Preston youth prison is notoriously known as the site of the double suicide of Durrell Feaster and Deon Whitfield, two youth who were found dead in the 6 by 8 foot cell they shared 23 hours a day as punishment.

The brutal conditions that led to Deon and Durrell's deaths still persist today even after millions of dollars of court ordered reforms. Even with a steadily declining youth prison, its rate of violent incidents has almost doubled.¹ Youths' ability to participate in programming and education is disrupted on a daily basis by Preston's chaotic environment. According to the latest School Attendance Report Card published by the California Department of Education, 0% of youth in Preston's high school are proficient in California Standards Tests in all subjects.²

Located in Amador County, Preston is the most isolated and the oldest of California's youth prisons. Family members must drive an average of 3 hours each way to visit their loved ones. Currently, none of the youth in Preston are from Amador County. There is no way to "fix" Preston. The only solution is to shut it down in favor of real rehabilitation centers closer to home.

Located near a women's prison and next to an adult men's prison, Heman G. Stark ("Stark") is located in Chino. With a population that has dwindled down to 379 youth, Stark remains one of the most violent youth prisons. Daily chaos prevents most youth from participating in programs.³

Like Preston, education is not a priority at Stark. The Inspector General reported in 2007 that youth in the Special Management Program at Stark received a shocking one hour of instruction every 18 days.⁴ Less than 1% of youth in Stark are proficient in basic subjects like English and History.⁵

While Heman G. Stark has a reputation of incarcerating an older population of youth, most people would be shocked to know that a 37 year-old "youth" is incarcerated with youth who are typically 15-24 years old.

California's Division of Juvenile Justice ("DJJ") youth prison system is a failure. Young people incarcerated in its warehouse-like prisons regularly suffer violence, abuse and neglect. DJJ spends $234,000 per youth per year, and yet its 72% recidivism rate is among the highest in the nation. The sheer volume of waste, combined with DJJ's inability to become rehabilitative, has prompted unprecedented calls for drastic change.

Last year, the bipartisan state watchdog Little Hoover Commission recommended that the state abolish the DJJ by 2011 and instead invest its resources in evidence-based, regionalized care⁶ -- a recommendation supporting the longstanding platform of the Books Not Bars campaign of the Ella Baker Center for Human Rights. In addition, in 2007 the California Legislature approved a plan to prohibit low-risk youth from entering the DJJ, instead funding counties to treat them. The realignment plan, known as SB 81, will slash the DJJ population by 40%. It also triggered the closures of two youth prisons in July of 2008. Earlier this year, the Legislative Analyst's Office recommended that youth remain in the counties and no longer be sent to DJJ.