Beyond Reform in Youth Justice: Conceptualizing Carceral Seepage Across Youth-Serving Systems

The child welfare system (CWS), juvenile legal system (JLS), and school-to-prison nexus are often framed as distinct institutions, yet they function as interconnected mechanisms of surveillance, control, and punishment—particularly for Black, Indigenous, and other marginalized youth. Through the lens of carceral seepage, this article examines how punitive logics extend across these youth-serving systems, reinforcing cycles of criminalization rather than care. While mainstream discourse often debates reform versus abolition in the CWS, this article contends that the harm inflicted by these institutions is not incidental but structural, necessitating an abolitionist framework that moves beyond reformist solutions. Using a collaborative abolitionist lens, we explore the historical and contemporary entanglements between child welfare, juvenile justice, and education, demonstrating how these systems cohere to regulate and exclude marginalized youth. In response, we advocate for non-carceral, community-based and informed alternatives that center collective care, self-determination, and transformative justice. By shifting away from punitive interventions and investing in holistic, community-driven support, this article envisions a future where youth-serving institutions prioritize healing and empowerment rather than punishment and control.