Transforming Juvenile Justice: Reform Ideals and Institutional Realities,1825-1920

As juvenile justice dominates the headlines, the time has come to reexamine the history of this controversial institution. In Transforming Juvenile Justice, Steven L. Schlossman traces the evolution of the idea that young lawbreakers, or potential lawbreakers, merit special treatment. He closely examines the Milwaukee Juvenile Court and the Wisconsin State Reform School to reveal how Progressive theory—the belief that rehabilitation and careful oversight should replace punishment of de…