In response to the latest accusations of abuse and violence at Texas youth prisons, reported Brandi Grissom at the Texas Tribune, "some advocates are urging lawmakers to consider closing more state youth institutions."
Given that Texas youth prison populations have already declined by around 2/3 since the 2007 "reforms" (which, since they apparently haven't reformed much, perhaps henceforth we should just call "changes") while juvenile crime has continued to fall, perhaps now's the right time to finish the remarkable de-institutionalization of juvenile justice begun five years ago.
California is doing the same thing on a much smaller scale to reduce prison populations in their adult system - shifting supervision of lower level offenders to counties in a process they call "realignment." Texas counties may not relish the new responsibilities for dealing with the worst behaved youth that comes with realignment in the juvenile justice system, but by all indications over the last five years it has generated superior outcomes. It makes sense at this point to double down on the policy.
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