Policy brief on juvenile justice alternatives for Pacific island communities with Native and Pacific Islander youth populations.
Policy brief on juvenile justice alternatives for Pacific island communities with Native and Pacific Islander youth populations. Free under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 — no registration required.
Summary of the paper
"Justice for Island Youth" is an ISPI policy brief on juvenile justice reform for Hawaii and Pacific Island communities. It focuses on the long-standing overrepresentation of Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander youth in Hawaii Family Court proceedings and on the gap between what research supports and what practice delivers.
The brief argues that geographic isolation means detention can become the default simply because the appropriate intervention is not available nearby.
What the paper finds
- Disparities have persisted. Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander youth, including Micronesian, Samoan and Tongan youth, are overrepresented in Family Court proceedings, a pattern the brief says has continued for decades without a meaningful policy response.
- Alternatives to detention. The brief considers diversion, community-based supervision and structured residential programs as alternatives to detention.
- Geography drives detention by default. Where evidence-based programs are out of reach, detention fills the gap.
What it recommends
- Review diversion decision-making in Hawaii's Family Court to identify where Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander youth are less likely to be diverted than similarly situated peers.
- Fund culturally grounded intervention programs developed with community organizations rather than adapted from mainland models.
- Make geographic access to evidence-based juvenile programs a policy priority, funding programs in communities now served only by detention.
Who it's for
Family Court judges and staff, juvenile probation and corrections officials, legislators, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander community organizations, and youth service providers.
This research connects to the 39 Small Island Developing States worldwide through the Samoa Pathway and BPOA+30 framework. Every ISPI research product carries a mandatory SIDS global bridge per the ISPI Research Architecture.
Cite as
Pulley, Warren (2026). Justice for Island Youth: Reforming Juvenile Justice Policy for Pacific Island and Hawaii Communities — What the Evidence Supports (ISPI PB-17). Island Security Policy Institute, Honolulu. https://ispiglobal.com/papers-landing/pb17-juvenile-justice-pacific https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.23450035
BibTeX
@techreport{ispipb172026,
author = {Pulley, Warren},
title = {Justice for Island Youth: Reforming Juvenile Justice Policy for Pacific Island and Hawaii Communities — What the Evidence Supports},
institution = {Island Security Policy Institute},
address = {Honolulu, HI},
number = {ISPI PB-17},
year = {2026},
url = {https://ispiglobal.com/papers-landing/pb17-juvenile-justice-pacific},
doi = {10.5281/zenodo.23450035}
}Related analysis
AnalysisNative Hawaiian and Pacific Islander Youth in the Justice System — Decades of Disparity, Decades Without Research →AnalysisHow Foundations Use Independent Research to Strengthen Island Community Grantmaking →AnalysisState and Local Governments in Island Communities and the Research Gap →PaperPB-16 — Community Policing in Pacific Island Jurisdictions — Policy Brief →PaperPB-18 — Democratic Resilience in Small Island States — Policy Brief →GuideHawaii Law Enforcement Workforce & Recruitment: Research and FAQ →Pulley, Warren. "Juvenile Justice Reform in Pacific Island Communities." Island Security Policy Institute, 2026. https://ispiglobal.com/papers-landing/pb17-juvenile-justice-pacific
