The Connecticut Juvenile Training School, the state’s only juvenile prison, has closed—an important milestone in youth justice reform. Governor Dannel P. Malloy announced the closing of the controversial facility, which opened in 2001 under Governor John G. Rowland and cost $57 million in taxpayer money plus millions more in annual operating costs. Beyond the corruption scandal surrounding the Rowland and the prison, the facility was considered outmoded and ineffective upon opening. “It placed young boys in a prison-like facility, making rehabilitation, healing, and growth more challenging,” said Malloy. For Malloy, the closing of the prison represents “an opportunity to create a system that better serves our young people and society as a whole.”
