CT can’t wait 10 years to remove youth from adult prison

BACKGROUND

The Judicial Branch created a transition plan for pre-trial youth, under 18, to be moved out of the custody of the Department of Correction. The proposed solution is to complete a feasibility study about the repurposing of 1225 Silver St., Middletown, formerly the Connecticut Juvenile Training School (CJTS).

We don’t need a feasibility study to know that money and time will not help children currently incarcerated in adult prison.

Connecticut saw the racial disparity between Black and white incarcerated youth double between 2011 and 2021.

*Black Disparities in Youth Incarceration, The Sentencing Project, December 2023

Here’s Why It Won’t Work

  • Incarceration slows children's maturity when they are kept away from environments that would help them grow. Federal guidance* has recommended small settings for over 10 years.

    *Reforming Juvenile Justice: A Developmental Approach, U.S. Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention

  • Prison isolates children from healthy relationships and increases recidivism, thus fracturing vital communities. Family contact reduces recidivism and overall health.**

    ** Prison Policy Initiative, The positive impacts of family contact for incarcerated people and their families

  • Black children are overrepresented in Connecticut’s incarcerated youth population, making up 40% of youth arrests in 2023, but only 11% of the state’s youth population.***

    ***Juvenile Justice Equity Dashboard, CT Data

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