What’s the real reason lawmakers are considering sending children to Angola rather than juvenile lockups? Is it about making us safer, or is it secretly about saving money?
No one has said it aloud, but the fact that a proposal to send children to Angola rather than juvenile facilities for possibly “any crime” is being proposed in a special session focused on saving and raising money might be a clue.
It’s clear, this push is less about public safety and more about saving money. But saving dollars by sacrificing our children’s futures is a moral and societal failure. We’re not sure if that’s what Senator Jay Morris, co-sponsor of the bill, had in mind, but it sure looks that way.
In Louisiana, the cost of housing juveniles in detention centers far exceeds that of adult prisons. At some juvenile lockups, the daily cost of caring for one child ranges from $320 to $380, compared to just $48 per day in adult prisons.
This gap stems from the specialized services juvenile facilities provide, such as education, mental health care, and rehabilitation, alongside higher staffing levels and age-appropriate environments. None of those services are provided to juveniles in state prisons.
Louisiana’s juvenile justice system is undoubtedly in a crisis. With facilities at capacity, a shortage of secure state centers, and underpaid staff struggling to provide adequate care, reform is essential. But the solution is not to transfer the burden to the adult prison system, which is designed for punishment rather than rehabilitation.
This shift ignores the fundamental difference between children and adults: children are still developing and are far more capable of reform.
Legislators must resist the urge to take the easy financial path. The long-term costs of this approach—in lives lost to the prison pipeline and dollars spent on recidivism, mental health, and legal challenges—far outweigh any short-term savings. Public safety is not served by throwing away salvageable young lives.
We urge legislators not to drink the cool-aid. It’s not about safety, it’s about money.
It’s not a good idea to even discuss sending children to prison to save money. Every person living has done something “dumb” in their youth, often multiple times.
Thankfully, the system recognized they were kids, and many are salvageable. We are also thankful that the system didn’t send us to prison with adults because it was cheaper.
Louisiana has an opportunity to lead with justice, investing in its youth and building a system that prioritizes rehabilitation over punishment. To do otherwise is not just shortsighted; it is a betrayal of our children and our future.
Lawmakers must reject this proposal and seek solutions that reflect both fiscal responsibility and humanity.
