LOS ANGELES (AP) — California's top prosecutor said Wednesday he has asked a court to give the state control of Los Angeles County’s troubled juvenile detention facilities because incarcerated young people are enduring unsafe conditions, including violence and rampant drug abuse.
Attorney General Rob Bonta said he wants the county to hand over administration of the juvenile jails to a third-party receiver, a court-appointed official who will take over management and operations from the Los Angeles County Probation Department. The official will have control over budgets and staffing decisions.
“This is a last resort, but it’s also the one left to defend the safety of the young people in these facilities,†Bonta said. He said the “extraordinary step†was necessary because the county has failed to comply with a court order his office secured in 2021 requiring sweeping reforms.
The probation department, which oversees the juvenile halls, acknowledged some of the problems raised the by the attorney general, but said it was concerned by Bonta's request for “expansive state authority.â€
Bonta outlined safety concerns such as “youth on youth†violence, riots, “unmet medical needs,†low staffing, inadequate security cameras and drug overdoses, including one that led to the death of a teenager. Earlier this year Bonta indicted 30 probation officers accused of facilitating so-called “gladiator fights†between incarcerated juveniles.
“These young people deserve better, and my office will not stop until they get it,†Bonta said. "A receivership is the best and only option to turn Los Angeles County juvenile halls around, and we believe the court will agree.â€
In addition, the attorney general asked the court to establish a compensation fund for incarcerated youth “to redress and repair the injuries suffered in the county’s custody" and to cover medical and education expenses.
A hearing is set for Aug. 15. Bonta said if the court approves the plan, a receiver could be in place by the end of the summer.
“Our hope is that a receivership structure, should it be approved, be used as a collaborative tool to help remove obstacles — not as an isolating mechanism that sidelines the people and systems committed to improvements and reform," the probation department's statement said.
The department said Chief Probation Officer Guillermo Viera Rosa has worked to curb “decades-long dysfunction†by stabilizing staffing, improving safety protocols, increasing accountability for guard misconduct and expanding medical access for the incarcerated.
Previously, the Board of State and Community Corrections issued “unsuitable†designations for the Los Padrinos Juvenile Hall and Barry J. Nidorf Juvenile Hall. The state board, which inspects the youth prisons, that the county had been unable to correct problems including inadequate safety checks, low staffing, use of force and a lack of recreation and exercise.
The nonprofit Youth Justice Coalition said whether or not state receivership is implemented, officials should move toward permanently closing the juvenile halls.
“Our tax dollars are being spent to fund the abuse of young people,†the advocacy group said in a statement Wednesday. “Our youth don’t need more red tape and bureaucracy, they need an investment in care.â€
The coalition is pushing for “community based services†for young offenders that include a “high school diploma program, free expungements and legal services, substance abuse and overdose prevention education, youth jobs, and community organizing and advocacy training,†the statement said.
Bonta's request on Wednesday comes four years after California its three remaining state-run youth prisons and shifted the responsibility to counties.
The move to local control was the final step in a lengthy reform effort driven in part by a class-action lawsuit and incentives for counties to keep youths out of the state system. The state-run system also had a troubled history marked by inmate suicides and brawls.
