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Teenager

Closing Argument
While Youth Detention Numbers Rise, States Begin to Roll Back Reforms
Los Angeles County is one of many places that have struggled to maintain safe conditions for youth and seen reform efforts stall or be abandoned.
In 2020, Los Angeles County approved reforms meant to close the Los Padrinos Juvenile Hall, pictured here in 2023, but this week local officials declared an emergency in order to assign other workers to help staff the facility.
An aerial view of Los Padrinos Juvenile Hall in Downey, California.
Closing Argument September 7
The Seemingly Endless Cycle of Reforms in Juvenile Justice
As Ohio considers closing youth detention facilities, recent efforts in other states have hit roadblocks.
By
An illustration shows a White man holding a phone while looking up. Hot air balloons float in the background, connected to phone cords.
Life Inside November 18, 2022
Between Addiction and Prison, I Left My Boy to Grow Up Without a Dad
With his release date quickly approaching, Ryan M. Moser reflects on the pain he caused his son — and his hopes for healing their relationship.
By Ryan M. Moser
A brick sign that reads "Louisiana State Penitentiary" and "Secretary James LeBlanc" located in front of the prison's entrance.
Closing Argument August 13, 2022
Confronting America’s ‘Cruel and Unusual’ Juvenile Detention Crisis
From Texas and Louisiana to communities in Iowa and Michigan, the way youth are being detained is prompting calls for change.
By
The wall of a cell shows an area with gray exposed paint in the shape of a hole.
News April 28, 2022
Solitary Confinement Harms Teens. Louisiana Lawmakers Took a Step to Limit It.
An investigation by The Marshall Project, NBC News and ProPublica found that youth in a Louisiana lockup were held in isolation around the clock for weeks.
By , The Marshall Project; Erin Einhorn, NBC News; and Annie Waldman, ProPublica
A photo illustration shows the silhouettes of four dark-skinned teens facing a door in a solitary confinement unit. Light shines through a window in the door. As the viewer scrolls up on the story, the light from the window gets brighter.
Feature March 10, 2022
“No Light. No Nothing.” Inside Louisiana’s Harshest Juvenile Lockup
Teens at the Acadiana Center for Youth at St. Martinville were held in solitary confinement around the clock, shackled with leg irons and deprived of an education. “This is child abuse,” one expert said.
, The Marshall Project; Erin Einhorn, NBC News; and Annie Waldman, ProPublica
Feature November 2, 2021
Police Hurt Thousands of Teens Every Year. A Striking Number Are Black Girls.
By and
Feature November 20, 2020
Superpredator: The Media Myth That Demonized a Generation of Black Youth
25 years ago this month, “superpredator” was coined in The Weekly Standard. Media spread the term like wildfire, creating repercussions on policy and culture we are still reckoning with today.
By and Lynnell Hancock
Life Inside March 29, 2018
When You’re 16 and It’s Your First Time in Solitary
“I felt like I aged 10 years just by doing 20 days in there.”
By Jordan as told to
News November 30, 2017
Adolescence with an Ankle Bracelet
What it’s like to spend your teenage years tethered to Big Brother.
Christopher, as told to
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