Dick Wolf has it wrong. There are not ‘two sides to the criminal justice system…those that fight crime and those that prosecute the offenders.’ In fact there is a third side that goes less noticed until problems arise. This is the world of corrections.

We house and hold the accused and the convicted. Our role is to give them a safe environment and produce them to the proper authorities when summoned or when their time of commitment is over.

- Captain E. Rodrigruez, Director, Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center 1300 bed facility including 86 juveniles.

Institutions such as TGK give juveniles three meals a day (plus snacks) and a dependable roof over their heads that may be lacking in their “outside” upbringing. The question remains is a secure, lock-down facility the best institution we can offer to provide these basics? Is there a reasonable expectation of this level of support for a youth in the home and family that can be supported by agencies other than the criminal justice system?

Richard Ross

Richard Ross is the Executive Director of www.juvenile-in-justice.com and Juvenile-in-Justice. He is the principal photographer for the Juvenile-in-Justice project and travels frequently throughout the country to photograph and interview incarcerated children. Ross lectures frequently and has spoken at the Vera Institute of Justice, the 7th Annual Models for Change Conference, JDAI conferences, The Justice for Youth Summit, and many more. He is the author of Juvenile-in-Justice the book which received the American Library Association's 2013 Alex Award. He has been the recipient of the Guggenheim Fellowship, grants from the National Endowment for the Arts, the Annie E. Casey Foundation, Fulbright, and the Center for Cultural Innovation. Ross has taught at the University of California, Santa Barbara since 1977.

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