Pain and Promise: Kids in storage -- can the state break the pattern?
At 13, Charles still couldn't pass first grade. He couldn't define "cow." Or "donkey." He couldn't tell time. His speech defect was so severe that he was nearl…
Juvenile Justice: Pain and Promise
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Killers, rapists -- 'some wet the bed...are scared of the dark'
Linda Grover never saw it coming. She was herding children away from a fistfight during lunch when a table rammed her from behind in the cafeteria at the Alexa…
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State police 'dropped the ball' in youth's suicide inquiry
When 15-year-old Christopher Rapier was found hanging in a juvenile detention center in Danville, the Arkansas State Police was called to investigate.
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A Boy Lost
"I'm going to tell you a story about a child who hurt others, who stole property, and who touched my soul. I saw him laugh. I saw him cry. I saw him in shackle…
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Eight Hours of Terror
The boy's voice in her ear was soft, Roberta Thompson remembers. It sounded almost kind. At 3 a.m. on April 13, 1997, she had been his prisoner for eight hours.
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Governor OK with plan to fix youth division
Gov. Mike Huckabee said Wednesday he fully endorses his Youth Services Division director's six-pronged plan to attack chronic problems of understaffing, poorly…
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Reforming of division supported
If they care about Arkansas' future, lawmakers shouldn't be stingy with the state budget when choosing whether to pay for a detailed reform plan for the beleag…
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Woman left for dead in '97 settles lawsuit against Florida firm
A West Memphis woman who was kidnapped, stabbed 27 times and run over with her own car by three teen-agers has received a settlement in a lawsuit against a Flo…
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EDITORIAL: Don't fail these kids: How to reshape Youth Services
THE MISSION of the state's Youth Services division is to house and reform Arkansas' delinquent kids. And it's not doing a good job.
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Panel to analyze plan for revamping division
The state Youth Services Division director's five-year, six-pronged plan to attack chronic problems of understaffing, poorly trained workers and lack of compre…
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Youth Services vows to buck troubled past
For the first time, detention facilities at Arkansas' troubled Division of Youth Services will receive national accreditation, a status expected to be granted …
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Jailed youths put at risk, panel told
The state Youth Services Division puts incarcerated youths at continued risk of sexual abuse by housing sex offenders with others, the head of Arkansas' youth …
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Judges ask legislators for cash to aid youth services
A group of juvenile court judges urged legislators Thursday to give the director of the state's Division of Youth Services the money he needs to reform the tro…
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Boy claims injury by lockup worker
A teenager at the Arkansas Juvenile Assessment and Treatment Center near Alexander has accused a staff member of "forcibly and intentionally" scraping the yout…
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Report: Lock up fewer youths
Arkansas' juvenile justice system needs to rely more on community-based programs rather than confinement, according to a report that will come out later this m…