A federal judge has ordered Louisiana officials to remove teens from a lockup at the State Penitentiary at Angola, saying the youths' constitutional rights were violated through "intolerable" use of solitary confinement, handcuffs, mace and a lack of educational and mental health programming, our media partners at The Advocate/Times Picayune report.
Attorneys for some of the youth filed an emergency motion in July seeking to remove them from the prison — part of an ongoing lawsuit that accuses Gov. John Bel Edwards and the Louisiana Office of Juvenile Justice of violating the teens' civil rights, the newspapers report.
After hearing arguments on that motion several weeks ago, Chief U.S. District Judge Shelly Dick issued a ruling from the bench on Friday morning. Dick excoriated the youth justice agency in her ruling, which took some 40 minutes for the judge to read, and ordered all teens removed from the facility by Friday, Sept. 15, the newspapers report.
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According to a release from the ACLU, which filed suit on behalf of the teens, the judge "found the state broke every promise it made last year, during a previous court hearing in September 2022, that it would not punish children.
The release says the judge found the state:
- Locked children up in cells for days at a time as a form of punishment;
- Punished children with the use of handcuffs, mace, and denial of family visits;
- Failed to provide adequate staffing – including no licensed social worker or professional counselor;
- Failed to provide appropriate education and special education, where necessary; and
- Failed to provide necessary and appropriate mental health treatment or appropriate social services
David Utter, lead counsel, issued the following statement on behalf of the litigation team:
“For almost 10 months, children — nearly all Black boys — have been held in abusive conditions of confinement at the former death row of Angola – the nation’s largest adult maximum security prison. We are grateful to our clients and their families for their bravery in speaking out and standing up against this cruelty.
“Now, it is time for Louisiana’s leaders to provide the appropriate care and support so all children can thrive and reach their full potential. We demand investment in our children, not punishment. State officials must address the long-standing, systemic failures in Louisiana’s juvenile justice system. A state where all our children — Black, Brown, and white — have equal access to opportunity is possible.”
Here's a statement from Office of Juvenile Justice Deputy Sec. Curtis Nelson Jr.:
“Last year, after a series of high-profile and violent incidents at OJJ facilities, the office of Juvenile Justice temporarily repurposed a facility on the grounds of Louisiana State Penitentiary as a transitional treatment facility for high-risk youth. The decision was not made lightly but with inadequate space at existing OJJ facilities, immediate action was necessary to protect the youth, staff, and surrounding communities. OJJ has taken extraordinary measures to ensure the temporary West Feliciana Facility complies with state and federal law requiring the youth to continue receiving education classes, have suitable living conditions, and be completely separated from any adult inmates. The West Feliciana Facility has allowed us to keep community members, staff, and youth in our care safe, but the plan has always been to close the temporary facility as soon as possible and move the high-risk youth upon completion of the new Swanson secure care facility, which is scheduled to open later this year. While we disagree with the court’s ruling today and will be seeking an emergency writ, we will continue to explore every option available to us that ensures the safety of staff, community members, and youth in our care.”
