Ruben Rodriguez, a teen from the Bronx, is on Rikers Island, waiting to stand trial for homicide. By the time he returned to the Box (punitive segregation) in late September, City of New York Correction Department Commissioner Joseph Ponte publicly promised to end punitive segregation for Rikers’ roughly 300 juvenile inmates by 2015.
The policy would not affect Ruben, who lost his juvenile status when he turned 18 in June. Ponte, however, also pledged to reduce segregation for the overall population.
Ruben's story is an illustration of the need for a more rehabilitative approach on Rikers Island, but also underlies the reality that at least some young people at times show little interest in rehabilitation.
[For more of this story, written by Theresa Fisher, go to http://jjie.org/teen-is-used-t...future-there/107937/]
Comments (0)