State and youth services facility address juvenile detention center issues in Kentucky

LEXINGTON, Ky. (WTVQ) — From overcrowding at facilities to being short staffed, some juvenile detention centers are in the limelight as more and more issues come to the forefront.

“We can pitch ideas, we can propose all these different programs. But if there aren’t people behind it at the right levels ready to implement it funded, then we’re going to stay in this like, okay, these are problems, but how do we fix them,” says Lori Clemons the executive director of Arbor Youth Services in Lexington.

“Our juvenile detention facilities are dealing today with a population of youth that look far different than what the system dealt with 20 years ago, when it was designed and implemented,” added Kerry Harvey,  the Secretary of the the Justice and Public Safety Cabinet, who oversees the Department of Juvenile Justice.

Back in November, we told you about an incident at the Adair County Juvenile Detention Center where a teenage girl was allegedly violently sexually assaulted during a riot.
That incident highlighting issues that have continued to grow over the years, and after the pandemic became a lot more visible.

“We tend to see youth who are much more prone to violence, and who are much more prone to be involved in organized violence, such as gang activity, the system that was designed 20 years ago, really was not designed with that in mind that has created enormous challenges, which we are trying to deal with,” added Harvey.

He also said aside from the violence, many of the facilities are short staffed, which has led to more issues.

Adding that pay is one of them.

“These jobs are hard jobs. And historically, the pay has not been what it should be. One factor that played into this is Jefferson County until 2020 ran its own detention program for youths in 2020. Jefferson County got out of that business and those youths were were shifted to the state system. So you’ve had a lot of factors that have just coalesced to create a really difficult situation,” he also explained.

Arbor Youth Services, is a facility that serves as a detention alternative, it houses youth who don’t necessarily need to be detained.
Lori Clemons spoke on some of the trends they’ve seen.

“We’re getting a lot of referrals for youth, displaying a lot of signs of aggression, like physical aggression, and, and, and self harm. So we’re seeing and getting calls for youth that are a threat to themselves or others. And at the root of it, when we’re talking to these kids and even the families, a lot of that pertains to mental illness, either, either not being diagnosed, not being treated, even being a factor,” she said.

She says, you need to dig into the root of the problem to see where the aggression the youth are displaying is coming from.

“There’s the other element of this the current culture, there is a lack of respect for authority,” she added.

Harvey was also asked if he thought separating females and males would aid after the announcement earlier this month.

He says, by separating female and male juveniles, females juveniles are better protected in detention.
Which would allow the Department of Juvenile Justice to offer programming and services solely focused on rehabilitating the female population, who face different challenges and circumstances than males.