Gallery: Uncompromising Photos Expose Juvenile Detention in America
© Richard Ross01harrison-county-juvenile-detention-center-in-biloxi-mississippi
*A 12-year-old in his cell at the Harrison County Juvenile Detention Center in Biloxi, Mississippi. The window has been boarded up from the outside. The facility is operated by Mississippi Security Police, a private company. In 1982, a fire killed 27 prisoners and an ensuing lawsuit against the authorities forced them to reduce their population to maintain an 8:1 inmate to staff ratio.*
© Richard Ross02orleans-parish-prison
*The air-conditioning was not working when Ross visited the Orleans Parish Prison (OPP) in New Orleans. There had also been a fight the previous night and as a result, TV, cards and dominoes privileges had been taken away. The OPP, managed by Sheriff Marlin Gusman, houses about 23 juvenile boys. They live two to each cell. The cells at their narrowest measure six feet in width.*
Richard Ross03caldwell-southwest-idaho-juvenile-detention-center
*The Caldwell Southwest Idaho Juvenile Detention Center detains children between the ages of 11 and 17 years old. When Ross visited, six girls were in detention for offenses that included runaway/curfew violations, lewd and lascivious conduct, molestation abuse, controlled substance, trafficking methamphetamine, burglary and possession of marijuana.*
04wall
*Referred to as the "Wall of Shame," the mug shots here serve as a reminder to staff of the kids that have been killed on the street. Miami-Dade Regional Youth Detention Center, Miami, FL.*
05isolation-cell
*"Time out room" at the South Bend Juvenile Correctional Facility, South Bend, IN.*
06prisoner-receives-meal
*16 year-old boy receives a meal through a cell door, South Bend Juvenile Correctional Facility, South Bend, Indiana. "I've been here one and a half months on a six month sentence. This is my fourth time in. I'm in segregation because I threatened intimidation against the staff so I'm here for two days," says the boy.*
© Richard Ross07challenge-program-el-paso-tx
*Challenge Program, El Paso, TX. "They come in once a day and do a search of my room," says the 14 Year old girl. "Everything I have in there, EVERYTHING, goes out–including the inside of the mattress and a body search–once a day. It happens anytime. Random. I was arrested for assault against a 13-year-old girl. It’s sort of all right, but it also really sucks. I’m here for Violation of Probation. I was at home with an ankle bracelet. I got mad at my mother and started throwing chairs and cut my ankle bracelet. My Mother works for Rody One industries; my Father lives in Juarez. I just finished starting 8th grade. It’s boring but I like to write poems, and listen to music. One day I might want to work as a Corrections Officer in a prison."*
© Richard Ross08ross-3
*Books are only permitted in the classrooms, not in the cells. Juvenile Detention Facility, Greenville, Washington County, Mississippi. Building is entirely modular steel, molded together. It is a detention center for pre- and post- adjudicated kids.*
© Richard Ross09los-padrinos-juvenile-hall-downey-california
*"I photographed intake moments before a director of Los Padrinos Juvenile Hall, Downey, CA, had the juveniles sit in erect and proper on the benches – an unnatural positions. This is one of three major centers of the Los Angeles Juvenile confinement system, collectively the largest in the country. The great majority here is populated by Hispanic and African-American juveniles," says Ross.*
Richard Ross10restraint-chair-for-self-abusive-juveniles-at-the-mendota-juvenile-treatment-center-in-madison-wi
*Restraint chair for self-abusive juveniles at the Mendota Juvenile Treatment Center in Madison, WI houses 29 children and is usually at full capacity. The average stay for the emotionally and mentally disturbed juveniles, some of which are self-abusive or suicidal, is eight months. Children must be released at age 18, sometimes with no transition options available to them.*
Richard Ross11st-louis-detention-center
*View of camera monitoring the isolation room at the St. Louis Detention Center, St. Louis, MO. The facility is run by the Department of Youth Services. When Ross visited only 35 of the 137 beds were occupied. The population had decreased significantly because of the embrace of the principles of the Juvenile Detention Alternatives Initiative and the leadership of Judge Edwards.*
12nevada-youth-training-facility-elko-nv
*Nevada Youth Training Facility, Elko, NV.*
