NCJ Number
244767
Date Published
November 2010
Length
12 pages
Annotation
This report presents the findings from a site visit of the Cook County Juvenile Temporary Detention Center in Cook County, IL, in October 2010.
Abstract
This report presents the findings from a site visit by staff members from the John Howard Association to the Cook County Juvenile Temporary Detention Center (CCJTDC) in Cook County, IL, in October 2010. The visit was conducted to measure the progress made by CCJTDC in its efforts to overhaul and improve its treatment of young offenders. Highlights of findings from the visit include the following: African-American youth were still vastly overrepresented at the facility, and the total population at the facility, while below rated capacity, was still too high to allow for proper treatment of youth; several mentally retarded youth were present in the facility; lack of programming, materials, and activities with which to engage youth in each of the facility's housing centers; inconsistent application of disciplinary practices; less than effective educational programming offered at the facility by Chicago Public Schools; efforts to improve the number of qualified and trained staff to interact with the youth; an increase in the number of mental health professionals available to work with youth; and a need for the provision of more efficient and higher quality medical care to young offenders housed at the facility. Appendixes