Dreyshawn Augustus (center) finishes dressing before going out to work thinning the forest for fire prevention. At Pine Grove, the wards bunk together in a large hall and, unlike other institutions, they are not allowed any gang or race affiliations.
Demeatrice Henry and other members of the Ones, an a capella group that performed at the high school graduation at Pine Grove. The young men put aside gang and race affiliations to sing together.
Kevin Nguyen and the other wards make a grand entrance from the camp kitchen to their high school graduation ceremony. The camp has its own high school, and all inmates are required to study toward their high school diploma.
Former Pine Grove ward Brandon Harrell, now on parole, prints a class paper at the computer terminal at Evergreen Valley community college, where he is studying toward a degree in communications. Harrell was committed for stabbing his ex-girlfriend.
Anton Clark takes a quick nap after a long day working in the forest. When not at a fire, the men still work eight hours performing hard, manual labor, clearing brush, cutting trees, burning piles, after which they go to school and attend therapy.
Seen from the staff’s observation room in the barracks, a ward sits on the toilet early in the morning at Pine Grove. Despite the summer camp atmosphere, the total lack of privacy and personal space at Pine Grove camp remind one that the camp is still a prison of sorts. The wards have only their lockers and their beds to themselves, and those are frequently searched.
Pine Grove ward Shawn Ham cuts down a tree in a fire preventation operation for CalFire, the California wildfire agency. Ham was committed for a drive-by shooting at age 16, then released, and recently recommitted after being caught for drug dealing. He is first saw on the crew and looks forward to a career in firefighting.
The barracks at the Pine Grove Conservation camp, housing up to 85 wards of the state in the California juvenile justice system. The camp is 65 years old, the oldest work training institution for youth inmates of the California justice system.
Ray Rocha raises his arms for a punitive strip search at the entrance to the barracks at Pine Grove. The crew was being punished for fighting, and the staff must search for any signs of injury to ensure safety and to make sure the fighting was minor. A serious fight is grounds for expulsion from the camp back to a lock-down institution.
Wards at the Pine Grove camp receive plush toys, such as teddy bears, as part of their “Inner Wounded Child” therapy to help them recover from abusive childhoods. All wards are required to take various classes and therapies to address the problems that led them to prison in the first place, from anger management to substance abuse to relations with women.