New report finds Connecticut youth with disabilities were repeatedly denied critical supports before incarceration

Connecticut by the Numbers – Thursday, July 30, 2026

The Center for Children’s Advocacy has released a report that examines the educational trajectories of 10 youth and young adults with disabilities incarcerated in Connecticut’s adult correctional system before the age of 18. It highlights how missed opportunities throughout these young people’s lives, frequently from a very early age, restricted their access to appropriate educational, vocational, and life skills training.

The findings demonstrate that all of these youth experienced significant adverse childhood experiences—child abuse and neglect, parental incarceration, medical challenges, traumatic injuries, personal and community violence. They faced profound developmental challenges and ongoing academic and social-emotional difficulties long before justice-system involvement.

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