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Friday, October 14, 2005

Ind. Gov't. - More on conditions at Indiana juvenile correctional facilities [Updated]

The Indianapolis Star today has an editorial stating its position that "State officials should have done a better job of disclosing wretched conditions inside juvenile prisons." It concludes:

Before the federal reports were issued, Donahue moved to separate older teens from the younger juvenile population, along with adding cameras to prisons and eliminating blind spots where assaults can occur. Those are important improvements.

Yet, the Daniels administration's was outrageously slow in releasing to the public the three Department of Justice's letters detailing the problems in the juvenile prisons.

Justice Department officials informed the state of their findings in September, allowing the administration ample time to communicate the matter to the public. Yet the letters didn't come to light until The Star's Kevin Corcoran uncovered the reports this week.

The governor's spokeswoman, Jane Jankowski, says she didn't know Justice Department procedures on releasing the information. Department policy, however, leaves to those who receive findings letters to publicly release them. The administration's failure to do so is unacceptable.

A continued lack of disclosure would have made it more difficult to clean up the problems inside Indiana's juvenile prisons. More transparency and forthrightness are essential.

Even more important is halting the abuses going on inside state prisons. The health and safety of young men and women -- who eventually will return to communities around the state -- are at stake.

For background, see this ILB entry from Wednesday, quoting a Louisville Courier Journal AP report headed "U.S. Justice says State violating jailed juvenile's rights," and this comprehensive Star story from Thursday (yesterday) by Richard D. Walton.

[Updated 10/15/05] The Fort Wayne Journal Gazette has an editorial today titled "Shocking Treatment." The editorial points out:
The report concerned state juvenile prisons, not county juvenile centers such as the one in Allen County.

While correction commissioner J. David Donahue can’t be blamed for what happened before his arrival, his actions in improving the state’s juvenile facilities should be closely monitored by Gov. Mitch Daniels, the state’s legislators and the people.

Posted by Marcia Oddi on October 14, 2005 08:50 AM
Posted to Indiana Government