Juvenile Justice

State Says Move to Close Thompson Academy "Had Nothing to Do With" Complaints of Abuse

The state has decided not to renew its contract to house juvenile convicts at the privately run Thompson Academy. But officials from the Department of Juvenile Justice insist the move has absolutely nothing to do with the fact that Thompson has seen abuse complaints, shifts in administration, judici ... More >>

Broward Judges Mull "Unprecedented" Steps Against Youth Lockup Thompson Academy

Cover story: Kids claim abuse at juvenile lockupOur colleague Lisa Rab has moved away from Broward County, but one of the most important issues she covered for New Times is still unresolved. Circuit court judges are still trying to figure out what to do about Thompson Academy, a privately run jail f ... More >>

Juvie Prison Operator Youth Services International Donates to Powerful GOP Lawmakers

If you're aiming to win multimillion-dollar contracts to run Florida's juvenile prisons, it helps to have friends in high places. Youth Services International, the for-profit company that runs Thompson Academy in Pembroke Pines along with seven other juvie lockups in the state, has learned this less ... More >>

Department of Juvenile Justice Sends New Times' Records to TV Station

The state Department of Juvenile Justice does not have a stellar track record of competency or efficiency. When a prison guard was twice accused of sexually assaulting a 14-year-old boy at a Pembroke Pines juvie lockup, DJJ didn't hear about the incidents until months after they allegedly occurred. ... More >>

Minnesota Counties Stop Sending Kids to Youth Services International Juvie Lockup

For more than a year, New Times has been investigating Thompson Academy, a publicly funded, privately run juvenile detention center in Pembroke Pines where teens have alleged they faced physical and sexual abuse. Most recently, the lockup's top administrator, Craig Ferguson, left his post while unde ... More >>

Craig Ferguson, Thompson Academy Administrator, Leaves Under Cloud of State Investigation

One year after Thompson Academy settled a federal lawsuit alleging a 14-year-old boy was twice sexually assaulted by a counselor at the lockup, the head of the Pembroke Pines juvenile detention center is facing scrutiny. Administrator Craig Ferguson has left his post amid allegations that he took re ... More >>

DJJ Supervisor Thought Eric Perez Was "Faking" As He Died in Juvie Lockup, Officer Testifies

​As an 18-year-old vomited, lost control of his bowels, and died slowly in a West Palm Beach juvenile jail cell last July, guards refused to call 911 for more than six hours. A supervisor on duty allegedly thought Eric Perez was faking his illness, although the teenager had twice injured his head ... More >>

Florida Senate Committee Report: Cut Arbitrary Juvenile Detention Sentences, Save Millions

babble.com​The Florida Senate Committee on Justice -- in response to a request from Florida TaxWatch -- found that reducing sentences for youngsters in juvenile lockup facilities could save the state millions of dollars.In the most conservative move -- reducing the length of stay for all juveniles ... More >>

Marijuana Activists: Eric Perez Died Because of Weed Prohibition

​Duuuuuuuuude.There are some bong-ripping writers and opinion-givers out there who believe that Eric Perez -- the 18-year-old who died at a West Palm Beach juvie lockup last month -- died because of the prohibition of marijuana.Perez was on already on probation for a robbery when he was younger, a ... More >>

State Officials Cited Lack of Emergency Training at Palm Beach Juvie Jail Where Teen Died

Jail officials waited hours to call 911.​Some staffers at a West Palm Beach juvenile jail where a teenager died this month were not trained to know the facility's safety, security, and emergency plans, according to a state quality assurance report written in February. Meanwhile, "management accoun ... More >>

Death at Palm Beach Juvie Jail Came During "Severe Overcrowding" at State Lockups

Overcrowding has become a problem in some lockups.​Eric Perez's mother has been given many reasons why her 18-year-old son died ten days ago at a juvenile jail in West Palm Beach. He woke up one morning hallucinating, complaining of a headache, and vomiting. He may have had breathing problems, an ... More >>

Broward Public Defender Alleges Abuse at Juvie Lockup in West Palm Beach

The complaints echo similar allegations at Thompson Academy.​News at Florida's juvenile detention centers has not been good lately. At some state-run facilities, teenagers are allegedly being doped up on anti-psychotic drugs to control their behavior. At Thompson Academy, a privately run lockup in ... More >>

Kids Claim Abuse and Violence at Juvenile Lockup Thompson Academy

In Alleged Sex Assault at Thompson Academy, Polygraph Results Are Murky

​This week's New Times cover story explores allegations of abuse and violence at the Thompson Academy juvenile detention center in Pembroke Pines. One of the most disturbing allegations, outlined in a federal class-action lawsuit, involves a 15-year-old boy who says he was twice forced to have ora ... More >>

Another Youth Services International Lockup Gets Dismal Review From State

Youth Services InternationalLast year Thompson held a "Keep the Peace" event.​Youth Services International, the for-profit operator of the juvenile detention center in Pembroke Pines where teenagers allege they have been physically and sexually abused, has faced similar complaints at a lockup in S ... More >>

Rick Scott Wants to Cut Juvie Prisons. Should Thompson Be First to Go?

Photo by Meredith Geddings, courtesy Florida HouseJenne wants a deeper investigation of Thompson.​In December, Gov. Rick Scott's transition team proposed a massive overhaul of Florida's juvenile justice system, which would eliminate some prisons and put children convicted of misdemeanor offenses i ... More >>

Despite Alleged Sex Assaults, State Officials Give Thompson Academy Passing Grade

Courtesy of Youth Services International.A snapshot from a recent morale-boosting event at Thompson.​Despite allegations that teenagers were physically and sexually assaulted while living there, Thompson Academy in Pembroke Pines has received high marks from state officials.In October 2009, the fo ... More >>

The Law Considered Jose Torres to be a Child -- Until the Friend he Allegedly Shot Died

All grown up.​Jose Torres is a child who will be tried as an adult on a manslaughter charge for allegedly accidentally shooting his playmate in the face.Adults, as it turns out, have "playmates."Jose, a 17-year-old Deerfield Beach teenager, shot that playmate in the face with a 9-mm pistol, which ... More >>

Owner of Pembroke Pines Juvie Lockup Has Checkered History

Flickr user: Mark CogginsThe company has a checkered history in Florida.​A recent lawsuit alleging sexual assault and physical abuse of inmates at the Thompson Academy juvenile detention center in Pembroke Pines is the latest in a string of abuse accusations lodged against the facility's owner.For ... More >>

Despite Alleged Sex Assaults at Thompson Academy, State Not Investigating Other Lockups

flickr user: Mark CogginsAre the other kids safe?​A lawsuit filed earlier this month accuses the operator of Thompson Academy, a juvenile detention facility in Pembroke Pines, of turning a blind eye to sexual assaults, physical abuse, and intimidation of its young residents by staff members.The Pe ... More >>

New Photo of Burn Victim Michael Brewer: Healing Well

Michael Brewer: In good spirits​Dozens of fans on Deerfield Beach boy Michael Brewer's Facebook page were thrilled to see the new photo his mother posted on Friday, showing Michael looking in good spirits and evidently healing well. Wrote one Facebook friend from Colorado: "I am totally jazzed to ... More >>

Are Florida Kids More Violent? Or Are the Florida Courts?

Flickr: Alan DejecacionJailing our children: a trait Florida has in common with the Phillipines​Some of you may have heard this morning's report on WLRN about the U.S. Supreme Court case that will determine on what basis it's just to put a child in prison for life. There seems to be a lot of viole ... More >>

Juvenile Loves his Reefer

Juvenile Backs It Up

Juvenile

Reality Check (Atlantic)

The Littlest Felons

Book 'em, Dano! "Superpredators" with pebbles and raw eggs get zero tolerance in Palm Beach County schools.

Best Herald Writer

Carol Marbin Miller

Culture Wars

Follow this leader and your kids will obey their masters and join lockstep with God. Or else.

A Children's Crusade

South Florida prosecutors are going after kids younger than 12 years old in record numbers

Letters to the Editor

Letters for October 5, 2000

Crowded Cage

Welcome to Broward's juvenile detention center, where inmates are wild, toilets are clogged, and employees are grousing

Lock, Stock, and 48 Smoking Barrels

A year ago Wayne and Danny Dagenais stole guns from a family friend. In an effort to keep then-16-year-old Wayne out of jail, their parents tried to retrieve the weapons. But the plan didn't work.

The Redemption of Crime Boy

Former criminal-in-training Percy Campbell reclaimed his life and now illuminates a better way to handle hard-core juvenile delinquency