NEW ORLEANS — Juveniles being housed at Angola in a separate area of the facility have been moved to a juvenile justice facility in Jackson Parish, the Office of Juvenile Justice announced Friday.
The move occurred Friday morning.
The housing of juvenile offenders at Angola was the subject of a lawsuit and a judge recently ruled that they needed to be removed from the facility.
The OJJ had contended that the youth being held at what was called the West Feliciana Center for Youth on the Angola campus, were the most violent of offenders and needed to be held there after several escapes, including some from the Bridge City facility in Jefferson Parish.
Youth advocates said that the conditions at the facility at Angola were not humane and included a lack of air-conditioning during the extreme heat wave.
U.S. District Judge Shelly Dick originally said that while the housing of juvenile offenders at Angola was “untenable,” the threat of the youth to themselves and others was “intolerable.”
However, she reversed that position earlier this year after visiting the facility, finding that conditions at Angola were unconstitutional and that state officials had broken promises to provide young detainees with education and mental health treatment.
Despite the move to the facility in Jackson Parish, which was opened in July and currently houses youth from that area, the Office of Juvenile Justice said that it intends to proceed with the appeal of Judge Dick’s ruling.
The OJJ said that Dick’s assessment of the conditions there was counter to what they believe was provided.
“The youth who were temporarily housed there received targeted rehabilitative services and care from hardworking OJJ staff, who took extraordinary measures to ensure the facility could successfully serve the youth,” said the statement.
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