Report finds Ohio’s juvenile prisons need critical reforms
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Report finds Ohio’s juvenile prisons need critical reforms

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The recommendations come nine months after the results of an investigation by the Cincinnati Enquirer, Columbus Dispatch, Akron Beacon Journal and Canton Repository newspapers were published.

Report finds Ohio’s juvenile prisons need critical reforms

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Ohio should stop sending first-time violent offenders and children under the age of 14 to juvenile prisons and give juvenile court judges more discretion in how to handle children caught with guns, a new report says.

The Juvenile Justice Working Group, led by former Juvenile Corrections Director Tom Stickrath, issued a report Tuesday with 26 recommendations to Gov. Mike DeWine. Several of the recommendations would require lawmakers to take action.

The recommendations come nine months after the results of an investigation by the Cincinnati Enquirer, Columbus Dispatch, Akron Beacon Journal, Canton Repository and other publications were published on USA TODAY Network Ohio.

A newspaper investigation found that incarcerated children are victims of abuse and neglect, while guards are overwhelmed, understaffed and fear for their safety. Four in 10 teens who leave juvenile prisons end up back in the juvenile system or in adult prisons in Ohio.

Ohio operates juvenile prisons in Circleville, Massillon and Highland Hills for about 470 youths between the ages of 12 and 21 who have been found responsible for crimes. Children ages 10 and 11 who have been found to be delinquents are held in private facilities.

Ohio Department of Youth Services Director Amy Ast said there are fewer than a dozen 12- and 13-year-olds in juvenile detention, and about 34 children are being held for minor offenses.

Just weeks into the mission, the task force issued an early recommendation that Ohio close its large youth prisons and replace them with smaller, closer-to-home facilities. Other states have followed suit, including California in 2023.

The governor said Tuesday that the first of three juvenile prisons to close is Cuyahoga Hills Juvenile Correctional Facility in Highland Hills. It will be replaced by four 36-bed facilities. Nearly $290 million in state capital has already been approved. DeWine plans to work with lawmakers to obtain capital to eventually close the remaining two juvenile prisons and build eight smaller detention centers, bringing the total to 12.

Governor Mike DeWine: Close 3 Ohio Juvenile Prisons, Build a Dozen Smaller Facilities

The system faces two enormous challenges: acute staff shortages and powerful gangs.

Children in juvenile detention often join gangs to protect themselves. Gang members commit violent assaults and smuggle contraband into prisons. A juvenile justice group has recommended creating a gang coordinator position in the Ohio Department of Youth Services, who would work with local law enforcement and the highway patrol. The department director said the coordinator has been hired.

The Ohio Department of Youth Services does not have enough guards, teachers, or counselors to keep high-needs teens safe and educated and receive therapy. The staffing shortages keep kids locked up, leading to more violence.

“We cannot overstate the negative impact that the current staffing crisis is having on the ability of the juvenile justice system to protect staff and youth and provide effective rehabilitation across the state,” the report reads.

The report said Ohio should improve staff training, hiring and retention, and establish wellness programs for employees at every facility. The youth corrections department should also work with Ohio colleges and universities to build staffing capacity.

The group’s most important recommendations include:

  • Reduce the number of offenses for which teens are automatically sent to adult court, a process called bindover. Instead, give juvenile court judges more discretion in considering the facts of each case. In the last fiscal year, 175 teens were sent to adult court in Ohio, 111 of which were required by law.
  • Give juvenile court judges the discretion to decide how much time teens should spend for possession of a gun when they commit a crime. Current law mandates sentence length.
  • Build community correctional facilities, which are a step below juvenile detention, in Cuyahoga, Hamilton and Franklin counties. None of the 11 existing CCFs are in the three counties that send the most teens to detention. It’s unclear which county will get the first new CCF.
  • Assisting local juvenile detention centers in achieving national accreditation and certification under the National Prison Rape Elimination Act.
  • Collaborate with local mental health providers to expand services provided to children by prison and jail staff.

Two decades ago, Ohio housed about 2,000 children in 10 juvenile prisons. The state closed prisons and shifted services to local services. The total number of children charged with crimes has fallen from about 9,000 in 2004 to 3,200 in 2022.

Laura Bischoff is a reporter for the USA TODAY Network Ohio Bureau, which supports the Columbus Dispatch, Cincinnati Enquirer, Akron Beacon Journal and 18 other affiliated news organizations across Ohio.

Website https://www.oneroofptbo.ca

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