Details emerge on Red Rock Academy problems, responses

Red Rock Academy officials aren’t taking the state-ordered closure earlier this week of Nevada’s only maximum-security juvenile correctional facility quietly.

Lawrence Howell, executive director of Rite of Passage, which was contracted to run Red Rock Academy, released nearly 20 pages of documents to the Review-Journal and defended the institution’s 16-month history. The facility had met or tried to meet all requirements made by state officials, he said.

“Since July 7, 2013, our agency has worked collaboratively on refurbishing a facility that had been operated and closed twice before. At no time did our agency’s commitment to providing student safety, security or civil rights waver,” Howell said in a statement.

Howell on Friday did not return a message seeking comment.

State officials had declined to discuss what issues they’ve had with the facility. A spokeswoman for the state on Tuesday said the Division of Child and Family Services and Rite of Passage had reached “an amicable agreement to end their relationship.”

The documents provided by Howell provide some insight into the 26 issues that concerned state officials, including that one youth was placed on the highest level of suicide watch under the facility’s policies, but was not taken to a psychologist or psychiatrist as required.

However, Rite of Passage disputed that assessment. Instead, they said the youth had been assessed by “a qualified Mobile Mental Health Crisis Team,” and he was released to Red Rock as part of a discharge plan.

State concerns crossed several areas, including health, safety, welfare and civil rights policies. Some of the issues involved staff failing to properly secure doors, letting a youth use the Internet when he wasn’t allowed and the discovery that at least eight surveillance cameras were not working.

Staff to youth ratios were not in compliance with federal standards or Rite of Passage’s contract with the state. Officials noted 98 instances where staff to youth ratios exceeded 1 to 8 as required during the day.

State officials also said they were concerned about “several instances of staff not controlling youths and not holding the youths accountable for rule violations,” including youths wrestling, rough housing, horse playing, tripping one another, shouldering one another and one youth dragging another youth across the dirt.

In the documentation provided by Howell, Rite of Passage for each violation noted what steps were taken to comply with state and federal standards, held staff training and discipline where necessary.

Red Rock, which provided residential treatment services to at-risk boys between the ages of 12 to 19 with a history of delinquent behaviors, housed 43 youths at the time of the closure.

Rite of Passage, a nonprofit organization, also runs Silver State Academy, a private juvenile facility on Paiute tribal land in Yerington. Silver State Academy recently had its fourth riot in four months, which left an employee injured and two buildings burned. Clark County officials removed several teens that had been placed there.

Contact Francis McCabe at fmccabe@reviewjournal.com or 702-224-5512. Find him on Twitter: @fjmccabe