BATON ROUGE — The East Baton Rouge District Attorney's Office partnered with the Baton Rouge Youth Coalition on Saturday to host a youth-led criminal justice forum. 

The forum, led by 20 high school students known as the Legal Fellows, featured a panel of local justice leaders who discussed topics like fairness, trust, building a life in the law and how young people can get more involved in the justice system.

The Legal Fellows spent the summer preparing for the forum by sitting in on court proceedings and by meeting with attorneys, judges and officers who handle cases every day. 

"These outstanding young people spent the summer learning how the system actually works, observing it up close, meeting the people who run it, and investigating the questions that matter to them," said District Attorney Hillar Moore.

The forum panel featured multiple people, including Commissioner Jermaine Guillory from the 19th Judicial District Court, Assistant District Attorney Tiara Jones from the East Baton Rouge District Attorney's Office and Criminal Defense Attorney Frank Breaux.

"When we invest in young people and take their voices seriously, the whole community is better for it."