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| Juveniles Joining Arizona County Jail's Chain Gangs |
| By Arizona Republic |
| Published: 08/12/2002 |
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Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio is clamping down on juvenile inmates, shackling them to his controversial chain gang where they will be forced to pick up trash and bury the dead. 'These are juveniles who've been tried as adults,' Arpaio said recently. 'They've been convicted for serious crimes.' The move will take effect in September, seven years after Arpaio launched the country's first female chain gang. Like the male and female chain gangs, the juvenile chain gang will shackle about five inmates together at the ankle. They will wear traditional black and white prison garb as well as the jail's notorious pink underwear. The juveniles will be required to pick up trash on public streets and bury the relatives of indigent families at the county cemetery. Arpaio said the juvenile inmates, ages 15 to 17, are doing time in Madison Street Jail for felonies including rape and drive-by shootings. About 170 juveniles are incarcerated in Madison Street Jail, but only about 30 have been convicted and are eligible for the chain gang, where they will receive credits toward a high school diploma. 'We're going to teach them how to form trash companies,' he said. 'We're going to teach them how to hire people.' The juveniles also will learn how to bury the dead. 'We'll have them pray for the deceased,' he said. 'We'll talk to them about the cause of death.' |
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