California Youth Correction System

California Youth Correction System
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State prisons fail to protect incarcerated youth from grave physical violence perpetrated by staff and other youth, sexual violence and excessive isolation and restraints (The Ann E. Cassey Foundation, 2011). California’s correction system has a long-lasting maltreatment history that prompted enforcement of court ordered reforms by renowned experts in 2006. The experts revealed severe levels of violence and fear, many safety issues that affected both the youth and staff, gang culture, and many lockdowns (The Ann E. Cassey Foundation, 2011). For instance, in San Diego, a female probation officer started molesting a male detainee in the East Mesa Juvenile facility in 2009 (Gotfredson, 2011).
Closing the state youth facilities has negative implications. One is that local county facilities are unable to fund the separation of higher level and lower level offenders. Separating the two prevents the negative impact of higher level offenders on the lower level offenders. Mixing them is likely to result in negative consequences such as influencing lower level offenders to grave crimes and undermine their rehabilitation progress (Ferries, 2012). The requirement that counties pay an additional $125,000 would result in more youths being tried as adults. It is also a disservice to the offenders because many counties have inadequate capacity to rehabilitate high level offenders (Ferries, 2012).
Closing California’s juvenile correction facilities shift the responsibility of rehabilitating young offenders to the local government. Many counties are ill prepared to shoulder the burden when the state facilities are inexistence. The county administrations require time to make adjustments to the new role (Deborah Diupre, 2012). Counties received millions in state money to run local rehabilitation programs in 2007. In 2011, they were faced by a challenge to finance &125,000 for each ward which they are unable to raise (Ferries, 2012).
Reference
Deborah Diupre. (2012, January 7). california Nears 'First to Close Youth Prisons' Title. Retrieved June 16, 2014, from Eller Baker Center For Human Rights: http://ellabakercenter.org/in-the-news/books-not-bars-justice-system-california-budget-and-legislation/california-nears-first
Ferries, S. (2012, January 25). Fight rewing Over Historic California Plan to Close Last Three Youth Prisons. Retrieved June 16, 2014, from ...