Deterrence through education?

An intriguing idea coming out of Lynne Abraham's District Attorneys office involves teaching young people about the legal system -- both the penalties for making the wrong choices, and the different people who are part of the process (such as prosecutors and defense attorneys). They hope it will deter potential youth offenders, and maybe inspire a few kids to join the legal professions. The new material will become a set of weekly lessons within the social studies classes of middle schoolers throughout the Philadelphia school system starting this fall. Only time will tell whether teachers can handle the topic well and what students make of it.