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probation

Hahn Opposes Part of Los Padrinos Emergency Declaration 150 150 Hayley Munguia

Hahn Opposes Part of Los Padrinos Emergency Declaration

Los Angeles CA – Los Angeles County Supervisor Janice Hahn has released the following statement on the Los Padrinos emergency declaration on today’s agenda:

“While I support the measures to improve staffing at Los Padrinos, I oppose a key directive in this proclamation which directs county counsel to take any measures necessary to prevent all young people detained from being released.

This approach is counter-productive and would only make the existing staffing challenges at Los Padrinos worse.

Not every young person in Los Padrinos is charged with a serious and violent crime. There are teenagers detained there for vandalism, buying a stolen good, and theft. There is no reason that many of them cannot be safely released from Los Padrinos and cared for in other settings. There is a collaborative process for releasing young people appropriately that we cannot walk away from, and in fact we should build on it during this crisis.

At today’s meeting, I will offer an amendment to the emergency proclamation to address this issue and I am hopeful that my colleagues will support it.”

Hahn issues Statement regarding Los Padrinos Juvenile Hall 150 150 Hayley Munguia

Hahn issues Statement regarding Los Padrinos Juvenile Hall

Los Angeles County Supervisor Janice Hahn has issued the following statement regarding the California Board of State and Community Corrections directive to vacate Los Padrinos Juvenile Hall:

“I care about the young people in Los Padrinos. Relocating them from Los Padrinos is not going to be better for them. We have done it in the past and it has only caused more chaos and harm. Now that we have no other juvenile facility licensed to house pre-disposition youth, closing Los Padrinos would mean many of them would likely be sent to county jail which is the worst case scenario.

What we are facing are staffing challenges, not facility challenges.

Contrary to what the union is claiming, we have adequate numbers of staff on payroll and we have been actively recruiting and hiring which we will continue to do. But the reality is that many probation officers are not showing up to work and that puts an unfair burden on those who do and undermines the rehabilitation of the youth.

While I understand that the Probation Department is appealing the unsuitability findings of the Board of State and Community Corrections, in the meantime I am calling on all of our probation officers to show up to work in their assigned shifts. This is an emergency. You are peace officers and we need you now more than ever.

We are facing uncharted territory. I know that some people will say it’s too late, but I hold out hope that we can resolve this crisis without making this situation worse for the young people in our care.”

Supervisors Vote to Appoint Compliance Officer to Oversee Los Padrinos Juvenile Hall Compliance 150 150 Hayley Munguia

Supervisors Vote to Appoint Compliance Officer to Oversee Los Padrinos Juvenile Hall Compliance

Los Angeles, CA – Today, the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors approved a motion by Supervisor Janice Hahn and co-authored by Board Chair Lindsey P. Horvath to appoint a compliance officer to oversee and monitor the LA County Probation Department’s efforts to comply with state regulations that have threatened to close the county’s juvenile hall.

“We need to do everything we can to ensure that our Probation Department comes into compliance with state standards at Los Padrinos Juvenile Hall,” said Supervisor Hahn. “We are on the clock now and it is necessary to have a dedicated compliance officer from outside the department who can oversee their work and has the ability to convene multiple departments who can help.”

Over the past two years, the Board of State and Community Corrections (BSCC) has issued multiple notices of noncompliance to the LA County Probation Department regarding their juvenile halls. Most recently, on August 12, 2024, BSCC issued a notice that Los Padrinos Juvenile Hall was out of compliance with state regulations. Probation had until October 11, 2024, to submit a corrective action plan that would then be reviewed and either approved or denied by the BSCC.

While the BSCC has historically provided technical assistance to Probation to help the Department develop a CAP that would be approved, Probation failed to request and receive this assistance during the months leading up to the due date. Probation submitted their CAP to the BSCC on October 11, 2024, and that same day, received notice from the BSCC that the CAP was denied. Subsequently, on October 14, 2024, the BSCC sent a formal notice of unsuitability regarding Los Padrinos, giving Probation until December 12, 2024 to either come into compliance or vacate the facility.

“Appointing a compliance officer to support the Probation Department will align all County departments in the important work of getting and keeping facilities in compliance with state standards,” said Chair Lindsey P. Horvath. “With the many issues the department faces, this additional support will help ensure plans result in action at all levels of the County. Accountability is critical, especially when the wellbeing of our young people is at stake. This is a critical step necessary for lasting change.”

Today, the Board unanimously approved a motion by Hahn and Horvath to direct the County’s CEO to identify and appoint an internal compliance officer to oversee the Probation Department’s compliance with BSCC regulations and the California DOJ settlement agreement at Los Padrinos. The compliance officer will be appointed within 30 days and will have the authority to coordinate the administration of involved departments. The Board also directed the Chief Probation Officer to submit all current and future corrective action plan drafts and any related documents to the compliance officer no later than 20 days before their due date to allow them to provide meaningful input.

Hahn Aims to Decrease Wait Times at Los Padrinos Juvenile Hall 150 150 Hayley Munguia

Hahn Aims to Decrease Wait Times at Los Padrinos Juvenile Hall

Los Angeles, CA – Today, the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors unanimously approved a motion authored by Supervisor Janice Hahn and co-authored by Chair Lindsey Horvath which aims to decrease the amount of time that lawyers, social workers, doctors, and other professionals wait to see young people detained at Los Padrinos Juvenile Hall.

Reporting by the Southern California News Group’s Jason Henry detailed the challenges that attorneys, social workers, and other professionals have experienced getting timely access to their clients at Los Padrinos. Multiple attorneys and social workers experienced wait times of two to three hours. In some instances, other professional experts, like doctors, began refusing to evaluate clients at Los Padrinos because of the excessive wait times.

“Lawyers, doctors, and social workers need to be able to visit their young clients at Los Padrinos, and they shouldn’t have to wait two or three hours to see them,” said Supervisor Hahn, who represents the City of Downey where Los Padrinos Juvenile Hall is located. “This is unacceptable. The Probation Department needs to make immediate changes to allow people to see their clients faster and has to be transparent with our Board moving forward about the wait times at our juvenile facilities.”

Long wait times seem to be driven by staffing challenges the Probation Department is experiencing. As a response, the Probation Department recently added four privacy booths to the chapel, where juvenile clients meet with their attorneys at Los Padrinos, to accommodate and speed up visits.

“Long wait times are a barrier to the legal counsel and support our young people deserve,” said Board Chair Lindsey P. Horvath. “Social workers and public defenders are already stretched thin. Waiting two or three hours in a waiting room to meet with clients is unacceptable. Decreasing wait times and increasing predictability for professional services at Los Padrinos is among the actions the Probation Department must take to better serve the youth entrusted to its care.”

Today’s motion directed the Los Angeles County Probation Department to report back to the Board of Supervisors in four weeks with data on the professional visitor wait ties at Los Padrinos in the past three months as well as an analysis of any factors contributing to long wait times and strategies being implemented to reduce wait times and ensure timely access to visits from counsel, social workers, and other experts (e.g. adding more pods to the visitation area, increasing staff on busy days to bring youth to the visitation area, creating an electronic sign up system, etc.). The motion also directs the department to include data on wait times in its regular quarterly reports to the Board of Supervisors.

Lastly, the motion directs the Probation Department, in consultation with the Executive Director of the Probation Oversight Commission, County Counsel, the Public Defender, and the Alternate Public Defender, to update their existing policy or create a new procedure to include expected maximum wait times for visitation with legal counsel that are consistent with industry standards and a process for documenting extenuating circumstances when a wait time exceeds the expectation.

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