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TJJD Partners with the Juvenile Law Section to Host 29th Annual Juvenile Law Conference

On February 22-24, the Juvenile Law Section of the State Bar of Texas sponsored the 29th Annual Juvenile Law Conference in San Antonio. TJJD’s Juvenile Justice Training Academy coordinated the conference in partnership with the Juvenile Law Section and welcomed approximately 415 juvenile justice professionals from across the state. TJJD Board Member and Chair of the Juvenile Law Section, Riley Shaw, planned a unique advanced juvenile law conference specifically designed to give practitioners the latest and most pertinent information relevant to juvenile justice in Texas.


During the conference, distinguished professionals from across the state presented on various topics that benefited all facets of professionals wanting to enhance the juvenile justice system attending from judges, prosecutors, defense attorneys, probation personnel, educators, law enforcement, state agency personnel and others that may have been in attendance.


While there was an array of topics throughout the three days, several keynote presentations were provided including: The State of Texas v. Cameron Moon: Ethical Issues in Assessing Whether Youth Should Be Certified; Cognitive Bias in Photo Line Ups; The Thin Blue Line: Why Brady Matters; Ethical Issues in Representing Children with Special Needs; and Privacy and Confidentiality of Juvenile Hearings and Dealing with the Media. Collectively, this year’s speakers all demonstrated great passion and enthusiasm in their ability to share their knowledge and expertise. If you weren’t able to attend, but are interested in reviewing of the materials presented, you may search the articles online here.


This year marks the second year the Juvenile Law hosted disciplinary caucuses with facilitated discussion. This conference is always an opportunity to bring practitioners together statewide to provide a forum for open discussion on current issues affecting the juvenile justice system, but these caucuses provide a means to network within an individual’s personal discipline and discuss best practices, current issues, and share trends within the scope of his or her functional area. Another goal is to support a continued dialogue for ways to implement an overall improved system.


TJJD and the Juvenile Law Section would like to thank everyone who attended, and is looking forward to hosting the 30th Annual Juvenile Law Conference, scheduled for February 27 – March 1, 2017 at Horseshoe Bay. For questions or more information, please contact the Juvenile Justice Training Academy at 512.490.7913.

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