My difficult child had a tour of the detention center last year. A man came out and got him (looked like Steve from Jerry Springer). He was gone about an hour, and it scared him very much. He was told there are fights as they cannot supervise every minute although they try.
My easy child's best friends father is a detective and also works at the middle school. Last year difficult child was not doing well at all, and we have known this family for 15 years. He arranged the tour. So, I don't know if he had them scare him more than normal.
Hope it works. My difficult child really turned around after that. New friends. or no friends. Went from the smoking, drinking drug using group to the cheerleader group. He was only 10 when he was caught with Pot. he bought it for a girl at school. We took him in for drug testing every two weeks for months, then we have the surprise tests, and also the home tests. Every singel test has come back clean. Even the first one when he admitted to smoking. Dr. said he must not have known how to do it.
But, his mood swings, his outbursts, his behavior has either pushed most of the kids away, or scared them away. But he has not gone back to the old group of kids. Hold my breath on that.
Hope it works.