Connecticut’s Department of Children and Families (DCF) recently opened a new locked facility for young women involved in its juvenile justice system. It is imperative that the state and DCF take steps to ensure that Pueblo is used safely and appropriately. The opening of this facility, moreover, marks an opportunity to evaluate DCF’s juvenile justice services. This issue brief lays out safeguards and next steps to ensure that girls in the new locked facility, and girls in Connecticut’s juvenile justice system more broadly, are served fairly and effectively.
Recommendations include:
- Connecticut should ensure Pueblo is used only for the most high-risk population.
- DCF should evaluate and expand its community-based services for girls as alternatives to locked facilities.
- DCF should better measure and track outcomes for youth in its care, by increasing its capacity for data collection, program evaluation, and quality assurance.
