Scared Straight
Despite their popularity, “scared straight” programs, visits by at-risk youth to adult prisons, where youth hear about the harsh reality of prison life from inmates, are very ineffective at preventing crime.
In some cases, they actually encourage criminal activity in the youths who participate in them.
On January 13, 2011, A&E Television Networks aired the first of a multiepisode series of reality shows called "Beyond Scared Straight."
The original, award-winning documentary, "Scared Straight," aired in 1978.
On January 13, 2011, A&E Television Networks aired the first of a multiepisode series of reality shows called "Beyond Scared Straight." The original, award-winning documentary, "Scared Straight," aired in 1978.
The A&E series elicited a strong response from the juvenile justice field and the U.S. Department of Justice. In an op-ed piece published January 31, 2011, in The Baltimore Sun, Assistant Attorney General for the Office of Justice Programs Laurie O. Robinson and the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention's Acting Administrator Jeff Slowikowski discussed how the use of Scared Straight programs to prevent delinquency is ineffective and can harm youth.
Despite their popularity, “scared straight” programs, visits by at-risk youth to adult prisons, where youth hear about the harsh reality of prison life from inmates, are very ineffective at preventing crime.
