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Juvenile Injustice, Tennessee

Where Kids Meet the Rule of Law

Children in Rutherford County have been arrested and jailed at rates unparalleled in the state. We’re investigating how that happened — and other ways the justice system there singles out children.

Juvenile Injustice, Tennessee

Listen to All Episodes of “The Kids of Rutherford County”

ProPublica presents the complete podcast series “The Kids of Rutherford County” in partnership with Serial and WPLN Nashville Public Radio.

by ProPublica,

Local Reporting Network

Impact of Our Reporting
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Juvenile Injustice, Tennessee

The Head of a Tennessee Youth Detention Center Will Step Down After “Loss of Confidence” in His Leadership

A 2023 investigation by WPLN News and ProPublica found that Richard L. Bean was illegally locking kids up alone in cells. A new scandal has forced his resignation.

by Paige Pfleger, WPLN/Nashville Public Radio,

Local Reporting Network

Juvenile Injustice, Tennessee

Tennessee Lawmakers Demand an Audit of Juvenile Detention Facilities, Citing “Culture Of Lawlessness”

Following reporting from WPLN and ProPublica, the state lawmakers said there is a “culture of lawlessness” inside Knoxville’s Richard L. Bean Center and called for an audit throughout the system.

by Paige Pfleger, WPLN/Nashville Public Radio,

Local Reporting Network

Juvenile Injustice, Tennessee

Juvenile Detention Center That Illegally Jailed Kids Now Will Answer to an Oversight Board

The board is being put in place after a Nashville Public Radio/ProPublica investigation detailed how Tennessee's Rutherford County was jailing children at rates unmatched in the state.

by Meribah Knight, WPLN/Nashville Public Radio, and Ken Armstrong, ProPublica,

Local Reporting Network

Juvenile Injustice, Tennessee

Tennessee Judge Who Illegally Jailed Children Plans to Retire, Will Not Seek Reelection

Since 2000, Judge Donna Scott Davenport has overseen juvenile justice in Rutherford County. Following reporting from Nashville Public Radio and ProPublica, public outcry and a bill seeking to oust the judge, Davenport announced her retirement.

by Alexis Marshall and Meribah Knight, WPLN/Nashville Public Radio, and Ken Armstrong, ProPublica,

Local Reporting Network

Juvenile Injustice, Tennessee

Members of Congress Are Asking For an Investigation Into Rutherford County’s Juvenile Court

Government officials called Rutherford County’s juvenile justice system a “nightmare” that “boggles the mind.” They are demanding answers about why children were “unjustly searched, detained, charged, and imprisoned.”

by Meribah Knight, Nashville Public Radio, and Ken Armstrong, ProPublica,

Local Reporting Network

Juvenile Injustice, Tennessee

Outrage Grows Over Jailing of Children as Tennessee University Cuts Ties With Judge Involved

In the days following a ProPublica and Nashville Public Radio report on juvenile justice in Rutherford County, the president of Middle Tennessee State University told staff Judge Donna Scott Davenport “is no longer affiliated with the University.”

by Meribah Knight, WPLN/Nashville Public Radio, and Ken Armstrong, ProPublica,

Local Reporting Network

12 stories published since 2021

How the Head of an Embattled Tennessee Youth Detention Center Held on to Power for Decades

by Paige Pfleger, WPLN/Nashville Public Radio, and Mariam Elba, ProPublica,

Despite Outcry Over Seclusion at Juvenile Detention Centers, Tennessee Lawmakers Fail to Pass Oversight Bill

by Paige Pfleger, WPLN/Nashville Public Radio,

Tennessee Lawmakers Want More Oversight of Juvenile Detention. The Department of Children’s Services Is Pushing Back.

by Paige Pfleger, WPLN/Nashville Public Radio,

Knoxville’s Juvenile Detention Center Says Hundreds of Seclusions Were “Voluntary.” Some Kids Don’t See It That Way.

by Paige Pfleger, WPLN/Nashville Public Radio,

How “The Kids of Rutherford County” Sets Investigative Reporting to Music

by Ken Armstrong,

This Youth Detention Center Superintendent Illegally Locks Kids Alone in Cells. No One Has Forced Him to Stop.

by Paige Pfleger, WPLN/Nashville Public Radio,

Secrecy Shields Powerful Adults in Our Juvenile Justice Systems. Kids Showed Me What’s Really Happening.

by Meribah Knight, WPLN/Nashville Public Radio,

ProPublica and WPLN Win MOLLY National Journalism Prize for Investigative Journalism

ProPublica,

The Judge Who Illegally Jailed Children Is Retiring. The Candidates to Replace Her Have Different Approaches.

by Paige Pfleger, WPLN/Nashville Public Radio,

ProPublica and WPLN News Win Dori J. Maynard Justice Award

by ProPublica,

New Documents Prove Tennessee County Disproportionately Jails Black Children, and It’s Getting Worse

by Meribah Knight, Nashville Public Radio, and Ken Armstrong and Hannah Fresques, ProPublica,

Black Children Were Jailed for a Crime That Doesn’t Exist. Almost Nothing Happened to the Adults in Charge.

by Meribah Knight, WPLN/Nashville Public Radio, and Ken Armstrong, ProPublica,

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