Congressman Cohen Urges Justice Department to Continue Monitoring Shelby County Juvenile Court

WASHINGTON – Congressman Steve Cohen (TN-09), the Ranking Member of the House Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution and Civil Justice, wrote to Attorney General Jeff Sessions today urging the Justice Department to continue monitoring the Shelby County Juvenile Court in compliance with a 2012 Memorandum of Understanding. See the letter here.

Shelby County and the Juvenile Court have sought to terminate the agreement.

A report in 2012 found systemic discrimination against African American children, unsafe confinement conditions and failures to provide due process for children appearing before the court. A June report found problems with the court's handling of children in need of psychological evaluations.

"This is no time for (the Department of Justice) to stop monitoring the juvenile justice system in Memphis and Shelby County," Congressman Cohen told Sessions.