As recently posted on the Town Meeting Member Association Listserv by Brookline Select Board member Bernard Greene: The District Court agreed to hold a monthly juvenile session in Brookline. This is not the same thing as keeping juvenile jurisdiction in Brookline, but it is a compromise that is welcome because it addresses Dedham’s remoteness from Brookline and the neighborhoods of Boston in which juveniles finding themselves in trouble in Brookline reside. Youth who get in trouble because of bad decision-making, bad luck, or other reasons related to their immaturity are the winners here. I’m sure we all remember our own youth or times we worked with youth and can relate to how easy it is to find yourself on the other side of the law. Unfortunately, this is especially true if you are Black or Brown or low income juvenile and don’t benefit from the usual presumptions such as the presumption of innocence or presumption that you can and should be rehabilitated. In my letter to Justice Dawley and Justice Nechtem I requested that they “either rescind this transfer of jurisdiction or provide greatly expanded opportunities for Brookline cases to be heard in the Brookline District Court.” We got a sufficient victory in this battle, but we must continue to be vigilant on behalf of our youth and others who are often just collateral damage of decisions made by distant and isolated parties. We should all thank Brookline’s dedicated and effective legislative delegation. Senator Creem and Tommy Vitolo took the lead but Representatives Coppinger, Elugardo, and Moran provided essential support. District Attorney Morrissey also provided a persuasive and strong voice to Brookline’s concerns. And the Brookline community, including PAX and the Town’s elected and appointed leaders, helped make the thoughtful and cogent argument that moving juvenile cases to Dedham would severely and unnecessarily hurt troubled youth, especially Black, Brown, and low-income youth from Brookline and surrounding Boston communities.