Adult Jails Research Paper

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Adolescents who are placed in adult jails result in to a greater risk of physical and sexual assault. Although many teens have committed horrific crimes such as rape and murder, many believe juveniles under the age of 18 should not be treated as adult criminals because placing youth in the adult criminal justice system puts their safety at risk, restricts their necessary education, and impacts their mental health development negatively. Placing youth in adult jails result in harmful situations that are difficult to prevent from happening. By situating young offenders in the same facilities as adult criminals they are displayed as an easy target which lead to physical and sexual assaults. According to the U.S. Department of Justice Bureau of Justice Statistics,"in 2005 and 2006, 21% and 13% of the victims of inmate-on-inmate sexual violence in jails were youth under the age of 18." Few prisons recognize these risks to the youth and…show more content…
Many jails lack the equipment to provide the essential education and programs required for a healthy development in adolescents. A BJS survey found that 40% of jails provided no educational services at all, only 11% of jails provided special education services, and only 7% provided vocational training. Jails are required by law to provide youth with appropriate educational resources. Unfortunately, given the survey, these jails lack adequate educational services. Without a proper education, the teens will have a rough time pursuing a career path. It is plausible that these teens will find their way back to the streets committing more crimes because they were stripped from a legitimate education preventing them from starting a new crime-free life. Most convicted juveniles lack the motivation, encouragement, and confidence to change their ways of life. Therefore, it is fundamental to keep our youth out of adult jails due to lack of education

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