Youth Prisons

In 2009, Juveniles for Justice focused their annual project on the problems youth face inside juvenile facilities and when they return home from juvenile placements. They developed a resource guide and created a presentation for professionals and court-involved youth about educational, social, mental, and physical health opportunities and services available for youth in their home communities.

Youth advocates also addressed conditions inside youth prisons, specifically physical abuse and the general overuse of restraints in juvenile facilities. The group developed a legislative strategy and the project culminated in a trip to Washington, D.C., where youth met with staff of U.S. Senators Robert Casey and Arlen Specter to advocate for stricter language in the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act describing the proper use of restraints.