said. “This program builds on that foundation. At the same time, we must recognize the need for new approaches to address the stubborn public safety problem of minors who continue down a path of escalating violence. It’s clear that detention alone is not an effective strategy to deter risky behavior and prevent at-risk youth from reoffending. This pilot is designed to deliver sustained, long-term change that will make our communities safer while turning individual lives around.”
Earlier today, the Cook County Board of Commissioners approved an intergovernmental agreement with the JAC that will provide CCSAO with up to $1 million to implement the pilot. CCSAO also obtained philanthropic funding to support the initiative.
"Alternatives to detention are critical to help youth avoid harmful and destabilizing periods of incarceration and set them up for future success in their communities," said Avik Das, Executive Director of the JAC. “When we see their promise and offer support, youth can succeed and our communities are safer. We are eager to support and learn from this pilot while continuing to explore opportunities that provide the support and stabilization all young people deserve."
Under the agreement, after-school wraparound services will be provided by two deeply rooted community-based nonprofits: New Life Centers for youth in Little Village and The Firehouse Community Arts Center for those in Lawndale. The pilot is geared for juveniles who have been charged with serious offenses and would otherwise be subject to detention while awaiting case adjudication. Juvenile respondents who have been charged with murder, attempt murder, criminal sexual assault, aggravated battery with a firearm, as well as those who have already been placed on electronic monitoring in an active case, are ineligible for the program. Male juveniles between the ages of 13 to 17, with cases assigned to Judge Frausto-Sandoval, can be referred to the program based on mutual agreement between prosecutors, the defense, and the judge.
“New Life Centers believes in the dignity and worth of all people. We are committed to walking alongside young people caught up in the juvenile justice system to provide an alternative to detention and to create a pathway to hope and healing. We look forward to working on this important project with CCSAO and other justice system partners,” said Matt DeMateo, chief executive officer of New Life Centers of Chicagoland.
“In North Lawndale, we believe that youth are a gift and that they deserve investment. Too often, young people can get caught up in the justice system and start down a dark path that leads to negativity and self-sabotage. By finding alternatives to detention and providing young people with the services they need, we are hopeful we can help these youth see their value, find purpose and believe in themselves to see that another life is possible,” said Pastor Phil Jackson, founder and chief executive officer of the Firehouse Community Arts Center.
The new pilot will fill a critical gap in the pretrial space for juvenile respondents. No other programs are available in Cook County that, as an alternative to detention, provide this level of pretrial services within local community to address root drivers of crime, such as trauma, educational disengagement, and lack of structured support systems, as the respondent’s case remains charged and progresses through the juvenile justice system. The interventions offered in the program aim to ensure that youth are accounted for in specific locations and receive beneficial services as they await adjudication, giving youth an opportunity to obtain significant educational and community-based supports as they navigate the justice system.
The threshold for detaining juvenile offenders is intentionally high. Juveniles may be held in custody at the Juvenile Temporary Detention Center following their arrest. A judge can also order juveniles to remain in detention pending trial based on the minor’s criminal history, seriousness of the alleged offense, and previous failures to appear in court. While in detention, youth are separated from their community, school and family — support systems that can play a crucial role reducing the risk of reoffending.
As part of the pilot, CCSAO will engage a third-party evaluator to study the progress of those enrolled in the pilot, with CCSAO closely monitoring the outcomes. CCSAO developed the pilot in partnership with the Juvenile Probation and Court Services Department of the Circuit Court of Cook County, The Firehouse Community Arts Center, educational leaders such as Jadine Chou, former Chief of Safety and Security at Chicago Public Schools, and other juvenile justice partners.
A cohort of eligible youth examined by CCSAO between Sept. 2023 and Aug. 2025 will be used as a control group to compare outcomes of those enrolled in the pilot. During that time period, there were 39 youth males in the eligible age group who were charged with crimes in the 10th Chicago Police Department District. Of those 39, 14 of the youth were held in pretrial detention, resulting in approximately 53 incidents of pretrial detention.
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