Secure Correctional Facilities for Children in Louisiana Findings Letter
July 15, 1996
BY OVERNIGHT MAIL
The Honorable Mike Foster
Governor of Louisiana
State Capitol
P. O. Box 94004
Baton Rouge, LA 70804-9004
Re: Investigation of Secure Correctional Facilities for
Children in
Louisiana
Dear Governor Foster:
As you will recall, we notified you in April that the Department of
Justice is currently investigating conditions at the secure correctional
facilities for children in Louisiana. Within days of that notification,
we were contacted by your Executive Counsel, who offered his assistance
and cooperation in the investigation. Since that time, State officials
at all levels have welcomed our investigation, offered to assist and cooperate
with us, and expressed their desires to work with us in the event that
our investigation revealed problems in the system. That spirit of cooperation
is very much appreciated and will assist in achieving a resolution of our
investigation that ensures protection of juveniles' rights.
It is in that spirit of cooperation that I write to you at this time.
Although our investigation of the facilities is not yet complete and our
statutorily-required comprehensive findings letter will be sent to you
at the close of that investigation, I felt it imperative to apprise you
that our recent investigation revealed two life-threatening or dangerous
conditions that must begin to be addressed before the conclusion of our
investigation. We uncovered serious systemic problems with staff abuse
and juvenile-on-juvenile violence at Jetson and Bridge City, two of the
four facilities at issue in this matter. We have not yet investigated conditions
at Monroe or Tallulah.
We spent a day and a half at Bridge City and about two days at Jetson
during the week of June 3rd. At the end of both tours, we notified the
respective superintendents that we had learned of serious problems with
staff abuse and juvenile on juvenile violence at each facility. In both
cases, we also provided names of juveniles whom we felt were at particularly
high levels of risk. Neither superintendent denied the existence of these
serious problems. A few examples of the type of evidence that we discovered
include:
* At both facilities, nearly every child we interviewed spoke of being
hit and/or kicked by officers and seeing other children being hit and/or
kicked by officers. Children reported being assaulted by officers for such
minor offenses as talking back, looking the wrong way, or walking out of
line. At Bridge City, children report that officers assault them while
they are sleeping. At each facility, children repeatedly stated that they
were afraid to report the abuse due to the possibility of retaliation.
In a few interviews, officers acknowledged losing their patience and using
corporal punishment. Other staff confirmed that such abuse occurs regularly
and that children are afraid to report the abuse.
* A 14 year old boy at Jetson reported that he had been savagely beaten
by an officer, receiving a black eye and a busted lip. At the infirmary,
he told the nurse he had slipped in the shower because he was afraid that
a truthful account would result in more beatings. At Bridge City, one boy
was seriously injured by a staff person, requiring 16 staples to close
a scalp laceration. Another Bridge City child reported that on one occasion,
staff choked him with a belt until he passed out. At Jetson, a girl who
was seven months pregnant reports being choked by an officer.
* A boy at Jetson reported that a guard repeatedly punched him in the
face when the guard suspected the child of making a noise. The child was
transferred to the hospital two days after the beating, where he underwent
surgery for crushed bones in his face and placement of a metal plate in
his face.
* At Bridge City, a child suspected of fighting with another child was
sent to a back room and told to assume the "parade rest position." A guard
came in and hit him so hard in the chest that he could not breathe; when
the boy crumpled to the floor, the guard repeatedly kicked him and punched
him in the face. Then, the guard choked him. The child was forced to then
stand in line, where a second guard proceeded to slap him in the face and
then punch him in the face.
* We found a girl in a Jetson isolation cell with a bloody eyeball,
caused when a guard hit her with keys. Her injury and its cause were confirmed
by infirmary records. The child reported that she had been beaten for talking.
The Superintendent was not aware of this injury or its cause until he toured
with one of our consultants.
* One HIV+ girl at Jetson has been treated as an "untouchable" for seven
months, forced to eat on separate plates, keep her laundry segregated from
her peers' laundry, take her showers last, and use only a toilet not used
by the other girls. Officers wash down the telephone mouthpiece whenever
she uses the phone. Until recently, she was forced to wear full diapers
during her menstrual cycle. During these seven months, she has become progressively
more depressed and has once attempted suicide at the facility. Although
she has never had a comprehensive psychiatric assessment, a recent psychiatric
note expressed serious concern over her depression and ordered suicidal
precautions. Despite these orders, she remained on the dorm and got into
a fight with a guard the night before we arrived at the facility. Another
guard confirmed that she had to pull the first guard off of the girl. The
juvenile was being treated in the infirmary for lacerations to her elbow
and cuts on her face resulting from the altercation when we arrived the
next day. She repeatedly expressed her wish to die.
* Many juveniles at both facilities reported, and staff at Jetson confirmed,
that officers "paid" children to beat up other children; payment usually
was in the form of cigarettes, special protection, soap or food. At Bridge
City, a practice called "Take Five," is sanctioned, where guards agree
to ignore a situation where one child is beaten by other children. On the
night we left Bridge City, we interviewed a child with a busted lip, reportedly
caused during a fight with a peer earlier in the day in full view of staff,
who laughed during the fight and failed to intervene in any way. The superintendent
was taken to the scene of the incident and observed the blood on the ground
resulting from the assault.
* A child at Jetson vividly described a fight with another child, which
was ultimately broken up by a guard. Apparently, both children and the
officer were seriously hurt in the incident. The boy interviewed had his
knee broken by the officer during the incident.
* During the first five months at Bridge City, a facility housing only
178 children, infirmary logs indicate that on 40 occasions, children suffered
orthopedic injuries and/or serious lacerations requiring sutures that required
medical treatment in a hospital emergency room. During this relatively
brief period of time, injuries included dislocated fingers, broken and
sprained ankles, lip lacerations, and broken noses and jaws.
* At Bridge City, youths repeatedly recounted being assaulted by other
children both physically and sexually on the dormitories, especially at
night. One 12 year old told of being raped by an older boy just a week
earlier behind the bleachers in the gym. Other Bridge City youths reported
witnessing coerced oral sex between two boys in a "classroom" staffed only
by a sleeping correctional officer. It appears that younger children and/or
children with significant cognitive limitations (IQs less than 65) are
oftentimes the target of the assaults. At Jetson, we had concerns about
sexual abuse by female officers.
The superintendent at Jetson, during his short tenure at the facility,
has taken significant and useful steps to stem the staff abuse at the institution.
Among other things, he has referred nine officers to the local District
Attorney for prosecution during the last year alone. Regrettably, there
do not appear to be similar initiatives at Bridge City. Indeed, the superintendent
at Bridge City, when apprised of our findings at the exit interview, expressed
surprise. In any event, because of the seriousness of the conditions we
found in the two facilities investigated so far, it is apparent that even
the efforts of the Jetson superintendent have not been sufficient to prevent
a pattern and practice of abuse at the facilities. It is therefore critical
that the State take some additional immediate preliminary remedial measures
to begin to swiftly correct these life threatening and dangerous deficiencies.
The Department of Justice therefore requests that the State immediately
implement the following remedial measures:
1. Immediate steps should be taken to advise all staff and juveniles
that abuse, corporal punishment, and violence at the facilities are prohibited,
will not be tolerated, will be subject to appropriate discipline and criminal
prosecution, and that reporters of alleged abuse will be protected from
retaliation. Steps to accomplish this include:
(a) Meetings between appropriate officials and all staff and juveniles
of both facilities to underscore this "zero tolerance" policy;
(b) Posting notices throughout the facilities; and
(c) Sending every staff member at the facilities (including infirmary
staff) a written notice informing them that they are mandatory reporters
when it comes to either witnessing abuse or suspecting abuse, that the
failure to report witnessed or suspected abuse will result in administrative
action and may result in criminal prosecution, and that they will be protected
from retaliation.
2. Any corporal punishment by staff or juveniles, including the practice
of "Take Five" or "paying" children to assault other children, must be
immediately stopped. If physical abuse occurs, appropriate action must
be taken to treat the injured juvenile immediately and to remove the abuser
from contact with the juvenile.
3. The State should hire at least two qualified, independent professionals
who have experience in juvenile justice and abuse investigations and assign
them to oversee abuse and violence prevention at Jetson and Bridge City.
These professionals would be responsible for ensuring that:
(a) adequate procedures are in place and implemented to ensure timely
reporting of all alleged abuse, including a hotline for reporting abuse,
and non-retaliation against reporters of alleged abuse;
(b) all necessary immediate action is taken to protect abused juveniles;
(c) alleged abuse is reported to appropriate authorities and is thoroughly
investigated in a timely manner by appropriate, qualified, and objective
staff who prepare a written report setting forth complete findings of fact
and the basis of the findings;
(d) the results of the investigation are reported to appropriate officials
at the facilities, the Department of Public Safety and Corrections, and
the Governor's office;
(e) appropriate disciplinary action is taken when abuse is substantiated
and, where appropriate, referral for criminal prosecution; and
(f) any systemic, underlying problems contributing to the abuse are
identified and remedied.
4. All current and new staff should be trained (or re-trained) concerning
the standards for the use of physical force (including the use of alternatives
to force) and what constitutes abuse. Staff should also be trained on their
mandatory duty to report witnessed abuse. Training should include the sanctioned
techniques for application of physical force. Physical management training
should be tailored to the needs of adolescents, rather than the adult correctional
populations, with emphasis on communication techniques, basic counselling,
therapeutic interventions and the physical and emotional needs of adolescents.
Staff should be required to demonstrate the techniques (and alternatives
to force) that can be used to address aggressive or threatening behavior.
5. Younger children and children with significant cognitive limitations
should be functionally grouped in their own section of a dorm at each facility.
Youths on suicide watch should be housed in the infirmary during the pendency
of the watch.
6. All administrative and clinical staff at both facilities should be
encouraged to spend more unannounced time visiting dorms and program areas
and speaking with the juveniles. Ensuring unannounced visits during the
evening and early morning hours is especially warranted.
7. The State should establish an independent task force comprised of
professionals and advocates to study and make recommendations to address
the problems of abuse in Louisiana's juvenile facilities. The panel should
have the authority to conduct unannounced visits to the dorms and program
areas of the facilities and to conduct private interviews with the children.
8. The State must develop a plan of longer term correction to address
the problems of staff and juvenile-on-juvenile abuse. In addition to ensuring
better supervision and training for staff members and children, this plan
should address the development of a more reliable system for injury reporting
and for the comprehensive investigation of all serious injuries to children.
Individuals involved in developing this plan should meet with groups of
officers and other staff members, as well as a significant sample of children
at both facilities individually, to better understand the scope and causes
of physical violence at the facilities.
Given the urgency of addressing these deficiencies, please have your
counsel contact Judy Preston at 202-514-6258 or Iris Goldschmidt at 202-514-6264
by Friday, July 26, 1996 concerning the State's willingness to immediately
implement the above remedial measures. We believe that the results of our
investigation at the two facilities to date provide a basis for action
pursuant not only to the Civil Rights of Institutionalized Persons Act,
42 U.S.C. § 1997, et seq., but also appear to constitute
a violation of the Police Misconduct Provision of the 1994 Crime Bill,
42 U.S.C. § 14141. However, because the State has expressed its desire to cooperate in this investigation and we would prefer to address the dangerous deficiencies swiftly and without resort
to litigation on the merits, we make this offer to jointly address the
deficiencies in the fastest possible manner.
Sincerely,
Deval L. Patrick, Assistant Attorney General, Civil Rights Division
cc: The Honorable Cheney C. Joseph, Jr., Executive Counsel to the Governor
The Honorable Richard Ieyoub, Attorney General of Louisiana
Mr. Richard Stalder, Secretary for the Department of Public Safety and Corrections
Mr. Richard Curry, Special Assistant Attorney General for the Department of Public Safety and Corrections
Mr. Elijah Lewis, Superintendent, Jetson Correctional Center for Youth
Mr. Benny G. Harris, Superintendent, Louisiana Training Institute at Bridge City
Ms. Margaret M. Severson, Court Monitor
The Honorable Eddie J. Jordan, Jr., United States Attorney, Eastern District of Louisiana
The Honorable L. J. Hymel, Jr., United States Attorney, Middle District of Louisiana
The Honorable Michael D. Skinner, United States Attorney, Western District of Louisiana
Updated July 25, 2008