TEXAS (WBAP/KLIF News ) – The Texas Juvenile Justice Department is under fire again after federal prosecutors revealed the results of a three-year investigation into the state’s five youth prisons on Thursday.
The Department of Justice report alleges some guards used excessive amounts of pepper spray on juveniles for minor infractions, some are subjected to periods of solitary confinement for up to 22 hours, 85 percent of the kids’ have mental health issues but aren’t getting the proper treatment and there are numerous allegations of sexual assault.
DOJ Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights Kristin Clarke said TJJD’s purpose is to help rehabilitate youth not harm them.
“In many incidents, TJJD staff, the very people charged with keeping people safe are the abusers,” she said. According to the report, “in three of the five TJJD security facilities, children reported some of the highest rates of sexual victimization in the country.”
The investigation found that TJJD violates the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act by not providing special education and related services to children with disabalities.
The DOJ also said the department violates the American with Disabilities Act by not providing reasonable modifications necessary to permit their participation in programming required for release and denying them an equal opportunity to benefit from education.
In a news release, the DOJ said these violations of the Constitution and federal law place children at substantial risk of serious physical and psychological harm and impede successful outcomes for children.
“According to our report, TJJD falls short of creating an environment that fosters rehabilitation,” said U.S. Attorney Leigha Simonton for the Northern District of Texas. “Instead, some of its personnel engage in the use of excessive force and subject children to prolonged isolation, both of which are damaging. Texans know that this is not how we rehabilitate our children. We look forward to working with the State and TJJD to eliminate these issues going forward. Together, I am confident that we can implement practices that result in a better rehabilitative environment at the TJJD and ensure a pathway for children in their care to grow, heal and reach their full potential.”
TJJD said its working with the feds and has increased supervision, training and safety in the past two years.
Click here to read the full report.
There’s been an ongoing push by the group “Finish the Five” for Texas to close down its remaining youth prisons and pour money into community-based rehabilitation. The group reacted to the report on social media.
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