New Security Measures, Including Pepper Spray, Implemented At Los Padrinos Juvenile Hall

Los Padrinos Juvenile Hall in Downey has introduced a series of new security measures, which the Los Angeles County Probation Department said are meant to thwart escape attempts and prevent drugs from entering the facility.

The department installed razor wire on the walls of the facility in December “for the protection of our youth and the public,” the department said following an escape attempt in November.

The statement added that the department hopes “to eventually remove the razor wire,” with no timeline given.

Given “contraband concerns” in the facility, officials said they are “collaborating with outside agencies that have technology and capacity to assist in investigations of electronic devices.”

“Over a dozen safety and security specialists were deployed the first week of December and have been present with K9 to monitor visiting each weekend,” officials said in the statement. “In addition, these security specialists conduct exterior perimeter checks.”

Visitors to the facility will also soon be subject to the full body scanners, like at an airport. All mail and parcels entering the premises are screened for drugs.

The security measures were implemented after some youth detained in the facility attempted to escape last year. At another facility, Barry J. Nidorf Juvenile Hall in Sylmar, a teenager was found dead after an overdose.

Adreena Rochall’s son is inside Los Padrinos while awaiting trial. She called for an overhaul in how the department does security and wants it to also encompass employees.

“I watch how us parents walk in and how we get searched and checked with search dogs, but all their staffs are walking in freely,” she said.

Pepper spray brought back

The L.A. County Board of Supervisors voted to ban the use of pepper spray in 2022 citing a report by the L.A. County Probation Oversight Commission, which showed there was an increase in the use of the spray in 2022 compared to 2021.

But, the probation department brought back the use of the spray after the escape attempt in July, albeit temporarily.

In a statement, the department said that it does not have a plan or timeline for discontinuing the use.

“Specific timelines will be identified as the facility culture of violence previously noted subsides through staff training, youth education, and influence through reimagined strategies of effective youth programming and youth supervision, care, and safe and secure custody management,” the statement added.