On Current TV | June 17, 2009 | Comment on this video (8)

Carissa: From Juvie to Justice

dsauvage
Years ago, Carissa was abandoned in the lobby of the juvenile hall in Fresno. She ran away from group homes and ended up on the streets. Homeless and alone, she begged and stole to feed herself.

Foster care ignored her. The juvenile justice system failed her.

With no one to turn to, she was taken to "Motel Drive," a street in Fresno known for prostitution, and told what to do.

She was twelve years old.

Amazingly, Carissa turned her life around. She graduated from UCLA in June, 2007, with both a law degree and an MBA. Today she is a national spokesperson on the issue of youth homelessness for Virgin Mobile's RE*Generation campaign. She is also starting a non-profit foundation and developing a fund for community economic development in Fresno.

A classmate at UCLA Anderson, David Sauvage, has made Carissa, a documentary about her life. He and Carissa traveled to Fresno in the summer of 2006 and captured the best and worst of her journey, to see what can be learned from it.

They came back with some astonishing material.

Sponsored by Virgin Mobile and the Los Angeles Dodgers Dream Foundation, the film has been having great success on the festival circuit, winning the Jury Prize in its category seven times. Carissa was also one of four short films selected by the International Documentary Association for Docuweek, a prestigious theatrical showcase held at the Arclight in Los Angeles that qualifies documentaries for Academy Award consideration.
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    On Current TV,  VC2 on TV,  Documentary,  Child Abuse,  8 more
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8 comments // Carissa: From Juvie to Justice // Video

  • YumeJam
  • ahgemini86
  • gem7007
  • satchel
    • 0
      satchel  

    • Parts of the pod are clear evidence that she's slanting her own story to seem more sympathetic and dramatic. Someone needs to do some fact-checking and verify that key parts of her story are the "truth."

    • 2 years ago
  • highproof
    • 0
      highproof  

    • This cut is morbidly obese, it can easily drop ten minutes. The subject, interaction, and intention of the piece are all excellent, but at this length the viewer is just drowning in repetition and floundering story line.

    • 2 years ago
  • kiwishines
    • 0
      kiwishines  

    • My husband and I watched this last night and were both moved to tears. Her story is heart wrenching and inspiring. What a success story for the correctional system when all we usually here is negative. She is doing so much with the opportunity she has been given. Thank you for sharing this wonderful story with all of us, and thank you Current for providing this amazing forum for filmakers and journalist to tell these great stories.

    • 2 years ago
  • leahl
    • 0
      leahl  

    • Fully inspiring, Thank you to everyone who put their energy into producing this, and especially Carissa for having the courage to tell her story.

    • 2 years ago
  • electriccaliboi
    • 0
      electriccaliboi  

    • Dear Current,
      Thank you for this. Someone has finally shed some light on Fresno, CA. Coming from the central valley I know Fresno, I have been to Fresno, Fresno is where my local news comes from, I live less than 40 minutes from the worst part of Fresno, more than likely where all the horror stories of Carissa come from. This is only the tip of the iceberg for how bad Fresno can get. More pods on Fresno would be greatly insightful for everyone in California and the United States.

    • 2 years ago
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