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Why more Tarrant County kids are going to Texas youth prisons than any others

The rising number of youth sent from counties like Tarrant is helping to push the waitlist for beds in youth prisons to near an all-time high, the state says.

The Texas Tribune · Oct 28, 2025

Dallas juvenile detention center isolated kids and falsified documents, state investigation says

A Texas Juvenile Justice Department report says Dallas County officers kept kids in their sleeping quarters for days at a time and faked school attendance logs.

The Texas Tribune · Sep 10, 2024

Federal investigators find horrific ‘pattern of abuse’ at juvenile detention centers in Texas

Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke said the centers violate the US constitution

The Independent UK · Aug 2, 2024

Seven Texas prison employees face dismissal over 16-year-old inmate’s suicide

Joshua Keith Beasley Jr. had been transferred from a Texas youth facility to an adult prison despite a long history of suicidal behavior. Five guards and two supervisors allegedly failed to check on him.

The Texas Tribune · Apr 25, 2023

Texas Senate votes to close employment loophole after Refuge foster care scandal

The upper chamber unanimously passed Senate Bill 182 after The Texas Tribune reported that a state-licensed foster care facility hired a caretaker whom the Texas Juvenile Justice Department previously fired for having inappropriate relationships with children.

The Texas Tribune · Apr 3, 2023

Lawmakers offer stark choices for ending the crisis in Texas’ youth prisons — shut them all down, or build more

Plagued by decades of scandals over sexual and physical abuse of children, the Texas Juvenile Justice Department is at a crossroads.

The Texas Tribune · Mar 9, 2023

Pay raises alone won’t solve staffing shortages in “nightmare” Texas youth prisons, ex-workers say

Danger and trauma — not low salaries — are what drive most workers to leave the crisis-wracked Texas Juvenile Justice Department.

The Texas Tribune · Nov 17, 2022

State agencies push for better worker pay as critical staffing crunch hits Texas government

Texas agencies say they are being hammered by a historic staffing crisis, particularly when it comes to those in the trenches serving the state’s most vulnerable populations.

The Texas Tribune · Sep 29, 2022

In Texas youth prisons, children trapped in their cells use water bottles and lunch trays for toilets

Gov. Greg Abbott largely remained silent as dangerous conditions caused by a lack of staff persisted at Texas juvenile facilities during the summer.

The Texas Tribune · Sep 12, 2022

Lawmakers decry collapsing Texas juvenile prison system, ask Abbott to call special session

Without a jolt of funding, the Texas Juvenile Justice Department will struggle to hire workers and regain control over the safety and treatment of almost 600 incarcerated youth, its acting director told lawmakers at a hearing.

The Texas Tribune · Aug 9, 2022