Are Juvenile Detention Centers Using Drugs to Control Kids?

Are Juvenile Detention Centers Using Drugs to Control Kids?
Not only are they using drug's on kids to control them, so are children's homes and foster homes!

by Elizabeth Renter October 06, 2010 07:22 AM (PT) Topics: Juvenile Justice, Mental H
What do you imagine the halls of a juvenile detention facility sound like? Loud and rowdy? These youth weren’t incarcerated for being docile and submissive, after all, so it would seem highly unlikely one could find a quiet spot in such an institution, right? But, according to some, the sounds of juvenile detention centers have changed drastically over the past several decades -- they've gotten a lot quieter -- largely due to the use of prescription sedation.

A study released this week by Youth Today suggests that children behind bars are being overmedicated and given anti-psychotic drugs when they have no applicable mental diagnosis. While gone are the days of tying unruly juvenile offenders down, the organization says there is much evidence pointing to the use of these powerful drugs as the new restraints.

Called “atypicals," these anti-psychotic drugs are intended for severe mental illnesses, particularly schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. This group of drugs emerged in the 1990s but many of them were being prescribed to incarcerated juveniles long before they were approved for use in adolescents. Abilify, Risperdal, Seroquel and Zyprexa are some of the drugs included in this classification. Another, Geodon, is still not approved for youth -- though that doesn’t mean officials at juvenile facilities aren't using them.

Read more at:
http://criminaljustice.change.org/blog/view/are_juvenile_detention_centers_using_drugs_to_control_kids