2021 Regular Session ENROLLED
SENATE RESOLUTION NO. 86
BY SENATOR CLOUD
A RESOLUTION
To urge and request the office of juvenile justice, Department of Public Safety and
Corrections, to submit a written report to the Senate Committee on Finance not later
than May 31, 2021, on each violent incident that has occurred in each secure care
facility from January 1, 2016, through May 1, 2021, the date of the incident, the age
of the youth involved in each incident, and the housing status of the youth after the
incident.
WHEREAS, secure care is reserved for youth considered to be a risk to public safety
and not amenable to treatment in a less restrictive setting; and
WHEREAS, the office of juvenile justice, Department of Public Safety and
Corrections oversees state secure care facilities for juveniles, including the Bridge City
Center for Youth, the Swanson Centers for Youth in Monroe and Columbia, and the
Acadiana Center for Youth in Bunkie, and other contracted housing for juveniles, including
secure care, residential care, or other group home facilities; and
WHEREAS, an increase in violence in secure care facilities was noted in a 2018
legislative auditor report, which cited a one hundred twenty-one percent increase at the
Bridge City Center for Youth; and
WHEREAS, violent behaviors disrupt treatment and education services and may also
indicate that youth are not receiving effective rehabilitation services; and
WHEREAS, with the increase in violence, one of the highest priorities of secure care
facilities and other facilities must be to promote public safety and ensure the safety and well-
being of staff and youth.
THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Senate of the Legislature of Louisiana
does hereby urge and request the office of juvenile justice, Department of Public Safety and
Corrections, to submit a written report to the Senate Committee on Finance not later than
May 31, 2021, on violent incidents in secure care facilities.
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BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the written report shall contain the following
information:
(1) A list of each violent incident that has occurred at each secure care facility from
January 1, 2016, through May 1, 2021.
(2) The date of each incident.
(3) The age of the youth involved in the incident.
(4) Whether the youth remained in the secure care facility after the incident or if the
youth was transferred to another facility after the incident, the type of facility the youth was
transferred to, and the duration of the transfer.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the office of juvenile justice shall provide
written notice within ten days of each violent incident at a secure care facility to the
members of the Louisiana Senate and Louisiana House of Representatives whose districts
encompasses the secure care facility where the violent incident occurred.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this Resolution be transmitted to the
deputy secretary of the office of juvenile justice, Department of Public Safety and
Corrections.
PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE
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