California Attorney General Rob Bonta joined forces with the County of Los Angeles to file a joint motion to amend the court judgment concerning conditions in the County’s juvenile facilities. This action follows the County’s inability to enhance conditions and provide sufficient staffing as mandated by a previous settlement and court order.
Due to disturbing reports from an independent monitor about worsening conditions at Barry J. Nidorf Secure Youth Treatment Facility and Los Padrinos Juvenile Hall, Attorney General Bonta found it essential to introduce additional judgment terms and monitoring for the safety and welfare of the youth in these facilities. The revised judgment, pending court approval, mandates further policy adjustments, staffing enhancements, and training to tackle unlawful and hazardous conditions, while also reinforcing and prolonging the monitoring and reporting protocols to ensure thorough compliance by the County.
“The County of Los Angeles is responsible for safeguarding the safety and well-being of the children at its juvenile halls – and it has utterly failed in this responsibility to date,” said Bonta.“These new terms will strengthen oversight and accountability, and lead to necessary and overdue improvement to conditions at these facilities. As the state’s chief law enforcement officer, I take my responsibility seriously, and I know that we won’t break the cycle of incarceration without ensuring the education, healing, and rehabilitation of those involved in the juvenile justice system. I am hopeful that this new, expanded agreement will address persistent problems at these juvenile halls, but my office will be watching closely and ready to take further action if needed.”
Previously, the attorney general secured a motion to enforce various provisions of the judgment. Despite initial progress, alarming safety threats persisted including the County’s failure to adequately staff the juvenile halls; to stem the flow of drugs; to prevent staff from instigating or encouraging youth-on-youth assaults; to deliver youth to medical appointments; to prevent retaliation against youth who file grievances; and to ensure cameras are installed in all areas and that video footage is reviewed, among other concerns.
The amended judgment, submitted to the Los Angeles Superior Court, stipulates strengthening monitoring with regular public reports, enhancing youth safety protocols, ensuring service access through an electronic data system, resolving staffing crises, enforcing anti-retaliation policies, and revising deficient policies related to violence and child abuse reporting.