In Many Localities, Parents Must Pay When Their Children With Disabilities End Up in Jail

In an extensive 2016 report, the Juvenile Law Center equated juvenile jail systems to debtor’s prisons, accusing them of exacerbating the cycle of poverty for many low-income families.

“Here’s a family that needs support, and what we’re going to do instead is put a whole lot of economic pressure on them?” Jessica Feierman, the Center's associate director told The Washington Post. “Parents don’t choose for their kids to go to jail. They just don’t.”