12. KIDS FOR CASH: Two Judges, Thousands of Children, and a $2.8 Million Kickback Scheme By Willliam Ecenbarger

I was absolutely blown away reading this story of two corrupt Luzerne County, PA judges who decide that shoving kids into the system to make money off kickbacks was an okay thing to do.  These two judges destroyed the hopes of many of their defendants because they were in bed with a private contract company to filter kids, most of whom had no business being in "placement" (a kinder gentler way of saying lockdown).  Being a former Corrections Officer I can tell you being locked in like an animal on a daily basis can break you - hell I was able to leave every 8-16 hours and it nearly broke me.

The most reprehensible- this colleagues allowed this to go on - in front of their faces - while they pretended they knew nothing.  Someone - anyone - could have put a stop to this - but no, no one did.  Even sicker still - the lack of ownership of responsibility by either of the judges (Conahan & Ciavarella)