Juvenile facility reviews security after escape

A few months before the allegations of juvenile abuse and neglect at the Nevada Youth Training Center in Elko surfaced, another state juvenile correctional facility was dealing with security and supervision issues that went unnoticed by the public.

On April 28, three youth escaped from Red Rock Academy, a state juvenile correction facility in Clark County. Facility Superintendent James “Al” Carpenter earlier this week referred questions to Lawrence Howell, executive director at Rite of Passage, a nonprofit organization that operates the juvenile facility for the state.

An “investigation was started immediately and completed a week or two later,” Howell said this week.

The facility, which opened in December, was placed on a corrective action plan. Security flaws were addressed, and staff members involved in the incident were disciplined. Additionally, all staff members at the facility were retrained to prevent future escapes, Howell said. He wouldn’t say how many employees were disciplined.

The youth — a Hispanic 17-year-old, a Hispanic 16-year-old and a 17-year-old Caucasian — were found within hours by North Las Vegas police and staff from Red Rock and the state Division of Child and Family Services’ parole bureau. They had escaped under a 14-foot sloping fence with wiring on top, Howell said.

The fencing, which is about 15 years old, was secured to poles with metal ties. It now is welded to the poles to strengthen security, he said.

“It’s impossible for it to happen again,” Howell said.

The staffing the facility maintains during the day is one staff member for every eight youth. At night, it’s one staffer for every 16 youth.

“Facility staffing is consistently monitored for compliance with state policy and federal Prison Rape Elimination Act standards,” said Mary Woods, spokeswoman for the Nevada Department of Health and Human Services.

The state’s Division of Child and Family Services, which oversees the state’s juvenile correctional facilities, “is continuously evaluating (Red Rock Academy’s) compliance” and meets weekly to discuss programs and staffing of cases, Woods said.

“The state has an on-site monitor as well who oversees the daily operation of the facility,” she said.

In fiscal 2014, it cost the state $3.5 million to have Rite of Passage operate the facility. For fiscal year 2015, the cost is $4.6 million, according to Woods.

The facility has a mix of low- and high-level offenders, Howell said.

State officials say they were notified immediately after the escape, which went almost unnoticed by the public.

State statute requires the facility superintendent to notify law enforcement and the public about escapes and provide a description of those involved.

The superintendent also is supposed to notify the public immediately when escapees are apprehended.

Howell said facility officials notified the North Las Vegas Police Department, Nevada Public Radio and a local newspaper, but he didn’t recall the name of the newspaper because he didn’t send out the notices.

“The statute does not require all media outlets be notified,” according to Woods. “It requires public notification. Red Rock Academy was found to be in compliance with the law.”

Mark Soler, executive director at the Center for Children’s Law and Policy based in Washington, D.C., said many statutes have a public notice requirement and generally it can be “at least some sort of public notification” to comply.

“It didn’t go valleywide,” Howell said of the notification to the media. “Other notifications could have been made.”

Family Court Judge William Voy said he was notified of the incident and feels confident that the facility will carry out changes to prevent future escapes.

Last month, after receiving reports that staff had “hobbled” juveniles at the Elko juvenile facility, Voy ordered 12 Clark County offenders to return to his jurisdiction.

After the allegations of improper restraints arose at the Elko facility, some county officials expressed the need to review all state juvenile facilities. One of them was Brigid Duffy, chief deputy district attorney for the Clark County district attorney’s juvenile division.

Duffy, who has requested information on the corrective measures taken at Red Rock, said those involved in juvenile justice need to keep an eye on all juvenile facilities.

“I think we can only have good outcomes for children that, for whatever situation, needed to be removed from the community, if we are making sure they are being treated well ... at all the facilities,” she said.

Romaine Gilliland, director of the Nevada Department of Health and Human Services, last month told Voy he was open to bringing outside experts to review the Elko facility allegations from different perspectives and help make improvements for all juvenile facilities.

“We are in the research phase to identify an agency that has the necessary skills and experience to conduct a review of the state’s juvenile correctional facilities and provide meaningful observations and recommendations,” Woods said.

Red Rock Academy used to be called Summit View. Summit View opened twice and closed twice. The last time it closed was in 2010 due to budget reductions.

Contact Yesenia Amaro can be reached at 702-383-0440 or yamaro@reviewjournal.com. Find her on Twitter: @YeseniaAmaro.