A Statewide Crisis

A mother watches helplessly as her teenage boy deteriorates in a Texas youth prison

By Lisa Armstrong, The Texas Tribune
August 3, 2022

The state of Texas has essentially controlled her son’s life since he was 11. The Texas Juvenile Justice Department was supposed to keep him safe and help him get better. It has failed at every turn.

“A way to throw kids away”: Texas’ troubled juvenile justice department is sending more children to adult prisons

By Jolie McCullough, The Texas Tribune
April 28, 2023

Moving the most violent and troubled youths to adult prison makes it easier to help others in juvenile facilities, some prosecutors and lawmakers say. Youth justice advocates say Texas is giving up on the children who most need help.

In Texas youth prisons, children trapped in their cells use water bottles and lunch trays for toilets

By Jolie McCullough, The Texas Tribune
September 12, 2022

Throughout this summer, children in Texas’ youth prison system have repeatedly been trapped in their cells, forced to urinate in water bottles and defecate on the floor as the Texas Juvenile Justice Department’s workforce shrunk below dangerous levels. 

Understaffed, and under federal investigation, Texas juvenile detention system halts intake

By Jolie McCullough, The Texas Tribune
July 7, 2022

The Texas Juvenile Justice Department doesn’t have enough staff to keep minors safe or deal with increasing suicidal behavior, its interim head says. Texas’ juvenile detention system has shut its doors and won’t accept any new kids because it is “hemorrhaging” staff, and officials fear they can’t ensure the safety of the nearly 600 youths already in their custody.

Changes at the County Level

Harris County kept 15K juvenile cases out of court through diversion programs, DA Ogg says

Harris County has rerouted roughly 15,000 young people arrested for nonviolent, misdemeanors to less punitive programs in the past six years, a move District Attorney Kim Ogg said Friday is aimed at driving down youth incarcerations. 

Tarrant County sends more kids to youth prisons than any other in Texas. Many blame this judge.

By Jolie McCullough, The Texas Tribune
September 21, 2022

“Tarrant County sends more kids to youth prisons than any other in Texas. Many blame this judge.” was first published by The Texas Tribune, a nonprofit, nonpartisan media organization that informs Texans — and engages with them — about public policy, politics, government and statewide issues.