Little criminals: incarcerating teens with adults.

• Author: Taylor, Jeff
• Position: Citings - Lack of juvenile detention slots - Brief article

LOCKING UP bad kids with bad adults has long been recognized as counterproductive. Yet a recent report from the Justice Policy Institute reveals that many states simply do not have enough juvenile detention slots for young offenders, even those who commit nonviolent crimes.

In Connecticut, for example, all 16-and 17-year-old offenders are tried and sometimes incarcerated as adults, even though 96 percent of those cases involve nonviolent crime. In Wisconsin, a fairly progressive state, all 17-year-olds end up in the adult system even though 85 percent of their offenses are nonviolent.

In its zeal to establish a strict 18-year-old threshold for prosecution and...