San Diego County Detention Facilities Condition and Management

Several County jails are out of compliance with State standards. Fact: Only East Mesa Reentry, Las Colinas, and George Bailey have outdoor recreation yards. Fact: Most detention facility recreation areas have no exercise equipment.

Most detention facility inmates lack access to sunlight and appropriate exercise equipment. Fact: Detention facility reentry programs are designed to reduce recidivism. Fact: The Sheriff’s Department has not provided clear, understandable data and analyses to assess recidivism.

Without clear definitions and measures of recidivism, the Grand Jury cannot judge the success of reentry programs. Juvenile Detention Facilities As noted previously, the Grand Jury toured the four juvenile detention facilities operated by the San Diego County Probation Department. The Probation Department reports to the County Administrative Officer. At each location the commanders and staff gave a briefing, including data on inmates and incidents. Staff all appeared committed and dedicated to helping the juveniles in their charge become responsible, productive adults. At each juvenile facility the Grand Jury inspected:  Physical plant (lighting, temperature, sleeping accommodations, drinking water)  Emergency/fire and safety equipment and procedures  Officers’ gun lockers (no guns are permitted inside)  General appearance (cleanliness of inmates, rooms, bedding)  Procedures (rules, discipline, schedules, grievance process)  Kitchen and food service (cleanliness, inmate worker regulations and supervision, proper food handling, nutrition)  Certificated school, administered by the San Diego County Office of Education  Medical clinics, staffed by RNs, LVNs, physicians, dentists, and mental health professionals  Availability of religious services  Visitation schedules (posted, with telephone use explained) Medical facilities are staffed with RNs and LVNs, with doctors and dentists rotating among the four units. All Probation Officers are CPR (Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation) and AED (Automatic External Defibrillator) certified. Probation staff in the Trauma Responsive Unit (TRU) are trained specifically in an educational and therapeutic intervention model designed to prevent and treat conditions such as post-traumatic stress disorder, severe anxiety disorders, depression, dissociative disorders, and numerous other stress-related disorders. A new core curriculum for Probation staff adopted in the last year builds on current training and includes: Restorative Practices, Adolescent Brain Development, Bridges Out of Poverty, Trauma Informed Care, and Positive Youth Development. Probation staff participate in this extensive and comprehensive training which builds rapport with youth and may defuse tense situations before they become critical. All youth are required to attend school Monday through Friday at the SOAR (Success, Opportunities, Achievement, and Results) Academy, which is administered by the San Diego County Office of Education. Youth can earn credits (transferable to all County school districts) toward their high school diploma or earn a certificate of graduation by passing the High School 8 Equivalency Test (HiSET). Those who already have their diploma or have passed HiSET may also have the opportunity to participate in online college-level courses and earn college credit. To improve the quality of education, the SOAR Academy individualizes the curriculum around the achievement and/or grade level of the youth. Ongoing evaluations are conducted to assess reading and math skills. Some are not academically prepared to complete work at a ninth-grade level. Some are eligible for online courses for college credit at Southwestern, Palomar, Mira Costa, and Cuyamaca Community Colleges as well as with Grand Canyon University. East Mesa Juvenile also has a vocational unit that teaches woodworking and furniture construction. All youth in detention have access to other programs including anger management, Alcoholics and Narcotics Anonymous, social awareness training, and, if they have children themselves, parenting classes. In addition, many juvenile inmates are initially assigned to Breaking Cycles, a family-centered delinquency and intervention program with commitments of 90, 150, 240 or 365 days. Each commitment level has different programs and services, making it critical for the Probation Department to properly assess each youth’s needs prior to court hearings. On occasion youth are committed from Drug Court to complete these programs. Minors with 90-day commitments automatically enter the Short Term Offender Program (STOP), which focuses on youth in the early stages of delinquent behavior. STOP provides physical training, school attendance, drug/alcohol education, and work programs. After as few as 20 days in juvenile hall, and depending on achievement of program goals and parental participation, youth will generally return home. Minors with a 90-day commitment released from STOP typically do not receive the same post-release services as youth with longer Breaking Cycles commitments. The Grand Jury was particularly interested in the five-year plan for the new San Diego Juvenile Justice Campus, which will accommodate the current populations of the Kearny Mesa Juvenile Facility, the Girls Rehabilitation Facility, and Camp Barrett. Phase I of this project is construction of an urban camp for female and male youth with academic, career, technical education, and health services, with space for mental health staff in the living units. Phase II will rebuild the existing juvenile hall with classrooms, food services, an intake area, and expanded indoor and outdoor recreation areas. Phase III, when funding is identified, would provide for the Probation Department’s headquarters. The Juvenile Justice Campus plan is currently undergoing environmental review. Kearny Mesa Juvenile Detention Facility Kearny Mesa is the intake facility for all juveniles in San Diego County. It was built in 1952, and renovated in 1994 and 2002, but appears outdated. Presently Kearny Mesa houses youth 12 to 18 years old, with some up to age 21. Generally, these are youth who are on probation or have new charges filed against them, and are awaiting a hearing in juvenile court. Data collected when juveniles are booked and screened indicates that 40% of the youth are taking prescription psychotropic drugs. The facility’s bed capacity is 359 with an average of 148 in custody. The administrative staff tries to keep the population at 20 to 24 per unit which allows more effective management and engagement with the youth and their families. All youth have their own rooms 9 that they are required to keep clean. During Grand Jury interviews with the youth some of them stated that they would rather stay in juvenile hall than be released. Youth participate in physical exercise at least two hours per day including one hour of physical education. Recreation space is provided in the dayrooms and outdoor areas. Basketball hoops, but no other equipment, were observed in recreation areas. All eligible youth in the facility are permitted to work or perform chores on a voluntary basis. Work assignments include working in the kitchen and/or clean-up crew. Special programs or activities offered include Art, Words Alive, Playwright Project, and Book Club. The staff to youth ratio is 1 to 8 during the day and 1 to 24 at night. The facility is budgeted for 350 staff positions and Probation officers expressed the need for more. Staff members in all juvenile facilities participate in extensive training to provide them with the skills to communicate and interact with youth in an educated and appropriate manner. Several probation officers are fluent in Spanish. Contract interpreters are available for speakers of Spanish, Arabic, Farsi, a Mayan dialect, and other languages. Girls Rehabilitation Facility The Girls’ Rehabilitation Facility (Girls Rehab) is an intensive, highly-structured program serving up to 50 young women between the ages of 13 and 17 and a half. They offer programs to meet the personal, emotional, and educational needs for the girls committed by the Juvenile Court. Family counseling group sessions offer parents additional tools and parenting tips to assist in the transition of their youth back home. There are five phases of a rigorous program that each youth must pass in order to be eligible for release from the Girls Rehab: Boarding, Departure, Journey, Arrival, and Destination. Each phase has expectations, as well as earned privileges. Each girl is assigned to a Probation officer who is responsible for ensuring that she participates in the various programs that address her treatment needs. Graduation is a special occasion. Girls Rehab recently hosted a high school graduation ceremony for four youth and over 100 guests, with the girls wearing traditional caps and gowns. Juvenile Court orders girls who have committed serious felonies such as carjacking or shooting at police to complete the Youthful Offender Unit (YOU). At the time of the Grand Jury visit there were 3 girls in the YOU program. Girls Rehab offers a 5K running program as well as a horticultural training program. Through the running program some of the girls have participated in 5K races in the city of San Diego. The horticultural program is taught by master gardeners who specialize in edibles and cuisine. The girls maintain an onsite garden and, under supervision of Probation staff, prepare and serve the fruit and vegetables grown there. East Mesa Juvenile Facility East Mesa Juvenile Detention Facility (East Mesa Juvenile) opened in 2004, and looks very much like a traditional jail. The building layout is clean but has a very sterile appearance. Due to its remote location, the number of visitations is low, and the facility offers Skype. Each youth 10 is permitted a staff-assisted, free phone call weekly. Visits are allowed six days per week. Some of the youth at the facility are fathers so they are provided opportunities to visit with their children. East Mesa Juvenile has a rated capacity of 290 and is currently staffed for 150 inmates. At the time of the Grand Jury’s visit, there were 140 youth in custody. The facility primarily houses minors who have been committed by juvenile court. However, they also accept behavioral or special needs youth from Camp Barrett and Kearny Mesa Juvenile Detention Facility. Languages spoken by Probation staff include English, Spanish, Tagalog, Farsi, and American Sign Language. The majority of youth at this facility are bilingual as well. If required, interpreters are available. Each youth has his own room. If special accommodations are needed due to pre-existing illness or injuries, appropriate supervision is provided. The daytime ratio of Probation staff to youth is one to ten. Under the Prison Rape Elimination Act (PREA) the mandated ratio is one to eight. The ratio is 1 to 24 at night which provides adequate safety for both youth and staff. The typical age range at East Mesa Juvenile is 13 to 21 years. The older youth were diverted from the Department of Justice California Youth Authority and are serving 6 to 18 month sentences. These older youth enter the Second Chance program, in which Probation officers act as case managers to oversee reentry programming and services. The Second Chance program provides resources meant to help these youth find their way to a positive, successful future. For those youth involved in Second Chance and other reentry programs officers hold release meetings with the youth, parents, Probation, and other support staff to set up a transition plan. East Mesa Juvenile had 93 violent incidents that involved injuries and two assaults on staff in 2017. Officers also discovered contraband such as weapons or controlled substances (e.g., alcohol, tobacco, illegal drugs, or prescription drugs for which the youth did not have a prescription). Reports indicate a high number of incidents when youth try to hide their prescribed and staff-administrated medications by holding them inside their mouths. The staff is trained to mediate and refer the youth to counselors in lieu of punishment for this behavior. A majority of youth at East Mesa Juvenile have some sort of gang affiliation which triggers most of the violence on site. The staff tries to alleviate this problem with a program called Project Aware which helps youth rethink the gang mindset. In general, the facility is required to devote a lot of attention to gang issues. The Probation staff is vigilant in their observations; they anticipate and mediate as needed. Camp Barrett Located in the rural community of Alpine, Camp Barrett, with a capacity of 135 beds, houses high-risk male inmates between the ages of 13 and 18. The staffing numbers fluctuate based on the daily juvenile population. At the time of the 2017/2018 Grand Jury visit the population was 77 and the facility was understaffed. The State requires a ratio of one sworn staff to every 15 youths during waking hours. Medical staff is always present. Religious services are provided and visitation is allowed every Sunday from 1:00 to 3:00 PM. At times, gang-related issues create volatile situations and some violence. Staff makes every effort to redirect energies with recreation and educational opportunities. The goal of this facility is to provide youthful inmates with the training and skills necessary for successful transition and integration back into society. To accomplish this goal, each youth is required to attend school, complete assigned work tasks, and finish demanding, structured programs. Youth with disabilities who meet the criteria for commitment to Camp Barrett can be accommodated. Behavior modification programs are used to increase the likelihood of successful reintegration into society. These programs include Steps to Success, Aggression Replacement Therapy, Social Tolerance/Gang Awareness, and Teen Relationship Violence. Camp Barrett is currently participating in a one-of-a-kind literacy program called Lindamood-Bell which has pioneered programs to develop the sensory-cognitive processes that underlie reading, spelling, math, visual-motor skills, language comprehension, and critical thinking. Customized learning plans are developed to address each student’s unique needs, and classes of three to five students receive daily blocks of instruction ranging from three to four hours per day. At Camp Barrett youth can also earn certificates of accomplishment in culinary arts, fire science, graphic design, horticulture, team leadership training, and work readiness. Substance abuse education and treatment are provided by contracted support staff. Youth with learning disabilities are assessed for an individualized educational program. Camp Barrett also offers weekly parenting classes for juveniles with children or those who are expectant fathers. Facts and Findings Fact: There were almost 100 violent incidents in the East Mesa Juvenile Detention Facility in 2017. Fact: Gang affiliation triggers most of the violent activity in the East mesa facility.

The East Mesa Juvenile Detention Facility needs to develop programs aimed at reducing violence in the facility. Fact: At Kearny Mesa Juvenile Detention Facility each youth participates in a physical exercise program for at least two hours daily. Fact: Recreation space is provided at Kearny Mesa Juvenile. Fact: Limited recreational equipment was observed by the Grand Jury at Kearny Mesa Juvenile.

Kearny Mesa Juvenile may need additional equipment to facilitate a better and more productive physical exercise program.