Basic HTML Version
The rnaking and unrnaking of a
by
Mack Taylor
Photos by Mike Hend rickson
ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Mack
Taylor worked os
o
porole officer
four yeors for the California Youth
Authority ond was
o
social case
worker two yeors for the los
Angeles County Deportment of
Social Services.
In this article we have asked a
fonner paro/e officer to talk straight
from the shou/der to our teen-age
readers and their parents.
J
OHNNY's FIRST
encounter with
the law occurred when he ran
away from his foster home at
the age of nine. At age 10 he was
arrested for "sboplifting" - stealing
a sweater from a department store.
As each year went by.
b~
crimes
became progressively more serious.
By age 14 Johnny already had been
arrested for burglary, possession of
drugs, auto theft, and robbery. He
had been counseled and released by
the police department, placed on
probation, sent to the county junior
camp for rehabilitation, and finally,
17