Watchdog to judges: Stop putting kids with mental health needs in prison by Patrick Smith
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A new report from the prison watchdog John Howard Association says mental health treatment in Illinois youth prisons is so bad that judges need to stop sending kids with mental health needs to them.
The scathing report was released on Thursday. It is the latest in a series of studies that are highly critical of the care and education within the Illinois Department of Juvenile Justice.
The report focuses on the youth prison in Kewanee, about 150 miles southwest of Chicago. That’s the prison where the department sends its most seriously mentally ill prisoners. It also houses juvenile sex offenders and youth who need maximum-security detainment.