Public Invited to Town Meeting on 
Race and the Juvenile Justice System

       Huntington, W.Va.– Citizens who are concerned about over-represented racial minorities in the juvenile justice system are invited to a town meeting on Thursday, May 15, from 7:00 to 9:00 p.m. at the Cabell County Courthouse in Huntington.

      The state Supreme Court’s Task Force to Study Perceived Racial Disparity in the Juvenile Justice System is sponsoring the meeting. The group will sponsor eight more town meetings in other locations in West Virginia this fall.

      The Task Force will use comments from the town meetings, along with statistics and other information, to report to the state Supreme Court. The Task Force’s goal is to encourage community discussion and create a plan to combat racial and minority disparity.

      The Task Force encourages the public to submit written comments or suggestions before the meeting to be considered for discussion. Comments made during the meeting will be limited to a specific amount of time.

      The public should send written comments to: Julie C. Palas, Special Projects Counsel, Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia, 1900 Kanawha Blvd. E., Bldg. 1, Room E-100, Charleston, WV 25305 or juliepalas@courtswv.org. For further questions, please write or call Ms. Palas at (304) 558-0145.

# # #