El Dorado County's lone juvenile treatment center to be in South Lake Tahoe, for now

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - Starting May 25, 2019, there will be no more youth staying in the Placerville Juvenile Detention Facility. After a decision by the El Dorado County Board of Supervisors in February, South Lake Tahoe's Juvenile Treatment Center (JTC) will be the only youth facility in the county to serve those in the justice system 18-years-old and younger, for now.

There are several reasons for the changes including an aging facility, increasing costs and the fact that fewer youth are working their way through the juvenile justice system.

The 50-year-old Placerville facility is not satisfying the current needs of youth on the West Slope and is rarely full with an average of 14 kids housed there. South Lake Tahoe's facility has even fewer.

"We do seem to be seeing fewer crimes committed by youth, which appears to be a national trend," said Presiding Judge Suzanne Kingsbury. "Changes in how the criminal justice system handles youthful offenders have also occurred. Detention is avoided if there are other community-based options available, and the goal of rehabilitation is more realistic now that we use tools and provide treatment and programming that is evidence-based."

El Dorado County's Chief Probation Officer Brian Richart agreed and said things that started ten years ago are now paying dividends with improved services in schools along with a change in the practice in law enforcement, courts, and probation. He said these things have made a significant positive impact on youth, and they are seeing fewer siblings follow the troubled path of an older brother or sister.

Statewide data shows violent crime committed by youth has been declining over the past two decades while the cost to house them is increasing.

The California Board of State and Community Corrections (BSCC) reports the cost to house one individual in the El Dorado County juvenile halls costs $288,000 annually. Richart said it is not sustainable to keep costs that high.

"The closure of juvenile facilities is also becoming more common," added Judge Kingsbury. "Jurisdictions large and small have been exploring the option of shuttering or scaling back detention facilities which house our youth. It costs a significant sum of money for local jurisdictions to staff and operate these institutions, and outcomes for youth aren’t necessarily improved by virtue of this type of intervention."

While part of the reason behind the upcoming change is money, the rest is looking at a way to better serve the youth in the system. There is no "one size fits all" approach to rehabilitating youth.

Juvenile justice has changed in the last five years, said Richart. He said they have had their hands tied as a system, but what really needs to be done is a restructure on how the kids are housed.

"Group homes and juvenile halls aren’t the only way," said Richart. "Some of the kids don’t need to be locked up, just need structure and services. Ultimately we’ll see not halls, but juvenile service centers from maximum security to light residential." He said they could see unlocked housing where they are transitioning from the system to life outside the system.

There has been a reduction of 22 positions with the closing of the Placerville juvenile center, but Richart said there has been a variety of options for them to move to other positions and/or departments. He's also worked with other counties so they could transfer to probation departments elsewhere. Some of those lost positions were also current vacancies which just equated to a position and not an employee.

"The majority will have spots by June 30," Richart said.

But even with smaller numbers of youth in the system in El Dorado County, there is a new one being built in Placerville.

Richart said the County will be tearing down the old Sheriff's Office on Fair Lane once that department moves over to their new facility off Missouri Flat Road in Placerville. He said they have started planning a new youth facility on the site of that old office and have $10M in construction grants to accomplish it along with money saved from fewer employees and just one location to operate over the next three years. The facility they are contemplating will have a variety of services, 20 beds with the ability to grow to 40, and will be created with a less staff intensive system in mind. Richart said they will focus on kids and not focus on running the building.

"It is my hope that we still are able to serve detained youthful offenders and their families here in Tahoe at the same level as exists currently," said Judge Kingsbury. "Brian Richart and his staff have a commitment to providing excellent service."

The Board of Supervisors has directed the Chief Administrative Office to work on repurposing the old Placerville facility. Richart said a group has been formed and already met once. South Lake Tahoe's facility could also be repurposed once the new Placerville facility is completed.

In a few years when the new building is completed in Placerville, the County will then need to decide what should be done in South Lake Tahoe.

Richart said they could look at the possibility of making regional treatment centers since many communities are also seeing the reduced numbers in their facilities.

In 2004 the County built the new facility for youth in South Lake Tahoe, allowing youth in the system a place to live near family and friends as they rehabilitate. Prior to that, they were transported to Placerville to be housed.

The concerns of the South Lake Tahoe families prior to 2004 are now the same concerns for Placerville area families and their ability to connect with loved ones being transferred to South Lake Tahoe. Through technology, they will use ways to encourage and maintain connections for families unable to drive to the lake. Richart said that no matter where a facility is there are strained connections and they will work to help solve that.