Title
Honoring the life and legacy of Robert Schwartz, the co-founder and former executive director of the Juvenile Law Center, and recognizing his lifelong dedication to juvenile justice and youth rights on a national and international level.
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WHEREAS, Robert Schwartz was born on September 1st, 1949 to parents Nathan and Rose Schwartz in the Bronx, New York; and
WHEREAS, He earned his bachelor's degree from Haverford College in 1971 and a law degree from Temple University School of Law in 1975; and
WHEREAS, Bob lived in Mount Airy before moving to Center City in 2016. He enjoyed opera and the orchestra, went to Broadway shows often, and traveled to London for its theaters and culture many times. He was a devoted Phillies fan, world traveler, and had an immense personal collection of signed books and first editions; and
WHEREAS, Bob joined Marsha Levick and others to co-found the Juvenile Law Center in 1975, which is regarded as the country's oldest nonprofit public interest law firm for children, served as its executive director from 1982 to 2015; and
WHEREAS, Throughout his career spanning over four decades, Bob advocated for the rights of children and worked to address complex problems affecting children, including those surrounding foster care, parental rights, probation, and juvenile incarceration; and
WHEREAS, His advocacy and legal successes include eliminating the death penalty for juveniles, exposing the "kids for cash" judicial scandal in northeastern Pennsylvania, representing dependent and delinquent children in Pennsylvania juvenile and appellate courts, bringing class-action litigation over institutional conditions and probation functions; testifying in Congress before House and Senate committees; and speaking in over 30 states on matters related to children and the law; and
WHEREAS, Bob served as chair of the American Bar Association's Commission on Youth at Risk and the Juvenile Justice Committee of the American Bar Association's Cri...
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