Legislative auditor finds overcrowding, staffing and assessment problems in juvenile rehabilitation programs

Casey Radistitz, project coordinator for the Joint Legislative Audit and Review Committee (JLARC), told the Department of Children, Youth and Families Oversight Board that JLARC's preliminary performance audit of juvenile rehabilitation (JR) programs identified crowding at two large secure facilities, problems with staffing and training, and assessment tools that do not accurately predict risk for JR's current population.

The JLARC presentation said the JR system serves roughly 400 people on an average day, and that about 74% of those young people live at Echo Glen Children's Center or Green Hill School. "Our analysis shows that as the population increases, so does the likelihood of incidents like bites, assaults, and contraband," Radistitz said. JLARC reported that Green Hill and Echo Glen experienced about 7,800 incidents in 2025 (a rate the auditors summarized as roughly 10 incidents per day at each large facility) and that a statistical analysis showed additional residents were associated with measurable increases in assaults and substance incidents.

Ashley Tranel, a JLARC researcher, summarized workforce findings: frontline staff turnover is high — about 47% of frontline JR staff leave within a year — and staff told auditors they often feel unsafe, unprepared and unsupported. "Without enough experienced staff, facilities will struggle to maintain order, build trust with their residents, and effectively deliver rehabilitative programs," Tranel said. JLARC recommended that DCYF improve staff retention through stronger feedback, better on-the-job training and clearer refresher-training compliance.

JLARC also reported that the assessment tools JR uses to place young people are not validated for JR's current population and can either overstate or understate risk. "These tools are not reliable and do not accurately predict a young person's risk of reoffending," Tranel said. JLARC recommended DCYF use validated assessments that accurately predict risks and identify needs for the population it currently serves.

The auditors found program-access gaps tied to facility assignment rather than individual needs — for example, wait lists for substance-use treatment and fewer higher-education options for young women at Echo Glen — and inconsistent data collection that prevents managers from determining whether youth receive appropriate treatment or whether disparities exist. JLARC's final recommendation asked DCYF to collect accurate, reliable and consistent data on programming, staff training and the use of room confinement and isolation (RCI).

JLARC provided eight recommendations in total: one directed to the legislature (to consider options addressing crowding) and seven directed to DCYF (strengthen retention, improve training, develop incident-response procedures, use validated assessments, evaluate and align program mixes, match programs to individual needs, and improve data). The auditors asked DCYF to report progress to JLARC by July 2027; JLARC listed implementation target dates between December 2027 and July 2028.

Jennifer Redmond, DCYF assistant secretary for juvenile rehabilitation, told the board DCYF considered the process cooperative and said the agency was already implementing some improvements. "This process was done largely in 2024–25, which was at the height of our overcrowding," Redmond said, while acknowledging the agency still needs further resources and policy decisions to address structural capacity and training concerns.

Next steps: JLARC posted its full report and supporting materials; the oversight board and DCYF will continue follow-up, and JLARC will expect a formal progress report by July 2027.