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The Juvenile Justice Unit of the Centre focused essentially on "Protecting and Promoting Child Rights through Law" a variation of the Centre's motto designed to adapt to the felt needs of the Unit. Its foremost objective is to assist juvenile offenders below 18 years of age whose parents/guardians could either not afford the services of lawyers or have abandoned them, and secondly to prosecute or assist in the prosecution of offences perpetrated against children including reported cases of carnal abuse of children, child torture and other forms of cruelty to children, and reported cases of child neglect and/or abandonment. In a non-litigious way too, the Juvenile Justice Unit has, through legal correspondence, addressed issues of maintenance for neglected and/or abandoned children and their mothers and issues of child custody pursued by single parents or guardians seeking the best interest of their children/ward.

Also, the Unit has, through various interchanges and discussions at seminars, conferences and public debates, advocated for the promotion of child rights at all levels of society, Constitutional and Customary Law responsibilities by adults (especially parents/guardians) to children as a basis of national development have been emphasized.

Major activities undertaken by the Unit during the past five years

Between August 2004 and July 2005 the Unit implemented a countrywide Juvenile Justice Project entitled, "Legal Protection of Juveniles and the Promotion of Juvenile Justice in Sierra Leone". This Project, kindly funded by an anonymous Foundation, consisted of the following activities:

• An assessment of the law and practice relating to the treatment of juvenile offenders in Sierra Leone through research, data collection and on the spot checks.
• A consultative workshop with local experts and groups dealing with juveniles in Sierra Leone in order to ascertain the nature of the problems at hand and the needs of juveniles in the country.
• Legal advice and representation of juvenile offenders throughout Sierra Leone through the Centre's Head Office and the three Regional Offices in Makeni, Bo and Kenema.
• Workshops and consultations with law enforcement officials and social workers dealing with juvenile offenders, with the aim of ensuring that the law (and in particular the provisions of the Convention on the Rights of the Child (1989)) is applied sensitively in relation to the treatment of juvenile suspects.
• Advocacy for reform of the laws relating to the treatment of juveniles in Sierra Leone through quarterly publications and the lobbying of Parliamentarians.

Major cases dealt with by the Unit during the past five years

• The case of K. Kargbo who spent eleven months in prison for a wounding charge. In fact, a soldier opened fire at him after an argument ensued over an unpaid debt and it was this, which resulted in the wounding of a passer by. At the initial stage of proceedings, both Kabba and a soldier were arrested but the latter was released whilst the juvenile languished for eleven months until LAWCLA intervened and secured his release.
• The State vs. M. Koroma. In this case, LAWCLA represented a 16-year-old, who was charged with murder. The Centre represented him and several interventions were made including an important request by LAWCLA for his transfer from the Pademba Road Prison to the Juvenile Remand Home.
• The Centre intervened in the matter of K.T. a 13-year-old Sierra Leonean residing in the Provincial Town of Kenema, who was sexually assaulted by a man in his mid- 40s.
• LAWCLA intervened in a case involving a juvenile offender detained with 13 adults. The Centre intervened in this matter to point out to the Juvenile Court about the danger of detaining adults with juveniles.
• D.K. In this case, LAWCLA represented a 15-year-old boy who was allegedly arrested for conspiring with 2 other boys to steal a cell phone.