The BEST Episodes of Beyond Scared Straight
Every episode ever - ranked by fan votes!
Last Updated: Aug 7, 2020
Network: A&E
Beyond Scared Straight is a new series executive produced by Arnold Shapiro and based on his Academy Award and multiple Emmy-Winning documentary "Scared Straight!," that will profile unique approaches to juvenile crime prevention in prisons around the U.S. "Scared Straight!" has become an iconic name and a cultural phenomenon over the years. The film made a huge impact - showcasing the radical and effective juvenile intervention program that took place in a New Jersey prison. Since they were created, both the prison program and the film have turned countless kids away from drugs, violence and crime. The power of the original "Scared Straight!" program has inspired dozens of inmate-run intervention programs in men's and women's prisons across the country; and this series will showcase several of them. Under the auspices of Arnold Shapiro, "Beyond Scared Straight" profiles the new approach to keeping today's kids from becoming tomorrow's convicts. Much like the original version of "Scared Straight!," these youthful offender programs put boys and girls of all ethnicities, ranging in age from 13-18, into intensive one-day in-prison sessions that show them the realities of life behind bars. However, in many dramatic ways, these 21st Century programs are very different from the original because today's youth needs a different approach. For current teens, city streets can be as dangerous as the life they believe exists behind bars. TV, film and music have glorified the gang and prison experience and the task of "scaring" teens is more complicated now than ever. As a result, inmates have had to adapt their methods - making them more a combination of intimidation, information and communication - and the results for the new program have proven to be equally effective. Each 60-minute episode of "Beyond Scared Straight" will focus on a different prison program in the U.S., following 4 -5 at-risk teens. Viewers will follow them as they attend the program, experience the
#1 - San Bernardino, CA
Season 3 - Episode 6 - Aired Oct 25, 2012
Authorities hope a tour of prison will knock some much-needed sense into some troublesome teens from Southern California's San Bernardino County.
9.00 #2 - Follow-Up Special
Season 3 - Episode 17 - Aired Feb 7, 2013
Teens featured in earlier episodes of the series are revisited to see if their jailhouse experiences had any meaningful impact on their lives.
9.00 #3 - Hudson County, NJ
Season 3 - Episode 4 - Aired Oct 11, 2012
8.73 
#4 - Fulton County, Ga.: Blood Orange
Season 7 - Episode 6 - Aired Jul 31, 2014
A 13-year-old arsonist schemes to assault members of a rival gang, but his criminal plans change after he squeals on a larcenous convict.
8.35 #5 - Oakland County, MI
Season 2 - Episode 2 - Aired Aug 25, 2011
Oakland County, Michigan is a stone's throw from Detroit's infamous 8-Mile and the streets here are just as tough - but the deputies and inmates who run Oakland County Jail's "Turn-Around" program are even tougher.
8.31 #6 - Oakland County, Mich
Season 4 - Episode 5 - Aired Jul 11, 2013
A large 14-year-old who attacks his adoptive parents meets the hardened inmates and officers of a Michigan jail.
8.27 
#7 - St. Clair County, Ill: Precious Time
Season 6 - Episode 4 - Aired Mar 27, 2014
A 19-year-old high-school sophomore breaks into home and hustles on the street; two teenage drug users join the residents of the St. Clair County Jail in Illinois.
8.25 #8 - Hampton Roads, Va.: Girls Fight Back
Season 4 - Episode 8 - Aired Aug 1, 2013
Four troubled youngsters with bad attitudes take a trip to jail, only to learn their street reputations make them targets on the inside.
8.19 #9 - Hampton Roads Regional Jail
Season 2 - Episode 12 - Aired Jan 19, 2012
In the third-season finale, a teenage pyromaniac visits Virginia's Hampton Roads Regional Jail, where his mom works as a deputy.
8.17 #10 - Jacksonville, FL (Boys)
Season 3 - Episode 2 - Aired Aug 27, 2012
In Jacksonville, Florida, four at-risk teens attend a three-part "scared straight" tour. Towering over nearly everyone, KeShawn, 15, is intimidated by no one. But when KeShawn witnesses his pint-sized little brother, Kevon, suffering the terrifying consequences of trying to imitate his big bro, KeShawn breaks down, and gets a glimpse of what the future holds for both of them. Also, Johnny, a white, self-proclaimed racist, endures the wrath of the black inmate population.
8.09 #11 - Oklahoma City, Okla
Season 3 - Episode 12 - Aired Jan 3, 2013
Hardened criminals in the Oklahoma County Detention Center teach a spoiled drama queen a valuable lesson.
8.09 #12 - Suffolk County, Mass.: Boys
Season 3 - Episode 16 - Aired Jan 31, 2013
New visitors to the clink include a light-fingered football prodigy, a pot-smoking teen from the suburbs, and an aspiring rap star who thinks that hard time will improve his rhymes.
8.09 #13 - Charlotte County, Fla.
Season 5 - Episode 6 - Aired Nov 7, 2013
A teenage football star's drug use and violent ways threaten his dreams of a career in law enforcement; a police officer's son believes that he is above the law; a hulking teen troublemaker meets his match.
8.08 #14 - Western Tidewater Regional Jail, Va: Big and Bad
Season 4 - Episode 3 - Aired Jun 13, 2013
A 14-year-old street brawler's defiant attitude surprises the deputies at a Virginia jail.
8.08 #15 - Western Tidewater Regional Jail, VA
Season 2 - Episode 9 - Aired Dec 29, 2011
Siblings visit the Western Tidewater Regional Jail in Virginia.
8.07 #16 - San Bernadino County, CA
Season 2 - Episode 5 - Aired Sep 15, 2011
In the second-season finale, San Bernardino County Jail in California is visited by four teens who are also taken to the morgue to witness the consequences of gang violence.
8.06 #17 - Portsmouth County, VA
Season 2 - Episode 3 - Aired Sep 1, 2011
The at-risk teens of Portsmouth County, Virginia aren't afraid to fight back when confronted with a loud cellblock at Portsmouth County Jail. For one teen, a day is not enough and he is shocked when deputies show up at his home and return him to the
8.05 #18 - Oklahoma County, Okla
Season 2 - Episode 4 - Aired Sep 8, 2011
Teens in Oklahoma are being pulled into the gang lifestyle.
8.05 #19 - Queen Anne's County, MD
Season 2 - Episode 10 - Aired Jan 5, 2012
At the Queen Anne's County Jail "Reset" program in Maryland, six at-risk teens endure a four-day intervention program depicting the terrors of jail, a drunk driving fatality in a hospital trauma center and a glimpse of their own funeral. Eighteen year-old partiers Daria and Christopher, who are girlfriend and boyfriend, will find their relationship tested when they are forced to testify against each other in court.
8.00 #20 - St. Clair, IL
Season 3 - Episode 3 - Aired Oct 4, 2012
The Return of "Ice Mike" Troubled teens that attend the St. Clair County Jail diversion program take a lie detector test that reveals some shocking secrets. Inmates "Ice Mike" and "Hustle Man" return (from last season) to confront a BMX-riding stoner, a fearless gangster, a terrorizing bully, and Summer--a promiscuous under age girl who just doesn t say no to older boys--and her paralyzed mom can't stop her. Summer experiences the humiliation of jailhouse make-up and the surprising reaction Ice Mike has to her shameful behavior. Summer freaks out when she sees an inmate strapped into a restraint chair, and going wild. Pot-smoking Austin, 15, discovers an inmate who dipped his hands into boiling oil while high on drugs. Jeremy, 17, is tormented by inmates when they learn he assaulted his grandmother. An entire cell block descends on the four teens--and they have nowhere to hide.
8.00 #21 - Floyd County Jail, Ga: Deputy Lyle Returns
Season 4 - Episode 2 - Aired Jun 6, 2013
A colorful deputy attempts to change the lives of four teenage troublemakers spending time at his Georgia jail.
8.00 #22 - St. Clair County, Ill.
Season 4 - Episode 6 - Aired Jul 18, 2013
Ferocious killer Hustle Man attacks an at-risk teen who refuses to comb another prison inmate's chest hair.
8.00 #23 - Oklahoma County, Okla.: Teen Father?
Season 6 - Episode 6 - Aired Apr 10, 2014
Two brothers and a sister on a rampage of crime and violence are separated after being admitted to an Oklahoma jail.
8.00 
#24 - St. Clair County, Ill: Bunk & Junk
Season 7 - Episode 1 - Aired Jun 26, 2014
A stint in jail tests the loyalty of two close-knit sisters; a teenage thief follows in the footsteps of his younger brother.
8.00 #25 - Lights Out!
Season 9 - Episode 11 - Aired Sep 3, 2015
7.97