steven@claremont-courier.com<\/a><\/strong>
Two state laws to be phased in over the next 18 months will radically transform juvenile justice in California and possibly result in youth offenders convicted of violent felonies being housed at existing camps in the hills of La Verne.<\/p>\nIn a process called \u201crealignment,\u201d the two Senate bills, SB 823 and SB 92, have the joint effect of closing California Division of Juvenile Justice facilities and transferring youth offenders from state to county jurisdictions. The changes are part of an effort to focus on education and social services instead of incarceration for these offenders. In addition, the realignment would bring those youth closer to their homes where officials hope they will receive greater support from family.<\/p>\n
Under the directive, all transfers to the state\u2019s remaining three youth lock-ups ceased on June 30, 2021, with some exceptions defined in SB 823. Under SB 92, the director of the Division of Juvenile Justice must develop a plan for the transfer of jurisdiction by January 1, 2022, the final closure of state juvenile prisons must be completed by June 30, 2023.<\/p>\n
The law also creates a new state office of Youth and Community Restoration to handle the realignment effort and establishes a Juvenile Justice Realignment Block Grant program to provide the needed funds for the state\u2019s 58 counties.<\/p>\n
So, where are all of the juvenile offenders supposed to go? The answer may be to camps Joseph Paige and Afflerbaugh, both off of Stephens Ranch Road in La Verne. The camps, which have been in operation since the 1960s, are juvenile court schools, which historically have housed youth convicted of relatively minor crimes. Under realignment however, camps Paige and Afflerbaugh could become \u201csecure youth treatment facilities\u201d and would house juvenile offenders categorized as 707b, those convicted of crimes such as murder, attempted murder, arson, kidnapping and rape, among other serious offenses.<\/p>\n
The two local camps are among roughly half dozen sites in the county which are being considered for security and site upgrades to become \u201csecure youth treatment facilities.\u201d Another local facility, Camp Glenn Rockey in San Dimas, is also on the short list.
The job of identifying the appropriate location for these offenders will be the job of the Juvenile Justice Realignment Block Grant Subcommittee and, ultimately, the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors.<\/p>\n
Currently, 14 of the 707b youth offenders are housed at Barry J. Nidorf Juvenile Hall in Sylmar. When realignment is complete, the county will have to find room for approximately 145 more, plus any juveniles who are convicted of serious crimes from this point forward.<\/p>\n
But not all transfers from the state will ultimately be headed to the most secure facility, as each individual will be evaluated in a \u201ctiered approach\u201d to rehabilitation, which focuses on individual needs and the best environment based on those needs, according to Helen Chavez, Supervisor Kathryn Barger\u2019s assistant chief of staff, communications.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Juvenile Justice Realignment Block Grant (JJRBG) Subcommittee is looking at selecting one or two camps. Ultimately, the total number of camps that will be selected by the subcommittee will be determined by their assessment of the \u201ctiered\u201d level of rehabilitation and care that should be offered to the youth offenders,\u201d Chavez said.<\/p>\n
The news that Afflerbaugh and Paige might become lockups for serious youth offenders shocked and surprised many locals, including some in Claremont.
Claraboya resident, Jess Johannsen, said he and some of his neighbors are concerned about increased crime due to the proximity of the camps, which he described as being \u201ca stone\u2019s throw away\u201d from homes in the north part of Claremont. In addition, with just one way in and out of the facility, Stephens Ranch Rd., the location seemed inappropriate for a high-security environment.<\/p>\n
\u201cWith the rise in crime we are seeing already, this is only going to make it worse,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
On December 7, county officials, including representative from the board of supervisors, department of probation and the probation oversight commission, held a \u201ccommunity listening session\u201d at Oak Mesa School in La Verne. Following that meeting, La Verne Mayor Tim Hepburn released a statement saying that he strongly opposed housing violent offenders at the camps.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s important that you continually email these people that you call them and bombard them with the information that \u2026 both of these facilities are not to be used for 707b offenders and quite frankly they should be closed. And there are other places in the county that are more suitable for this,\u201d Hepburn posted via social media.<\/p>\n
Hepburn told the COURIER on Monday that La Verne has supported the youth of Los Angeles County for decades, citing David and Margaret Youth and Family Services, Haynes Family Programs, and Afflerbaugh and Paige as examples. But he said that housing the 707b offenders at the camps was both inappropriate for the area and potentially dangerous.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are looking at a possible population of 30 to 50 youth, and I say youth, but they are 18 to 25. These are heinous offenders, they\u2019re are not children any longer. It\u2019s just the juvenile justice system [because] if you are 17 they try you as a youth but these offenses are just unbelievably horrific,\u201d Hepburn said<\/p>\n
Afflerbaugh and Paige were identified by the subcommittee as suitable sites because they fit in with the \u201cL.A. model\u201d of rehabilitation which in part seeks to get youth offenders out of prison-like settings and into more holistic environments. The problem, according to Hepburn, is that the camps are no longer isolated as they were 60 years ago, but are now surrounded by hundreds of homes and thousands of residents.<\/p>\n
He described that part of La Verne as being nothing but citrus groves when Afflerbaugh and Paige were built, but now if you get off the freeway and head to the camps, it is all housing, parks and schools.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf you are going to come into this community and check these facilities out, you need to put a seat at the table for our residents and let us know what is going on. We are not a NIMBY community, we give a lot to Los Angeles County for the youth. We are all about youth, we are a family-based community and residential-based community. But this [housing of youth offenders] is just unacceptable. Our community does not deserve this, it\u2019s dangerous for all of our residents and it\u2019s dangerous for everyone, it can\u2019t happen here,\u201d Hepburn said.<\/p>\n
Supervisor Barger, who represents La Verne, and as a result of the recent redistricting now represents Claremont as well, released a statement supporting the county\u2019s changing approach to juvenile justice and her commitment to seeing the process through before making a decision.<\/p>\n
\u201cChanges to state laws are requiring our board of supervisors to make tough choices about where to best house and care for the youth that were formerly supervised by the Department of Justice,\u201d Barger said. \u201cAs a county, we\u2019ve already decided to reimagine how we approach justice involved youth. This includes a balance of providing trauma informed programming and implementing a comprehensive set of security requirements that must be in place to safeguard the environment the youth are in and the surrounding community, at large.\u201d<\/p>\n
Barger said she believes that the youth coming from the state would best be served at the site where they are currently being served \u2014 Campus Barry J. Nidorf. Saying this would be the least disruptive to their treatment and care, and that \u201cit\u2019s the most efficient way forward.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI want to emphasize that no decisions have been made. Community input and involvement in the Probation Oversight Commission\u2019s decision-making process is critical. I urge residents to join those meetings and our County Board of Supervisors meetings to speak up \u2014 voicing different perspectives is the best way to go about developing solutions to tough issues like this one.\u201d<\/p>\n
The subcommittee is set to make its final recommendation by mid-January and the matter will come before the board of supervisors shortly afterward, either in late January or early February.<\/p>\n
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