East King County Youth Traffic Court was co-founded in 2018 by Bear Creek Student Bouke Spoelstra and Downtown School Student Farah Lindsey-Almadani in partnership with King County District Court and the prosecutors of Bellevue, Duvall, Redmond and Sammamish. Youth Court works to empower local youth by adjudicating real cases of traffic citations issued to their peers.

Meeting several times per month, East King County Youth Traffic Court is presided over by a youth “judge,” witnessed by an all-youth "jury," with presentations by youth “attorneys.” For more information on the youth court concept, visit the National Association of Youth Courts.

Mission

East King County Youth Traffic Court is run by our youth, for our youth. Its mission is to provide first-time traffic offenders on the Eastside with an alternative to adult traffic court and give them an opportunity to restore justice to the community through service.

At the same time, we develop high school students into problem-solvers and leaders of their community as they learn how to determine an appropriate disposition for respondents. They gain real courtroom experience and work with professionals in the judicial field to learn more about law.

Leaders