The seemingly endless cycle of reforms in juvenile justice
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On Tuesday, Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine announced that the state will try to shut down its three large youth correctional facilities in favor of building smaller and less centralized units. DeWine cited findings that young people “do not respond well to adult-style incarceration,” Crain’s Cleveland Business reported.
The decision came at the urging of a working group assembled by the governor that also recommended the state stop incarcerating teenagers convicted for the first time of non-violent crimes and children under 14 in state youth prisons.
The working group was assembled after a months-long investigation into Ohio’s juvenile justice system by several local newspapers. The investigation found that youths in the system were routinely victims of violence and neglect, and that employees of the facilities faced chronic understaffing and threats to their safety. Instead of receiving rehabilitation and support, many of these young people left the system with trauma that exacerbated behavioral issues. Teens who enter the system have a 40% likelihood of winding up back in custody and face a disproportionate chance of dying an early, violent death.