Kate Howard
Investigative reporter
Investigative reporter
For the past decade, the vast majority of the young people in Louisville’s secure detention facility have been black. A reporter wonders why more people aren't talking about the disparity.
When a youth is accused of a crime in Kentucky, an adult has to make a choice in nearly every step that follows. And a disproportionate number of the youth denied a second chance are black.
Black youth are less than 27 percent of Louisville’s youth population, but they represented more than 75 percent of the youth bookings in Louisville’s secure detention center last year.
Kentucky’s juvenile justice system has long been one of the most prolific in locking up youth on minor offenses and a recent reform has lessened — but not eliminated — the problem.