Probation officer stabbed in neck, face at troubled L.A. County juvenile hall
1 year, 8 months ago

Probation officer stabbed in neck, face at troubled L.A. County juvenile hall

LA Times  

Barry J. Nidorf Juvenile Hall in Sylmar, where a probation officer was stabbed in the neck by a youth Monday night, law enforcement sources say. A probation officer was stabbed in the neck in one of Los Angeles County’s long-troubled probation halls Monday night, just days before a state oversight board is expected to vote to shut down the facility. Although the oversight body has repeatedly found the county’s juvenile halls “unsuitable” to house youths since 2021, it has also given the Probation Department a chance to fix its deficiencies. “If the board determines that the facilities are not suitable for the confinement of youth, the county must vacate the juvenile halls within 60 days following the determination,” wrote Allison Ganter, the board’s deputy director, in a letter to interim Probation Chief Karen Fletcher last month.

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History of this topic

In leaked tape, probation official says L.A. County could defy order to close juvenile hall
4 weeks, 1 day ago

In leaked tape, probation official says L.A. County could defy order to close juvenile hall

LA Times  

A top L.A. County probation official has said the agency won’t obey a state order to vacate Los Padrinos Juvenile Hall this month, potentially setting up a costly showdown between state and county officials and prompting threats of legal action from defense attorneys. “It is vital to note that without an alternative site or plan proposed by our governing agency …

L.A. County probation chief plans to quit as juvenile hall closure looms
1 month ago

L.A. County probation chief plans to quit as juvenile hall closure looms

LA Times  

The California Board of State and Community Corrections found in October that Los Padrinos Juvenile Hall in Downey was no longer safe for youths. L.A. County’s chief probation officer said he plans to depart the troubled agency as a deadline to evacuate Los Padrinos Juvenile Hall approaches, sources said, potentially leaving more than 200 incarcerated youths with no place to …

As L.A. County juvenile halls become more violent, many officers are skipping work
6 months, 2 weeks ago

As L.A. County juvenile halls become more violent, many officers are skipping work

LA Times  

Despite a crackdown, many probation officers at L.A. County’s two juvenile halls routinely skip shifts, causing chaos for the incarcerated youths and the staff. Even after two dozen additional officers arrived, the staffing remained “dangerously low,” enabling the chaotic escape on Nov. 4, according to a report by the Los Angeles County inspector general’s office. Across the three shifts at …

4 more L.A. County probation officers put on leave in connection with ‘youth-on-youth violence’
8 months, 2 weeks ago

4 more L.A. County probation officers put on leave in connection with ‘youth-on-youth violence’

LA Times  

A dozen staff members at Los Padrinos juvenile hall in Downey are now on disciplinary leave. Four L.A. County probation officers have been placed on leave in connection with “youth-on-youth violence” inside a Downey detention facility, officials announced Friday. The discipline comes after eight officers working at Los Padrinos juvenile hall were placed on leave for allowing a group of …

Los Angeles County’s troubled juvenile halls get reprieve, can remain open after improvements
8 months, 4 weeks ago

Los Angeles County’s troubled juvenile halls get reprieve, can remain open after improvements

Associated Press  

LOS ANGELES — Los Angeles County’s troubled juvenile detention facilities, on the verge of shutting down over safety issues and other problems, can remain open, state regulators decided Thursday. Board chair Linda Penner said while the county had made some improvements, officials should not consider the outcome of the vote “mission accomplished,” the Southern California News Group reported. The Los …

In nick of time, L.A. County adds staff to keep juvenile halls open. Many are skeptical it’ll last
8 months, 4 weeks ago

In nick of time, L.A. County adds staff to keep juvenile halls open. Many are skeptical it’ll last

LA Times  

Los Angeles County once again narrowly averted a shutdown of its two juvenile halls, bolstering staffing enough to temporarily appease state regulators. They voted 6 to 3 to let the county’s Probation Department keep its two troubled halls open, primarily thanks to beefed-up staffing levels. Probation Chief Guillermo Viera Rosa, who used to be a member of the state board, …

Editorial: Juvenile probation failures have left L.A.’s troubled kids nowhere to go
9 months ago

Editorial: Juvenile probation failures have left L.A.’s troubled kids nowhere to go

LA Times  

Police search young men for weapons and drugs during a sweep in South Los Angeles in 1985, an era when the California Youth Authority turned from rehabilitation to harsh punishment. It’s not at all clear what will happen if the Board of State and Community Corrections determines on Thursday that Los Angeles County’s two juvenile halls remain unsuitable for the …

L.A. County has 2 months to fix problems in juvenile hall — or get everyone out. Again
10 months, 3 weeks ago

L.A. County has 2 months to fix problems in juvenile hall — or get everyone out. Again

LA Times  

Los Angeles County will once again have to figure out where to place over 300 young people in its custody — unless probation officials can pull off dramatic improvements at their long-troubled facilities in the next two months. State regulators on Thursday voted to find both Los Padrinos Juvenile Hall in Downey and Barry J. Nidorf Juvenile Hall in Sylmar …

Nine months after opening, L.A. County’s newest juvenile hall under fire from regulators
11 months ago

Nine months after opening, L.A. County’s newest juvenile hall under fire from regulators

LA Times  

Nine months after state regulators ordered Los Angeles County officials to transfer hundreds of youths out of two troubled juvenile halls, they are now considering closing a third hall — the one that probation officials recently reopened to appease regulators in the first place. The Board of State and Community Corrections sent a letter Wednesday to Probation Department Chief Guillermo …

Kids complained for years about sexually abusive probation officers. Some of them still work for L.A. County
1 year ago

Kids complained for years about sexually abusive probation officers. Some of them still work for L.A. County

LA Times  

Dominique Anderson, shown about age 11, said her probation officer’s boss molested her in a motel room when she was about 13. Yu, Walker’s attorney, said his client had dedicated his career to serving the residents of L.A. County and left the job a “highly-decorated” peace officer. “I spent almost a year in a locked-down facility, with a disgusting, horny, …

Youth incarcerated at Los Padrinos briefly escapes after staff assaulted, authorities say
1 year, 2 months ago

Youth incarcerated at Los Padrinos briefly escapes after staff assaulted, authorities say

LA Times  

A youth incarcerated at Los Padrinos Juvenile Hall in Downey briefly escaped from the facility Saturday night after “an incident that resulted in staff being assaulted,” according to the Los Angeles County Probation Department. The county scrambled to reopen Los Padrinos in May after California’s Board of State and Community Corrections ordered most youths out of two other facilities for …

Gun is found in Los Padrinos Juvenile Hall days after county announced youth transfers
1 year, 5 months ago

Gun is found in Los Padrinos Juvenile Hall days after county announced youth transfers

LA Times  

The county announced it had successfully moved nearly 300 youths into newly reopened Los Padrinos Juvenile Hall earlier this week. Just days after L.A. County moved 274 youths out of two troubled juvenile facilities and into the newly reopened Los Padrinos Juvenile Hall in Downey, a gun was found inside the facility, well beyond security checkpoints meant to keep weapons …

As L.A. County moves youths out of troubled juvenile halls, will anything change?
1 year, 6 months ago

As L.A. County moves youths out of troubled juvenile halls, will anything change?

LA Times  

Los Padrinos Juvenile Hall in Downey was shut down in 2019 after six probation officers were charged with assaulting teenagers. The last time Los Padrinos Juvenile Hall housed some of Los Angeles County’s most troubled youths, it was mired in scandal and pegged as obsolete. But later this month Los Padrinos will reopen — something of a last resort after …

State orders L.A. County to move nearly 300 youths out of ‘unsuitable’ juvenile halls
1 year, 7 months ago

State orders L.A. County to move nearly 300 youths out of ‘unsuitable’ juvenile halls

LA Times  

Central Juvenile Hall in Boyle Heights, above, and the Barry J. Nidorf Juvenile Hall in Sylmar were ruled “unsuitable” by state regulators on Tuesday. The unanimous decision by the Board of State and Community Corrections leaves the county scrambling to vacate Barry J. Nidorf Juvenile Hall in Sylmar and Central Juvenile Hall in Boyle Heights by mid-July. A team of …

18-year-old dies of overdose in L.A. County juvenile hall, as state suggests shutdown
1 year, 8 months ago

18-year-old dies of overdose in L.A. County juvenile hall, as state suggests shutdown

LA Times  

A state oversight agency issued a report Tuesday calling for Los Angeles County’s juvenile halls to be shuttered in the wake of a staffing crisis and reports of increased violence and drug use, just hours after an 18-year-old was found dead of an apparent overdose in one of the deteriorating facilities. The young man was found unresponsive in his room …

Editorial: L.A. County’s juvenile hall catastrophe is a quarter-century in the making
1 year, 8 months ago

Editorial: L.A. County’s juvenile hall catastrophe is a quarter-century in the making

LA Times  

Barry J. Nidorf Juvenile Hall is named for the last Los Angeles County chief probation officer to keep the position for more than four years. On Wednesday, the California Department of Justice asked a court to enforce a 2021 settlement requiring L.A. County to fix “illegal and unsafe conditions” at Nidorf and Central Juvenile Hall near downtown Los Angeles, noting …

State regulators give L.A. County more time to fix dysfunctional juvenile halls
1 year, 8 months ago

State regulators give L.A. County more time to fix dysfunctional juvenile halls

LA Times  

State regulators on Thursday gave Los Angeles County more time to remedy problems at Barry J. Nidorf Juvenile Hall in Sylmar, above, and Central Juvenile Hall in Boyle Heights. State regulators on Thursday put off a shutdown of Los Angeles County’s two dysfunctional juvenile halls, angering youth advocates who accused the state agency of shirking its responsibility to shutter facilities …

Editorial: Shut down L.A.’s broken juvenile probation. Overhaul proposals are too little, too late
1 year, 9 months ago

Editorial: Shut down L.A.’s broken juvenile probation. Overhaul proposals are too little, too late

LA Times  

The Board of Supervisors’ belated flurry of directives this month to prevent the state-ordered closure of L.A. County’s two juvenile halls was far too little and probably came far too late. As The Times reported Friday, the California Board of State and Community Corrections notified the county’s interim chief probation officer Thursday that it will decide on April 13 whether …

Shutdown looms for L.A. County’s troubled juvenile halls, state warns
1 year, 9 months ago

Shutdown looms for L.A. County’s troubled juvenile halls, state warns

LA Times  

The Barry J. Nidorf Juvenile Hall in Sylmar is one of two facilities threatened with shutdown by state regulators. State regulators have warned Los Angeles County officials that they will probably shut down the county’s two long-troubled juvenile halls — an unprecedented order that would further destabilize the nation’s largest juvenile justice system and leave officials scrambling to find suitable …

Officials hastily moved kids out of L.A. juvenile hall to avoid inspection, report finds
2 years ago

Officials hastily moved kids out of L.A. juvenile hall to avoid inspection, report finds

LA Times  

Dozens of youths were moved from Central Juvenile Hall in Lincoln Heights to the Barry J. Nidorf hall in Sylmar, shown. The top brass within the Los Angeles County Probation Department hastily moved children out of Central Juvenile Hall not for reasons of safety but to avoid political embarrassment, according to a report released Friday from a county watchdog. The …

Inside months of chaos at L.A. County’s juvenile halls: lockdowns, staff shortages
2 years, 1 month ago

Inside months of chaos at L.A. County’s juvenile halls: lockdowns, staff shortages

LA Times  

The desperation pervading Los Angeles County’s juvenile halls can be distilled into a single incident and its aftermath. Of the roughly 1,200 jobs available in L.A. County’s two juvenile halls, 40% are filled by “able-bodied” probation officers, people who can physically interact with kids, according to the department. The Times spoke to nearly two dozen people with direct involvement in …

Another L.A. juvenile hall fails inspection weeks after Central Juvenile Hall evacuation
2 years, 9 months ago

Another L.A. juvenile hall fails inspection weeks after Central Juvenile Hall evacuation

LA Times  

After about 140 youths were transferred to Barry J. Nidorf Juvenile Hall in Sylmar, the facility failed inspection. Barry J. Nidorf juvenile hall failed an inspection by state regulators Thursday, just weeks after approximately 140 youths were hastily transferred there due to the shutdown of Los Angeles County’s other troubled juvenile facility. Last month, the Probation Department hastily transferred 140 …

‘We’re screwed’: L.A. County empties troubled juvenile hall ahead of state board’s inspection
2 years, 9 months ago

‘We’re screwed’: L.A. County empties troubled juvenile hall ahead of state board’s inspection

LA Times  

The L.A. County Probation Department hastily moved out all children housed in its troubled Central Juvenile Hall over the weekend, ahead of an inspection from state regulators, officials said. One probation official said the rush to shutter Central Juvenile Hall came after its staff began to review footage from the facility’s security cameras in advance of the inspection. Solis, who …

‘Impostor’ performs COVID tests on kids after security breach at L.A. juvenile hall
2 years, 11 months ago

‘Impostor’ performs COVID tests on kids after security breach at L.A. juvenile hall

LA Times  

An “impostor” pretending to be a medical professional got inside a Los Angeles County juvenile detention facility last week and swabbed the mouths of several children, according to an email obtained by The Times and a former county official. The breach occurred Jan. 29 at Barry J. Nidorf Juvenile Hall in Sylmar, according to an email exchange between several employees …

L.A. County juvenile detention halls are ‘suitable’ for housing youths, for now
3 years, 1 month ago

L.A. County juvenile detention halls are ‘suitable’ for housing youths, for now

LA Times  

The Barry J. Nidorf Juvenile Hall, one of L.A. County’s two juvenile detention centers, also referred to as juvenile halls. A state corrections board decided Thursday that Los Angeles County’s juvenile halls are “suitable” to house youths after previous inspections had placed the facilities in danger of closing. California Pepper spray is used too frequently on L.A. juvenile detainees, report …

L.A. County juvenile halls are ‘unsuitable for the confinement of youth,’ state board finds
3 years, 3 months ago

L.A. County juvenile halls are ‘unsuitable for the confinement of youth,’ state board finds

LA Times  

Both of Los Angeles County’s juvenile halls are unsuitable to house young people, a state agency that monitors such facilities has found. L.A. County Supervisor Sheila Kuehl said in a statement that the oversight board’s move was “unusual” and that the county must act quickly. Supervisor Hilda Solis said she has asked both the Probation Oversight Commission, a civilian board …

Settlement aims to improve ‘insufficient’ conditions at L.A.County’s juvenile halls
3 years, 11 months ago

Settlement aims to improve ‘insufficient’ conditions at L.A.County’s juvenile halls

LA Times  

State investigators announced an agreement Wednesday with Los Angeles County to improve conditions in its troubled juvenile detention centers — the result of a two-year investigation that found the lockups had insufficient services and endangered youth safety. The settlement came amid the prospect of potential civil action in Los Angeles County Superior Court by Becerra’s office — litigation that county …

L.A. County moves to create new juvenile justice system focused on ‘care,’ not punishment
4 years, 1 month ago

L.A. County moves to create new juvenile justice system focused on ‘care,’ not punishment

LA Times  

A new arrival at Camp Kenyon Scudder has her handcuffs removed at the girls detention center in 2013. The camp is implementing a new health screening program that is trying to address the problems females might face coming into L.A. County’s juvenile justice system and flag girls who might need additional help. Politics California probation chiefs brace for changes to …

After reports of chaos in L.A. juvenile halls, state officials visit two facilities
5 years, 7 months ago

After reports of chaos in L.A. juvenile halls, state officials visit two facilities

LA Times  

Officials from the California Department of Justice on Thursday visited two of Los Angeles County’s troubled juvenile halls — a sign that conditions inside the facilities are drawing the attention of state monitors. A spokesman for the county’s Probation Department, which operates the network of 10 juvenile halls and camps, initially referred questions to the other agencies involved but later …

L.A. County juvenile halls are so chaotic, officers are afraid to go to work
5 years, 7 months ago

L.A. County juvenile halls are so chaotic, officers are afraid to go to work

LA Times  

The detention officer’s email described “chaos” inside one of Los Angeles County’s juvenile halls. Her words were desperate, describing unruly, violent youth and fed up detention officers — enough to prompt a surprise visit by Joe Gardner, president of the county’s volunteer advisory panel, the Probation Commission. Employees are stated to be quitting.” In another telling example from the email, …

Dysfunction at juvenile detention centers is bigger than pepper spray, L.A. County report says
5 years, 10 months ago

Dysfunction at juvenile detention centers is bigger than pepper spray, L.A. County report says

LA Times  

Life inside Los Angeles County’s juvenile detention centers can be menacing for the hundreds of young people locked up there — and for the guards who oversee them. “There’s a lot of volatility.” The situation was brought to light last week in a report by the county’s Office of Inspector General that was prompted by a sharp rise in pepper-spray …

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