Officials in Lauderdale County , Mississippi , have operated `` a school-to-prison pipeline '' that violates the constitutional rights of juveniles by incarcerating them for alleged school disciplinary infractions , some as minor as defiance , the U.S. Department of Justice said Friday . `` Students most affected by this system are African-American children and children with disabilities , '' the Justice Department said . The federal agency 's civil rights division seeks `` meaningful negotiations '' in 60 days to end the constitutional violations or else a federal lawsuit would be filed against state , county and local officials in Meridian , according to a Justice Department letter dated Friday to those officials . The letter also names two Lauderdale County Youth Court judges , Frank Coleman and Veldore Young . State and local officials could n't be reached immediately for comment Friday . `` The systematic disregard for children 's basic constitutional rights by agencies with a duty to protect and serve these children betrays the public trust , '' Thomas E. Perez , assistant U.S. attorney general , said in a statement . `` We hope to resolve the concerns outlined in our findings in a collaborative fashion , but we will not hesitate to take appropriate legal action if necessary . '' In 2009 , the Lauderdale County Juvenile Detention Facility in Meridian was the target of a federal class-action lawsuit by the Southern Poverty Law Center that alleged children and teens were subjected to `` shockingly inhumane '' treatment , the center said . The alleged mistreatment included youngsters being `` crammed into small , filthy cells and tormented with the arbitrary use of Mace as a punishment for even the most minor infractions -- such as 'talking too much ' or failing to sit in the 'back of their cells , ' '' the center said in a statement . In 2010 , Lauderdale County officials and the center reached an agreement to reform the jail system and consider alternatives to sending youths to the detention center , said the Southern Poverty Law Center , a nonprofit civil rights group . `` I think this is evidence of a broken system where the most vulnerable population of kids are not receiving their constitutionally guaranteed rights , '' Jody Owens II , managing attorney for the center 's Mississippi office , told CNN . On Friday , the U.S. Justice Department accused Meridian police of automatically arresting all students referred by the city 's public schools and then sending them to the county juvenile justice system , `` where existing due process protections are illusory and inadequate , '' the federal letter says . The police department command staff and officers characterized their agency as a `` taxi service '' for the schools and juvenile detention facility , without assessing the circumstances of the alleged charges against students , the Justice Department said . `` The Youth Court places children on probation , and the terms of the probation set by the Youth Court and DYS require children on probation to serve any suspensions from school incarcerated in the juvenile detention center , '' the Justice Department letter said .
U.S. Justice Department accuses Lauderdale County of violating rights of pupils . Federal officials : The school district is accused of failing to provide a safe environment for students with disabilities and their families. African-Americans and children with disabilities are most affected . In 2010 , the county settled a separate class-action suit and pledged juvenile justice reforms .