Aliyya Swaby, ProPublica

Mountain View Academy in Dandridge, Tennessee.

Across the country, youth prisons are closing. Tennessee is building more.

Tennessee officials say they need more high-security facilities for kids who commit crimes. Experts say this approach flies in the face of crime data and research that shows youth prisons are not rehabilitative.

Thomas Jarvis, now 20, was attacked twice at juvenile justice facilities overseen by Jason Crews, a Tennessee businessman. In both instances, facility leadership failed to report the incidents to the state as required.

Criminal Justice

‘They’re putting kids’ lives at risk’: How abuse in a Tennessee businessman’s juvenile prisons remained under wraps

Paige Pfleger, Aliyya Swaby, ProPublica

Tennessee’s highest-security youth prisons are operated by a single private company. Former staff say they felt pressure to hide abuse and other serious incidents from the state and to handle medical emergencies without calling 911.

Junior, an 11-year-old middle school student, was arrested after he was accused of making a threat against his school.

Criminal Justice

An 11-year-old denied making a threat and was allowed to return to school. Tennessee police arrested him anyway.

Aliyya Swaby, ProPublica, Paige Pfleger

A Tennessee state law makes threats of mass violence at school a felony, even if they’re not credible. Judges and school officials say the law unnecessarily traumatizes kids.