Unique Challenges of Privatization of the Juvinille Justice System

Privatization has been typically undertaken in an effort to improve public productivity. Public managers thus have faced unique ethical challenges in situations of privatization because practical considerations and ethical considerations often collide. Effectiveness and efficiency may ultimately be long-range goals of privatization in general, but correctional programs for the juveniles are unique when examined state by state. Many people often think that the “free market” represents the best solutions to our current social problems and economic instability. Supporters of this philosophy claimed that the government has grown at disproportionate rates and therefore has become inefficient. One solution to this thought would be to hand over issues that have normally been handled by the government to private business which would better guarantee results because there would be more “incentives” to ensure that all aspects of the juvenile justice system run as smoothly as possible. Rehabilitation, not punishment, should be the main goal of the juvenile justice system. Private juvenile justice facilities cannot be trusted to fulfill rehabilitative goals because a private company’s priority is profit and not the successful rehabilitation and reintegration of these kids into society.

Privatization of the juvenile justice system is not a new phenomenon in the United States. In the late 19th Century juvenile justice facilities began contracting with the private sector for services and facilities. Profit-seeking citizens ran early prisons in the post-Civil War South, which also housed minors. Prisoners at these privately run prisons were often charged for their food and clothing and were often psychologically and physically abused. This ri...

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...ly and psychically hurt. Private juvenile corrections facilities operate without having to be held accountable by taxpayers, yet they get the benefits of millions and millions of taxpayer money. Private juvenile corrections facilities are mainly concerned about their bottom line, and thus the ethics violations have been commonplace.

For-profit juvenile corrections facilities favor a dominant correctional culture method over rehabilitative and treatment-oriented approaches. This can often lead to lower costs for states in the short run, but statistically significant higher recidivism rates over time. Again, Florida has provided an example of how maximizing of profit in juvenile corrections facilities ultimately creates unique ethical challenges to the decision-making process for prison operators, legislatures, and their constituents. A study conducted in 2005 by