CHESHIRE, Conn — The Manson Youth Institution, an adult correctional facility in Cheshire that houses minors charged in the criminal justice system, will soon make changes in how it handles children under its care.
The Justice Department announced on Friday that it reached an agreement with the Connecticut Department of Correction to address conditions at the correctional facility.
In December 2021, DOJ notified the facility that there was reasonable cause to believe that conditions for children there violated the Eighth and 14th Amendments and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. The violations represented resistance to the full enjoyment of rights protected by the Constitution and federal law.
Under the agreed-upon terms, the facility will stop using disciplinary isolation to manage the behavior of children in custody. Instead, it will implement a behavior management program to encourage positive behaviors and provide a skill-based curriculum to help children regulate their behaviors. DOJ reports that the program will include a daily schedule of age-appropriate, structured activities.
According to DOJ, Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division says that isolation can cause significant harm to children, which increases the risk of depression, anxiety, self-harm, and suicide. She says a child’s brain is still developing and lacks many necessary coping mechanisms.
“Placing a child in an ‘adult facility’ does not make children any less vulnerable to these risks. Nationally, more than 2,000 children each year are held in jails and prisons designed for adults,” Clarke said. “Too often, adult facilities fail to provide children with the age-appropriate services and care essential to development of the requisite skills to become healthy and productive adults, including educational and mental health services required by law.”
Clarke adds that a commitment has been made to protect the constitutional and federal rights of children throughout the criminal and juvenile justice systems.
The agreement also requires the facility to conduct thorough mental health assessments and provide appropriate treatment. The facility must also offer special education services for children with disabilities, in accordance with the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act.
Since it notified the state’s Department of Corrections, DOJ says the department has begun to implement reforms to fix problems at the facility.
“We commend the Connecticut Department of Correction for its commitment to eliminate harmful disciplinary isolation practices and adopt age-appropriate treatment and services for children at Manson,” Vanessa Roberts Avery, the U.S. attorney for the District of Connecticut, said. “We look forward to our ongoing collaboration as the Connecticut Department of Correction implements these reforms.”
DOJ says the agreement resolves its investigation of the facility under the Civil Rights of Institutionalized Persons Act and the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act.
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Dalton Zbierski is a digital content producer and writer at FOX61 News. He can be reached at dzbierski@FOX61.com.
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