Unapproved Articles at the Training School (H 5437, S 619)

We opposed legislation which would make it a crime punishable by ten years in prison for any child in the custody of either the Training School or a juvenile program worker to convey to another person any article without DCYF approval, or for any person to convey to the child in custody any article without DCYF approval. We argued that imposing this punishment -- which is the same punishment in the Adult Correctional Institutions -- weighs against the argument that the Training School is a school environment and not a prison. Furthermore, we argued that this punishment is overly severe, since an article could be a stick of gum or a piece of paper.