The agency is so understaffed that teens have reported spending up to 23 hours locked in their cells. Many have hurt themselves or been placed on suicide watch. Texas GregAbbott JuvenileJustice TexasNews prison Children Youth SocialJustice
and provided emergency funding and Texas Rangers to further investigate criminal behavior among staff.
The facilities, which are in remote parts of the state with small labor pools, struggle to find and keep qualified mental health professionals and security staff.John Whitmire Amy Mason’s 17-year-old son has been at the Giddings Unit, about 60 miles east of Austin, for about a year. She said he no longer can get out of his cell on weekends to call her or, sometimes, even use the bathroom.
“Usually when people talk about suicides, it’s a cry for help,” said Camille Gibson, executive director of the Texas Juvenile Crime Prevention Center at Prairie View A&M University. “And if they don’t have staff, and they’re being locked up for several hours a day on top of whatever problems they have going on, I’m not surprised they’d be making a cry for help.”
He began working at a youth prison this summer and said he was taken out of training after only a week to work in the prison’s control room after a COVID-19 outbreak sickened most of the staff. The agency seemed to be grasping to put bodies in roles, he said, and often staff don’t know how long they’re working or what they’re doing until the last minute.
The agency in July reported the arrests of three officers on official oppression charges for allegedly using excessive force against detained teens. of children into TJJD from local detention centers, which have also recently struggled with maintaining employees. Texas’ youth prisons couldn’t take any more children, Carter said, because the state agency wouldn’t be able to guarantee their safety.
On Monday, an Abbott spokesperson said the governor will support TJJD’s “request to increase the salaries needed to hire and retain a qualified workforce” when lawmakers set a new budget next year. In their routine review of the functions and efficacy of the agency, Sunset analysts said lawmakers need to commit to investing in TJJD, allowing it to pull itself out of crisis by retaining staff and continuing to transition toward keeping troubled children closer to home.
Deutschland Neuesten Nachrichten, Deutschland Schlagzeilen
Similar News:Sie können auch ähnliche Nachrichten wie diese lesen, die wir aus anderen Nachrichtenquellen gesammelt haben.
What’s next after 23 of 24 civil lawsuits settled against Deshaun Watson?This is likely the end of what we will hear from Watson’s accusers, with confidential settlements in all but one case.
Weiterlesen »
Back to School: 2022-23 First days for Wiregrass schoolsSOUND OFF IN THE COMMENTS: Would you and your daily schedule be happier with a school time-shift? ------ Several schools in the Wiregrass are getting started back this week. READ MORE
Weiterlesen »
PGA Tour releases 2022-23 schedule featuring 47 tournaments plus the Presidents CupThe PGA Tour released its schedule for the 2022-23 season, the final go-round of the wrap-around format that starts in the fall and ends in August of the following year.
Weiterlesen »
Almost 600 Texas youth are trapped in a juvenile prison system on the brink of collapseThe agency is so understaffed that teens have reported spending up to 23 hours locked in their cells, using water bottles to go to the bathroom. A staggering number have hurt themselves or been placed on suicide watch.
Weiterlesen »
Almost 600 Texas youth are trapped in a juvenile prison system on the brink of collapseTeachers and caseworkers routinely work in security roles so the prisons’ nearly 600 youth can get out of their cells to go to the bathroom or take showers. Still, children have reported being left to use bottles as makeshift toilets. | via TexasTribune
Weiterlesen »
German shepherd stolen nearly 5 years ago found over 600 miles from its Texas homeA Baytown, Texas dog was found nearly 5 years after the German shepherd was stolen.
Weiterlesen »