After an extensive investigation of conditions for children in five juvenile detention facilities operated by the Texas Juvenile Justice Department (TJJD), the US Department of Justice finds that there is reasonable cause to believe that TJJD is violating the constitutional rights of the children in their care.
According to a report released last week, children were exposed to excessive force, sexual abuse and, in the case of disabled children, discrimination that kept them in custody longer or sent them to adult prisons.
Federal investigators found that the Texas Juvenile Justice Department excessively used pepper spray on children, employed dangerous restraint techniques and kept children isolated for days or weeks on end. Furthermore, the TJJD failed to implement measures to end sexual abuse, investigators concluded, describing a “pervasive atmosphere of sexual abuse, grooming and lack of staff accountability and training.”
The facilities investigated include Evins Regional Juvenile Center, Gainesville State School, Giddings State School, McClennan County State Juvenile Correctional Facility, and Ron Jackson State Juvenile Correctional Complex. The investigation was launched after Texas Appleseed and Disability Rights Texas filed a complaint on the issue in 2020.
TJJD currently incarcerates 740 children between the ages of 10 and 16. In the five child prisons investigated in this report around 80 percent are Black or Latino. In 2021, the TJJD reported that around 65 percent of children in its custody had “significant” mental health issues.
Federal investigators found that incarcerated children with disabilities do not receive a “free appropriate public education,” and that special education services within the department’s facilities fell well short of the standard required by federal law.
Most children in the facilities have severe mental health needs, the report found that the agency was not providing adequate trauma-informed care, leaving children at substantial risk for self-harm or suicide.
The TJJD is currently working with the Texas Legislature on plans to build two new youth prisons. Hundreds more children are incarcerated at the county-level in child jails, awaiting transfer to state facilities or being detained on lower-level accusations. Those were not included in the scope of this investigation.
Guests:
Martin A. Martinez is a senior policy analyst at Texas Appleseed.
Alycia Castillo is Associate Director of Policy at Texas Civil Rights Project and Co-Founder of Finish the 5.
Valentino Valdez is a formerly incarcerated youth who organizes with Finish the 5.
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*This interview will be recorded on Monday, August 5, 2024.
