Stephanie Glass’ voice grew from a whisper to a bark: “Phones turned off. Pants pulled up. Shirts tucked in. Gum spit out. No talking. No laughing. No making faces.” She glared at a 15-year-old boy who was grinning, slumped in a chair outside Courtroom 5 at the Lake County Judicial Center. “No slouching,” Glass growled. The boy straightened his posture, and his grin melted. “This is an opportunity here, a real second chance,” said Glass, 37, a former youth counselor who received national recognition this year from the U.S. Department of Justice for her work as executive director of Lake County Teen Court, a diversionary program for first-time youthful offenders. Glass and other representatives of Florida’s 50 teen courts will gather this week in Orlando for their annual meeting, a conference where they will discuss new strategies to keep kids out of trouble. (Read Full Article Here)












