01 Legal
A lawyer, and a guide through it
If a young person is questioned, charged or facing a hearing, an attorney in their corner who explains every step.
Free legal representation for youth · Denver metro
No kid should face a courtroom alone.
We defend the rights and dignity of young people facing juvenile charges in Colorado, then give them the guidance, programs and reentry support they need to move forward.
Free legal services are available to eligible families, subject to an initial eligibility review, conflict check, and attorney capacity.
The need
In Colorado, too many kids face the system alone.
A charge at 14 can follow someone for life. Children are not statistics, but these statistics about children are alarming.
1 in 5
Colorado juvenile delinquency cases had no court-appointed lawyer on record at any point: 1,405 of the 6,561 filed.
Colorado Judicial Branch, report under C.R.S. 13-1-137, FY2024
2.8%
of youth cases in Lakewood’s city court had an attorney. The court does not appoint one, and children as young as 10 face it alone.
National Center for Youth Law, Unrepresented and Unseen, 2016 to 2022
10
years old is the youngest age at which Colorado can still charge a child. A 2023 bill to raise it to 13 passed without that change.
693
young people were kept in Colorado detention for a day or more after a judge had decided they could go home.
Colorado Department of Human Services report, via CPR News, 2025
59%
of new admissions to Colorado youth detention did not involve a violent charge.
Colorado Division of Youth Services, Annual Report, FY2023-24
10.7×
Black youth in Colorado were held in placement at nearly eleven times the rate of white youth.
The Sentencing Project, 2023
An honest picture
Although Colorado has made meaningful progress in juvenile defense, significant work remains.
Since 2014, every young person held in detention in Colorado automatically gets a lawyer at their detention hearing, regardless of family income. In 2021, Colorado also eliminated most juvenile court fees.
But a great deal happens beyond that first hearing, and in those moments, many young people still have to navigate the system without legal support.
In the police station
Police can question a young person with a parent present and no lawyer. Colorado can still charge a child from age 10.
On a summons
A child who is not held in detention can give up the right to a lawyer without ever talking to one first.
In city court
Outside Denver, most city courts give kids no free lawyer for tickets like fighting, trespassing or shoplifting.
At school
There is no right to a free lawyer when a school moves to expel a student.
With a record
Many juvenile records seal on their own, but some still need a petition to the court.
Coming home
Getting back into school, making credits count, and keeping support going after release.
Free legal representation
A lawyer in their corner.
Serving young people facing charges across the Denver metro area, including at hearings that can shape their education, records, and return home. Legal representation is free for eligible families, subject to an eligibility review, conflict check, and attorney capacity.
What representation includes
- 01
An early legal consultation
A first conversation with our legal team about what is happening, and a screen of the case.
- 02
Representation in juvenile court
An attorney who represents the young person in their case, within the kinds of cases we take.
- 03
Someone beside them at hearings
Advocacy at court, school and city court hearings, so a young person is not standing there alone.
- 04
Rights and options, in plain words
What is happening, what could happen and what the choices are, explained so a young person understands. They are the client, and they have a say.
- 05
The right referral when it is not us
For appeals or matters outside what we do, we connect you with someone who can help.
Cases we take
- Juvenile court defense
- School expulsion and discipline hearings
- Sealing a juvenile record
- Legal help after coming home
In legal work the young person is the client. Our attorneys follow their goals, and no funder or partner gets a say in anyone’s case.
- 01
Ask for a call
Use the short form or call us. We only need a first name, a safe number and a good time.
- 02
Talk to our legal team
We call back, ask what is going on, and check three things: that you are in our area, that you qualify, and that we have no conflict of interest.
- 03
Put the agreement in writing
If we’re able to take your case, an attorney will clearly explain the services we will, and won’t, provide. You and the attorney will then sign a written agreement. Once it’s signed, we officially represent you.
- 04
Make a plan together
Legal representation, along with support for everything surrounding the case: school, our programs, and the transition home. We’ll coordinate only with your permission.
Contacting us does not by itself make us your lawyer. An attorney licensed in Colorado must finish intake and a conflict check and formally accept the case. Please do not send details of what happened until then. Attorney responsible: Shannon D. Roy.
The big picture
The whole picture, frame by frame.
A case may end, but a young person’s journey continues. That’s why legal representation is part of a broader circle of support: practical skills, a trusted adult, an attorney when it matters, help returning home, and opportunities to grow into leadership.
02 During
Skills and a trusted adult
Courses required and provided to all youth involved in the program, starting the day they sign up with the legal team.
- Becoming Core, eight weeksCurriculum ready
- Wellness, fitness and family tracks (MIND, MOVE, ROOTS)Planned
03 After
Coming home
A plan for the first 90 days, back to school with credits that count, and a way back into our courses.
- Reentry supportOpening
- RISE: academic and future readinessPlanned
48.5% of young people leaving Colorado youth corrections were back in the system within three years. That is the lowest rate on record, and it is still half. Colorado Division of Youth Services, Annual Report, FY2022 discharges
04 Leading
Coming back to lead
Graduates return in paid roles, as assistant facilitators and community ambassadors, for the next young person.
- Becoming LeadersPlanned
- Becoming Corps, paid rolesPlanned
Every young person is becoming someone, even when they’re in trouble, and especially then.
We envision a Colorado where every youth involved in the juvenile justice system has access to fair, effective legal representation, meaningful support, and the opportunity to build a brighter future.
Stand with a kid.
Your gift funds legal help, programs and support coming home. No donor ever has a say in a young person’s case.