Two youth rehabilitation facilities in Washington are stopping admitting children for the first time due to overcrowding | Washington

(The Center Square) – Two youth rehabilitation centers have stopped accepting new offenders due to overcrowding, according to the Washington State Department of Children, Youth & Families, reversing a two-decade trend of declining youth rehabilitation populations.

Echo Glen Children’s Center in Snoqualmie and Green Hill School in Chehalis are no longer accepting any more youth “to stabilize a growing population that threatens the safety of staff and youth in the youth rehabilitation facilities,” DCYF said in a Saturday statement. Press releaseThe previous day, the policy of not accepting new admissions came into force.

Juvenile, adult and tribal courts across the state have been notified of the decision.

DCYF oversees two juvenile rehabilitation facilities and juvenile probation services in eight community facilities in the state.

“Having too many young people crammed into a small space can lead to behavioral problems and limit the opportunity for therapeutic rehabilitation,” DCYF Secretary Ross Hunter said in the press release. “This was not sustainable. Our facilities must be safe, therapeutic and functional.”

Nancy Gutierrez, communications administrator for DCYF, pointed out the unprecedented nature of this decision.

“DCYF has not done this in the past,” she said in an email to The Center Square. “This would be the first time. Agencies across the country have done this when they have had similar population and staffing issues.”

Juvenile offenders are not released; instead, they remain in a county facility until they can be safely transferred to a youth rehabilitation facility. DCYF provides funds to counties to allow youth to remain in custody.

Center Square asked Gutierrez for details on financing.

“I have no further information other than that this will be done through the current contractual relationships with the counties,” she said.

According to DCYF, Green Hill’s population fell from 150 in January 2023 to 240 in June, which is 30% above capacity.

In May 2023, a security guard was attacked by juvenile offenders as they fled Echo Glen. It was perhaps the most high-profile incident in a series of events that culminated in the union members’ vote “no self-confidence” in the Hunter.

According to DCYF, longer prison sentences are the reason for the increase in the number of juvenile prisoners.

“More and more young people are being sentenced to juvenile detention and the prison terms are getting longer,” explains Gutierrez. “As a result, the capacities of juvenile detention centers are being used up more quickly than expected.”

The Washington Association of Sheriffs and Police Chiefs published a opinion on Saturday and called on the state government to solve the problem immediately.

“It is completely unacceptable to simply stop accepting young people who have been convicted in due process of law for often very violent crimes,” wrote Steven Strachan, executive director of WASPC. “Victims of crime need to know that offenders will remain in custody.”

He concluded by saying, “This situation is largely self-inflicted. The problem of overcrowding in youth rehabilitation centers has been known for some time, and not taking responsibility for the placement of offenders puts the public at further risk. A reasonable emergency solution that should be considered is the transfer of non-minor inmates (18-25 years old) from Green Hill School to the custody of the Department of Corrections for placement in adult facilities.”

According to statistics from the Office of Financial Management websiteThe number of inmates in Washington’s youth rehabilitation facilities has declined over the past year. In fiscal year 2023, the average monthly number was 332, in 2022, 324, in 2021, and 405 in 2020.

In fact, according to OFM figures, the decline dates back to at least 2003, when the average monthly population was 969.

The OFM website states: “The decline in the number of inmates in juvenile rehabilitation facilities is partly due to the decline in arrests of juveniles for violent crimes over the past two decades.”

In the meantime, DCYF will maintain a waiting list during the suspension to prioritize and manage intake once the suspension is lifted at Echo Glen and Green Hill. According to DCYF’s press release, the suspension will not be lifted until the population reaches sustainable levels, which could take months.

“Based on current forecasts, I would say in the fall months,” Gutierrez replied when asked for a more specific timetable.