Across the country, 104,000 troubled teens are locked up in juvenile correction facilities. In our hour-long investigative documentary, PrimeTime Co-Anchor Chris Cuomo goes inside Arizona's facilities and meets an extraordinary group of ...See moreAcross the country, 104,000 troubled teens are locked up in juvenile correction facilities. In our hour-long investigative documentary, PrimeTime Co-Anchor Chris Cuomo goes inside Arizona's facilities and meets an extraordinary group of boys and girls at a critical turning point - they have one last chance to either change their ways or face the prospect of doing time in an adult prison. How did they end up here? How can they be helped? Our team felt juvenile corrections was a topic that deserved an in-depth examination and we worked very hard to gain access to the safe schools in our program in order to deliver this fascinating and important report. We proudly submit our documentary for your consideration. PrimeTime was granted unprecedented access to Arizona's system for juvenile corrections and spent nearly six months following the teens and their families as they wound their way in and out of the system. Along the way, the locked up youth share their shame, their secrets and their dreams. They show their pride and promise. And in the end, they reveal that behind the tough talk and bravado, they are still just kids. The youth we met all come from a background of poverty, and of substance, physical, and sexual abuse. Their circumstances may not be an excuse for delinquency, but our program attempts to illustrate the reasons for their behavior and one system's attempts at helping them. Co-Anchor Cuomo took extra time and care to make sure he put the youth at ease. Using his years of experience dealing with troubled teens, he gained their trust and learned what was truly beneath their hardened shell. We video taped the documentary using compact cameras in the artistic 24p format as to not interfere with the important reform process and to bring the gritty environment to life. Getting the facts correct was of paramount concern and we spent months interacting with investigators and the US Department of Justice, and sifting through court records to substantiate the allegations made towards and by the youth. We knew it was necessary to explain the difficulties of reform, as well as national trends and potential abuses occurring in the system. What started as a 12 minute piece quickly grew into a full show documentary. Written by
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