One year ago, Congress defunded public media. Now that we're 100% community funded, please become a sustaining member or increase your existing membership today.
Thousands Of Officers Ordered To Work Monthly Shifts In Juvenile Jails To Ease Staffing ‘Emergency’
Barbed wire on the fence enclosing Barry J. Nidorf Juvenile Hall.
(
Emily Elena Dugdale/LAist
)
Topline:
Citing a staffing shortage “emergency,” Interim Probation Chief Guillermo Viera Rosa is immediately requiring some 3,000 sworn peace officers within the L.A. County Probation Department to work at least one shift a month in the juvenile halls.
The backstory: The state board that oversees juvenile detention centers voted unanimously Tuesday to give Los Angeles County 60 days to close the Barry J. Nidorf Juvenile Hall in Sylmar and Central Juvenile Hall in Lincoln Heights as a result of their lack of compliance with a number of state requirements.
A report from the Board of State and Community Corrections (BSCC) states that the two facilities continue to be noncompliant on regular searches, programming, safety checks and several other requirements.
Why it matters: According to the BSCC, some youths reported that they were not let out of their rooms at night and had to “urinate in a receptacle.” Earlier this month, 18-year-old Bryan Diaz died of an apparent drug overdose at Nidorf.
What’s next: The Probation Department says county construction crews will be working two shifts a day to get a now-shuttered facility in Downey called Los Padrinos ready to accept some 275 youth from Nidorf and Central.
One year ago, Congress voted to defund public media, eliminating a critical $1.7 million from our budget every year going forward. But they couldn’t silence us, and we’re not going anywhere. LAist is now 100% community funded and that means we’re taking our future into our own hands and turning to you to keep local reporting strong.
You come to LAist because you want independent reporting and trustworthy local information. Our nonprofit newsroom doesn’t answer to shareholders looking to turn a profit. Instead, we answer to you and our communities. We are free to follow facts wherever they lead and to hold power to account without fear or favor. Our only loyalty is to our readers and listeners and our mission: to inform, engage, and strengthen Southern California’s communities.
If this story helped you, please become a monthly member today to help sustain this mission. It just takes 1 minute to donate below.
You come to LAist because you want independent reporting and trustworthy local information. Our nonprofit newsroom doesn’t answer to shareholders looking to turn a profit. Instead, we answer to you and our communities. We are free to follow facts wherever they lead and to hold power to account without fear or favor. Our only loyalty is to our readers and listeners and our mission: to inform, engage, and strengthen Southern California’s communities.
If this story helped you, please become a monthly member today to help sustain this mission. It just takes 1 minute to donate below.
Senior Vice President News, Editor in Chief
