Inside and Out

SKIP

Carlos Javier Ortiz

Prison Classes Offer Few Job Skills for Real Life

In its mission statement, the Illinois Department of Juvenile Justice pledges to help the young people in its prisons become productive citizens. But at the maximum security youth prison in Joliet, 40 miles southwest of Chicago, that pledge has been hard to keep.

NEWSREEL

3.2.12

WBEZ: Advocates say disproportionate number of black kids arrested at Chicago schools Read More

3.2.12

WBEZ: The polarized debate over Illinois' youth prison closures Read More

3.2.12

Chicago Tribune: Advocates applaud Quinn's plan to close Illinois juvenile centers Read More

3.2.12

WBEZ: State commission slams juvenile justice system Read More

6.14.10

Chicago Tribune: Illinois prisons dropping computer classes Read More

6.14.10

WBEZ: Until I am Free: A Poetry Reading by Youth Sentenced to Life Without Parole Read More

6.14.10

Los Angeles Times: Juvenile justice diverges in court Read More

6.4.10

Mental Health Screening and Assessment in the Illinois Juvenile Justice System Read More

6.4.10

USA Today: For D.C., hope in treating young offenders Read More

5.26.10

Chicago Tribune: Suicides by troubled teens expose safety breakdowns behind bars Read More

5.21.10

Chicago Talks: Illinois Offers Low-Risk Offenders Prison Alternative Read More

5.17.10

Washington Post: High court rules out life sentences for juveniles Read More

5.14.10

Chicago Sun-Times: Young Offenders need help -- not handcuffs Read More

5.14.10

Chicago Tribune: Illinois youth sentenced to life without parole publish poetry Read More

5.7.10

WBEZ: An End to Youth Prisons' Only College Classes? Read More

5.3.10

Illinois Times: Fixing Illinois’ juvenile justice system Read More

5.3.10

Chicago Tribune: Illinois survey says rehab, not retribution, for youths Read More

4.23.10

Chicago Talks: Ex-Offenders Face Trying Times Returning Home Read More

4.21.10

WBHM Birmingham: Children's Mental Health and the Juvenile Justice System Read More

4.19.10

Christian Science Monitor: In L.A.'s peer courts, teen juries grill young offenders and then devise deterrents. The new juvenile justice approach is quickly building a track record of preventing repeat crimes. Read More

4.14.10

Chicago Tribune: In foster home, DCFS letter gave paper-thin authority Read More

4.14.10

Chicago Tribune editorial: "Taking responsibility for youth justice" Read More

4.7.10

Philadelphia Inquirer: Major Changes in Juvenile Justice Sought Read More

4.6.10

Chicago Tribune: Is DCFS diverting cases to save costs? Read More

4.5.10

WBEZ: Some Positive GOP Reaction to Quinn's Youth Prison Order Read More

4.2.10

WBEZ: Gov. Quinn has signed an executive order to begin the process of merging Illinois' youth prisons with the Department of Children and Family Services. Read More

4.1.10

Chicago Tribune: "Freed from prison, some juveniles have no place to go" Read More

3.24.10

Lincoln Journal Star: Nebraska lawmakers begin juvenile-justice reform Read More

3.22.10

National Council of La Raza: "Just the Facts: A Snapshot of Incarcerated Hispanic Youth" Read More

3.17.10

Huffington Post: Juvenile Justice Reform: Making the "Missouri Model" an American Model Read More

3.15.10

WBEZ: Illinois Governor Pat Quinn's plan to merge the state's youth prison system with the Department of Children and Family Services is getting a warm reception in the legislature. Read More

3.12.10

Chicago Tribune: Seventeen-year-olds charged with misdemeanors will head to juvenile court, rather than adult court, thanks to a change in Illinois law Read More

3.10.10

Good Morning America: "In Missouri, a different method for juvenile detention has seen surprisingly successful results, trading in the orange uniforms and cell blocks for therapists and dorm rooms." Read More

3.8.10

New York Times: "For Juveniles in Family Court, Judges Seek Safer Alternatives to Prison" Read More

3.5.10

Examiner.com: Arizona Governor Jan Brewer has proposed eliminating the $63 million dollar State Department of Juvenile Corrections Read More

3.3.10

Quad City Times: Lawmakers rail on Illinois' juvenile prison system Read More

3.1.10

Detroit Free Press: "Legislators and the U.S. Supreme Court are rethinking the idea of sending teens away to prison forever. Michigan is among 12 states where legislation has been introduced that would ban the practice" Read More

2.26.10

Dayton Daily News: Ohio youth detention facilities ordered to ensure inmates fed Read More

2.24.10

Contra Costa Times: California closed the state's largest juvenile prison earlier this week. It will be turned into an adult prison to save money and ease crowding. Read More

2.19.10

Chicago Tribune: A longtime employee of the Cook County Juvenile Temporary Detention Center has a reputation as a problem solver Read More

2.15.10

New York Times: A Glimpse inside Highland Residential Center, a New York state juvenile prison Read More

2.10.10

Hear what high school students on Chicago’s South Side have to say about Marcus’ story Read More

2.5.10

The Crime Report: Obama Juvenile Justice Budget Down; Earmark Disputes Loom Read More

2.5.10

New York Times: The agency that runs New York state’s juvenile prison system "routinely violates the law by shackling youthful offenders when taking them to court even when the youth poses no obvious threat, a state judge ruled on Tuesday." Read More

2.3.10

New America Media: Two law school classmates in Washington, D.C. are pairing juvenile offenders with adults in the city to establish mentoring partnerships. Read More

1.22.10

Rockford Register Star: "A new state law that makes the criminal justice system classify some 17-year-olds as children and others as adults keeps alive the question of when to punish and when to rehabilitate." Read More

1.20.10

Daily Herald: Illinois youth prisons lack staff and rehabilitative services, according to a report released in early January. Read More

1.20.10

Daily Herald: A group of protesters called the on Gov. Pat Quinn to take action at the Illinois Youth Center in St. Charles. Read More

1.20.10

Daily Herald: Problems continue to plague the aging St. Charles youth prison where a 16 year-old killed himself last year. Read More

1.19.10

USA Today: "More than 12% of youths in juvenile prisons are sexually abused while in custody there, according to a Justice Department study out Thursday, and the vast majority of cases involve female staff and boys under their supervision." Read More