Is it "Disneyland or a youthful offender site?"
That's the question several youth service officers have about the Connecticut Juvenile Training School in Middletown.
More than 20 of them have signed a petition they will submit to their superintendent demanding more leeway in how they can handle violent teenage boys at the secure facility. CJTS is the state's only secure treatment facility for boys ages 12-17 who are committed delinquent.
A group of youth service officers recently told The Associated Press there is a constant clash of ideologies over how to handle the residents.
"There is a need for frank discussion about high rates of injury at CJTS and what the formal designation of this facility is," wrote Cornell Lewis, a youth service officer, in a letter to his union president that was obtained by the AP.
The superintendent of CJTS said he is aware of the workers' concerns and will continue to meet with staff and their union.
"Obviously the Department of Correction is much more into control and confinement," says Superintendent William Rosenbeck. "So our mandate is much different than DOC's in that it really is more of a rehabilitative, juvenile services facility and our goal ... is to get kids back home to their communities."
