The past repeats itself in New York Juvenile Justice system

In New York state, proposed budget cuts might drive the juvenile justice system back into the past.

That history is chronicled by Alexandra Cox, a lecturer in sociology at the University of Essex, who is the author of Trapped in a Vise: The Consequences of Confinement for Young People. The book begins in 2003 when she became a caseworker in the public defender's office in Harlem. She's worked in criminal justice reform including with raise the age and Close to Home program in New York.

She joined us to give a crash course in how juvenile justice in the state has yet to escape a century-old habit of often doing more harm than good – as well as how kids across the state stand to lose if proposed state budget cuts to Close to Home go through – an issue discussed here by David Hansell, commissioner of New York City’s Administration for Children’s Services. An in-depth discussion about the history of the city’s child welfare system can be found here, featuring University of Wisconsin-Stout’s Tina Lee in an NYN Media Insights Podcast.

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