Posted on: Thursday, September 9, 2004
Feds to inspect youth prison
By Peter Boylan
Advertiser Staff Writer
U.S. Department of Justice investigators will arrive in seven weeks to start inspections at the Hawai'i Youth Correctional Facility, which is the subject of a civil-rights violations probe.
Preliminary inquiries, however, started in March, when the DOJ contacted the Hawai'i chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union, said Lois Perrin, ACLU legal director. Perrin also said she knows of one ward's family who contacted DOJ about conditions at the youth facility.
The civil action is not a criminal probe, but instead is aimed at finding whether the constitutional rights of wards are being violated.
The DOJ investigation comes a year after a scathing ACLU report detailing allegations of rape, brutality and crowding at the facility. The report, released in August 2003, was critical of living conditions and programs, as well as the treatment of the wards by some adult guards.
The investigation is being initiated under the Civil Rights of Institutionalized Persons Act. Enacted by Congress in 1980, the act addresses the rights of individuals who reside in institutions run by the government.
Under the law, DOJ may investigate if there is reasonable cause to believe that a state or a state agency is engaged in a pattern or practice of depriving institutionalized individuals of their constitutional rights, according to the DOJ.
Similar investigations have been initiated in other states, most recently Arizona and Arkansas. These investigations start with one facility, but if patterns of misconduct are found, the investigation could expand to encompass the state department responsible for the facility, the DOJ said.
The DOJ probe "is a good thing," said Sharon Agnew, director of the Office of Youth Services, the state agency responsible for the youth prison. "We anticipated that this was a possibility. Their intention as I understand it, is to help us move forward in improvement and I would fully support that."
Assistant U.S. Attorney General R. Alexander Acosta notified Gov. Linda Lingle of the investigation in a letter last month. Acosta said if violations are found at the Kailua facility, the department would provide "minimum measures" needed to remedy the violations.
Acosta's letter to Lingle did not say what led to the investigation, but said the Justice Department was "obliged to determine if there are systemic violations of the Constitution or laws" in the conditions at the facility.
"I don't know why they are coming," said First Deputy Attorney General Richard Bissen. "These investigations will rate you for the conditions you are at when they come. This is not a criminal investigation. They are here to see if we are in compliance with the U.S. Constitution. If they don't find any violations they thank us and go investigate someone else."
Bissen said the DOJ investigator, Mark Daly, did not disclose any reasons for the investigation. Bissen said an investigation based on the Civil Rights of Institutionalized Persons Act can be started for three reasons: a complaint from a ward or the family of a ward; an alert sent out by an agency, federal or nonprofit; and newspaper clippings or other media accounts.
Perrin said Hawai'i's youth prison came to the attention of the DOJ last August after the ACLU released its report. She said the ACLU did not initiate the investigation nor could it.
"It is potentially a really good thing, if the state cooperates with the federal government," Perrin said. The youth prison "needs to change and they need help and the feds can give them that help."
Last month, former corrections officer Li'a "Oli" Olione was sentenced to 15 years in prison following a conviction in the sexual assault and terroristic threatening of a teenage girl at the facility.
Lingle said last month that she welcomed the Justice Department's investigation and said the federal government can expect full cooperation from the state.
In June, state policymakers within the juvenile justice system met with national experts. The policymakers agreed to move forward with three points aimed at reforming antiquated practices and providing alternatives to jail time.
The state officials concluded that alternatives to incarceration must be developed that look out for the best interest of the youth while maintaining an acceptable level of public safety. They also agreed to revamp training practices and codes of conduct for all employees working with children in the juvenile justice system, and eliminate duplicated programs that operate in different departments.
The youth prison has 40 cells for convicted juvenile offenders.
Reach Peter Boylan at 535-8110 or pboylan@honoluluadvertiser.com.
