Congress has cut federal funding for public media — a $3.4 million loss for LAist. We count on readers like you to protect our nonprofit newsroom. Become a monthly member and sustain local journalism.
Los Padrinos Juvenile Hall Goes On Lockdown Days After County Completed Transfer Of Hundreds Of Kids
Barbed wire lines the walls of Central Juvenile Hall in Los Angeles. The incident Friday took place at Los Padrinos Juvenile Hall.
(
Chava Sanchez
/
LAist
)
The Los Angeles County Probation Department said in a statement Friday night that a gun was found at around 10 a.m. at Los Padrinos Juvenile Hall in Downey. The department said the firearm was found in “an area only accessible to staff.”
“No youth had access to it, and nobody was injured,” the department said in a statement emailed to LAist.
The L.A. Times reported that the firearm was found in a location that youth could access, citing anonymous sources.
The backstory
In May, the Board of State and Community Corrections (BSCC) gave L.A. County 60 days to transfer nearly 300 incarcerated youths to Los Padrinos juvenile hall in Downey after it found facilities in Sylmar and near downtown L.A. to be unsuitable.
Support for LAist comes from
The L.A. County Probation Department said earlier this week it had completed the move ahead of schedule. In a statement on Wednesday, Guillermo Viera Rosa, the interim probation chief, said the county had gone “from Mission Impossible to mission accomplished.”
The reaction to Friday's incident
“This is absolutely unacceptable. Every single person entering our juvenile facilities is supposed to be searched by security, including all staff and visitors. If this current security company is unable to do that, we should find a new one,” said L.A. County Supervisor Janice Hahn in an emailed statement.
What's next
The Probation Department said that, as of Friday afternoon at around 5pm, the facility remained on lockdown as local law enforcement worked on investigating.
Support for LAist comes from
As Editor-in-Chief of our newsroom, I’m extremely proud of the work our top-notch journalists are doing here at LAist. We’re doing more hard-hitting watchdog journalism than ever before — powerful reporting on the economy, elections, climate and the homelessness crisis that is making a difference in your lives. At the same time, it’s never been more difficult to maintain a paywall-free, independent news source that informs, inspires, and engages everyone.
Simply put, we cannot do this essential work without your help. Federal funding for public media has been clawed back by Congress and that means LAist has lost $3.4 million in federal funding over the next two years. So we’re asking for your help. LAist has been there for you and we’re asking you to be here for us.
We rely on donations from readers like you to stay independent, which keeps our nonprofit newsroom strong and accountable to you.
No matter where you stand on the political spectrum, press freedom is at the core of keeping our nation free and fair. And as the landscape of free press changes, LAist will remain a voice you know and trust, but the amount of reader support we receive will help determine how strong of a newsroom we are going forward to cover the important news from our community.
Please take action today to support your trusted source for local news with a donation that makes sense for your budget.
Thank you for your generous support and believing in independent news.
Chip in now to fund your local journalism
(
LAist
)
Trending on LAist
-
With less to prove than LA, the city is becoming a center of impressive culinary creativity. -
Nearly 470 sections of guardrailing were stolen in the last fiscal year in L.A. and Ventura counties.
-
Monarch butterflies are on a path to extinction, but there is a way to support them — and maybe see them in your own yard — by planting milkweed.
-
With California voters facing a decision on redistricting this November, Surf City is poised to join the brewing battle over Congressional voting districts.
-
The drug dealer, the last of five defendants to plead guilty to federal charges linked to the 'Friends' actor’s death, will face a maximum sentence of 65 years in prison.
-
The weather’s been a little different lately, with humidity, isolated rain and wind gusts throughout much of Southern California. What’s causing the late-summer bout of gray?
Best of LAist