In California, Justice for Juveniles
The California Youth Authority (CYA) was a state prison system for youth offenders; it was founded in 1941 to keep juvenile delinquents out of adult prison and provide them with a support system for rehabilitation. It was the belief of lawmakers and social workers at thetime that a better-educated and trained youth would have a greater chance of becoming integrated back into society. Unfortunately, 50 years later, the system appeared to have broken down, and so damaging to the youth it was supposed to be rehabilitating that the California Youth Authority was eliminated and many of its facilities were forced to shut ...