Teen Offenders Spared the Rod

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Schiraldi is in the process of overhauling services, moving them closer to where most of his charges live and making them more accessible. Home services are less costly than residential treatment or jail cells, Schiraldi said.

Duane Patterson is one example of what the city can offer. For years, his mother, Patricia, tried to get special education services for Patterson, who at 17 was still in middle school when he was released in October. He has a learning disability and has had asthma, migraines and seizures for years. Now, a monitor stops by every night to ensure that he has met his 9 p.m. curfew. A social worker is on call for crisis intervention. Even so, his mother worries that it might not be enough.

"I don't want my kid on the street robbing somebody or killing somebody," she said, welcoming the in-home support.

Such support is considered key to success. Not everyone, even under Schiraldi, has gotten the support that is needed. Cheryl Harris pleaded with Youth Services to lock up her son for missing curfew, getting high and skipping school after he got out of Oak Hill.

Her calls to caseworkers went unanswered.

In March, Ryan Harris was shot twice in the head in front of his grandmother's house in Northeast. He was 15 and, technically, still under District supervision.