Marcus Bell knows how important Los Angeles County courts are for at-risk youths.

Bell, a gang intervention and prevention worker in South Los Angeles, has worked hard with young people, trying to get them not to run from police. He has worked to get them to deal with their legal issues responsibly instead of avoiding court appearances so they don’t end up with warrants issued against them at a young age.

On Saturday, Bell said he worries about the Los Angeles County Superior Court’s cost-cutting plan that includes closing Kenyon Juvenile Justice Center in South L.A. In the coming months, the juvenile court will be one of eight regional courthouses closing as the court system struggles to close an $85-million budget shortfall by July 1, the beginning of the next fiscal year.

“If you shut these courts down,” Bell said, “where’s the justice going to come from? It’s going to come from the street.”

Bell spoke before dozens of people gathered for a town hall meeting in South L.A. of the Save Our Courts Coalition, a group of community activists and unions decrying the cuts to the court system. Many attendees wore yellow T-shirts with the scales of justice on them.

Kenyon Juvenile Justice Center is scheduled to close in June, according to court officials. Its cases will be transferred to other courthouses throughout the county, some to juvenile courthouses and others to the Compton Courthouse, an adult court that handles juvenile cases.

The courts are funded by the state, which has slashed funding in recent years, leading to court closures, higher fees and longer waits for cases to be heard. In Los Angeles County, court services will be consolidated, and 511 positions will be cut, court officials say.

During Saturday’s town hall meeting, Shirley A. Henderson, an attorney who has represented numerous youths at Kenyon, stressed the need for a safe place for young people to handle their legal issues.

“It’s something we really need to keep in the community to help our kids,” Henderson said. “It’s a safe place for them to come.”

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