Cash for Kids Scandal. [View all]

[Lunacee_2013]

I was watching Democracy Now! this morning and they were doing a special on the Cash for Kids scandal in Pennsylvania. Has anyone else heard about this? Two judges, Mark Ciavarella and Michael Conahan, sentenced thousands of children to boot camps, detention centers, rehab, and jail in exchange for money from the private detention centers. $2.6 million in cash, allegedly.

Here are a few articles about it:

http://www.cnn.com/2009/CRIME/02/23/pennsylvania.corrupt.judges/index.html?_s=PM:CRIME

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/10/18/kids-for-cash-scandal-2-million-settlement_n_4123236.html#slide=1607575

And here's a look at the documentary about it: http://www.movies.com/kids-for-cash/m69836

There was a $2.5 million settlement for the kids and the (ex) judges were given jail time, but those kids will never get that part of their childhood back. This is just one of the many reasons why private jails, or "detention centers", are a horrible idea. There's just too much room for corruption in our justice system.