Cristian Fernandez: 12 year old Cristian Fernandez of Jacksonville, Florida, may soon be tried as an ADULT in the death of his younger brother. If you believe that it is wrong to try this child in adult court―where the penalty could be life in prison without parole―then please sign the petition "Reverse decision to try 12 y/o Cristian Fernandez as an adult." 
To learn more about Cristian Fernandez, click here.

Leo Boatman: Product of the system or natural-born killer?

09/12/10 Leo Boatman had 'uniquely awful' path to murder" ― If you believe the killer, when he raised his rifle that day, he was aiming at all of us." [continued]

!!PEN PAL WANTED!! Leo Boatman is now 24 and would appreciate pen pals. Pen pals will give him something to do, things to think about...and a link to the 'real' world. He is interested in exchanging ideas about travel, history and life. He can receive letters and no more than 10 sheets of blank lined paper, 10 blank envelopes & 20 stamps, per mailing.
Use this mailing address:

Leo Boatman 129327
Florida State Prison
7819 NW 228th St.
Raiford, FL 32026

For more information contact Steve@justice4kids.org.

 

Blade Reed

Kids in custody in the US are too often treated worse than animals. Click here to read about Blade Reed in Indiana. Then, sign the petition Humane treatment for Blade Reed.

07/14/08 Don't Talk to Police!?Justice4Kids.org received a link to a video presentation by Professor James Duane and Virginia Beach Police Department Officer George Bruch. The title of the presentation is Don’t Talk to Police!  It warns that you can be convicted by talking to the police even if you are innocent and tell the truth! Talking to the police "can not help you!" Click here to view the 48-minute video. To read your rights, written by Bob Dillinger, Florida Public Defender, 6th Circuit, click here.

Pinellas County Juvenile Justice Council - Public Meeting Schedule

DJJ bad apple  Bad Apples in DJJ? No! Say it isn't so! If you learn of a DJJ bad apple, tell us: Cathy@justice4kids.org.

"Our conduct will be professional and always place the public's interest above self-interest. We will avoid any appearance of impropriety, prejudice, threats, favoritism, or undue influences." ~DJJ Mission Statement

Ever wonder why DJJ never seems to get any better? Click here... to learn how DJJ treats staff who attempt to work within the "system" to make positive changes.

Now they can read!
Justice4Kids spent nearly five years insisting that kids in Florida's Juvenile Detention Centers be allowed to read books in their sleeping rooms. As of March 10, 2006, they can!
Click here to read the DJJ memo and to learn the story behind the books. Also. read how new DJJ Secretary Peterman "petered out" when asked for help in 2002!

04/08/08 Peterman letter to DJJ Staff:
"[Justice4Kids.org has] been blocked"
~Frank Peterman, Secretary, DJJ

WOW - One year later, minus one day - Pinellas County Commissioner Calvin Harris, tells youth activist Cathy Corry to SHUT UP, same as he told school teacher Dennis Segall... what's next
09/18/06 Pinellas County Commissioner Calvin Harris tells the public to "SHUT UP" during a meeting of the Circuit 6 Juvenile Justice Board. The target of Harris's outburst was school teacher Dennis Segall, critical of the Board's activities, who spoke out of turn.
09/17/07 Pinellas County Commissioner Calvin Harris tells Cathy Corry, "You, shut up!" during a meeting of the Circuit 6 Juvenile Justice Board'

02/01/07 McNeil letter to DJJ staff:
"As...Governor Crist so eloquently has stated, this is the people’s work, and we are public servants first and foremost.  ...we will be successful only if we work cooperatively with...parents, advocacy groups, citizens...to reach our shared goals."
~Walter A. McNeil, Secretary, DJJ

01/18/07 From our servant government:
" . . . we are clueless."
~Danielle Williams, DJJ

01/18/07 From our servant government:
"It's been a long day." "We need more people." "We don't have the infrastructure like all the other branches." "All my people must run, jump and shoot." "I'm sorry if I had the flu."
~Greg Johnson, DJJ Assistant Secretary of Prevention

09/18/06 From our servant government:
"And you, shut up!"
~Calvin Harris, Pinellas County Commissioner

12/05/06 From our servant government
"Every system needs a conscience."
~Steve Casey, FL DJJ Deputy Secretary

01/30/06 From our servant government:
"The judges know what our kids need; the school system knows what the kids need; the parents don't know what these kids need."
~Jane Gallucci, Pinellas County School Board member

Watchdog of Florida's
Department of Juvenile Justice
This site was updated 12/29/2011

Our mission is to give voice to all who participate in Florida’s juvenile justice system: a voice for children, parents, and staff. Our goal is to use that voice to make the system better; to transform it into a service in which the entire community can be proud. TOGETHER, we make a difference!

Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.
~Martin Luther King, Jr.

Report of the Blueprint Commission

10/29/07 Justice4Kids.org calls on Blueprint Commission for independent oversight of DJJ facilities
02/01/07 An Escambia JDC dialogue.

01/08/07 Crusading for confidentiality
FDLE sells "confidential" juvenile arrest records on-line.

Click here for more.

Join the discussion at Yahoo Discussion Group AbuseInFloridaDJJ.

For more information on abuse in the juvenile justice system, click here.

12/28/11 State officials fire 6 West Palm juvenile detention workers in connection with teen's July death [The firings] of a supervisor and five other employees at a West Palm Beach juvenile detention center where a teenager died in July, bringing the total fired after the death of Eric Perez to nine. [complete article]

12/23/11 Fed probe validates Dozier abuse claims
The Infamous Dozier School for Boys...is now closed. But, before it shut down, state investigators said they found no basis for the rumors of child abuse... Three years after that probe, the U.S. Justice Department found something different. The feds say there definitely was abuse at Dozier... [complete article]

12/04/11 The U.S. Department of Justice has blasted the state for failing to properly treat and protect children who were housed at the now-shuttered Arthur G. Dozier School for Boys... [complete article]

07/21/11 In teen’s death, lack of money is no excuse for lack of caring The only accurate diagnosis may have come from [Justice4Kids Cathy] Corry. “The staff didn’t care.” She was referring to the Eric Perez death, but the tragic underpinnings of both cases [Omar Paisley 2003] seem sadly interchangeable. [complete text]

12/02/11 US Department of Justice Investigative Findings on the Dozier School for Boys

01/29/10 Florida Department of Law Enforcement Abuse Investigation of Dozier School for Boys

The Boys of the Dark is the true story of men forever haunted by the torture they endured as kids at the hands of their jailers in the infamous Florida School for Boys. This is "a story of betrayal and redemption in the deep south" written by Robin Gaby Fisher with Michael O'McCarthy and Robert W. Straley.

Fisher is a Pulitzer Prize winner and the New York Times best selling author of After the Fire. O'McCarthy and Straley are survivors who founded The White House Boys Survivor's Organization.

To read stories about the "white house boys" as they emerged in the St. Petersburg Times and other newspapers, click here. For more information, visit The White House Boys Survivor's Organization at whitehouseboys.com. Or, contact Robert Straley at 727.447.4441 or by email at rwstraley@earthlink.net or rstraley@gmail.com.

Also, contact Gus Barreiro at 786.586.3193. Barreiro, as a Florida State Representative, led his committee to force the Florida Department of Juvenile Justice to confront its failure to provide "... services that strengthen families and turn around the lives of troubled youth." Barreiro later worked in the Department where he successfully fought to bring the story of the White House Boys and conditions at the Florida School For Boys to the nation's attention. He did it because he knew it must be done. He also knew it would cost him his job.

To buy the book or read an excerpt from The Boys of the Dark on Amazon.com, click here.

10/06/08 "If you believe that your child has been harmed while in the care of the Department, we will be happy to review the case."- John Walsh, Legal Aid Society of Palm Beach County. [Click here to read the complete message.]

If you're not outraged, you're not paying attention!

Abuse in DJJ? Say it isn't so! When you tell J4K of your complaints, J4K ensures that your allegations are reported for investigation. If you want J4K to help, complete an online J4K Incident Report.

"We will establish and maintain safe programs for youth that will better prepare them for adulthood." ~DJJ Mission Statement

Justin Caldwell was at the Dozier ISP when, on February 11, 2007, a guard violently, and without apparent provocation, threw him to the floor. To watch the video record, click here.

11/27/07 Teen Sentenced for Battering Guard

11/08/07 Trial verdict comments from Isabelle Zehnder, CAICA)

04/28/07 Imprisoned since 13, an adult Justin Caldwell remains walled in

04/17/07 Justin Caldwell abused at Dozier School for Boys: The Truth
Justin Caldwell, an 18-year old boy, has been incarcerated in the Florida Juvenile Justice System since he was 13. What should have been a 12-15 month stay in a residential treatment center to allegedly “help” Justin turned into a five-year nightmare.

To read more of more cases, click Abuse!

Who would believe that DJJ's DOVE ACADEMY in GRACEVILLE, Florida would look like this?

Shawn Smith, Danny Matthews, Omar Paisley, and Martin Anderson never met but they did have things in common: they were boys; they were in their teens; and they died while in the custody and care of the Florida Department of Juvenile Justice.

Click on a picture of each boy to read more.