NEW ORLEANS — Orleans District Attorney Jason Williams is calling on the Louisiana Office of Juvenile Justice to be more open and transparent when a juvenile inmate escapes.
Williams vented his frustration at a Thursday morning news conference.
“Within moments there needs to be an all-points bulletin with photographs, letting the public know what has occurred,” Williams said.
His criticism comes after the NOPD asked for help in locating 16-year-old Kai Jefferson.
He is wanted on three counts of aggravated assault after police say he pointed a gun at a woman and threatened to shoot her last Friday.
According to the NOPD, Jefferson escaped from OJJ custody.
But the public was never told about it.
“If they had not identified him, we would never know he was out there,” Sen. Pat Connick, R-Marrero said.
Connick has worked on legislation to hold OJJ more accountable.
He confirms Jefferson has been on the run since leaving a halfway house in March.
“They tell me he walked away and there’s no security there,” Connick said.
Connick says current state law allows OJJ to divulge the name and picture of an inmate who escapes from a juvenile prison.
But it does not allow the same public notification if they escape from a halfway house or so-called step-down facility.
He is now working on a bill to close the loophole.
“The bill says if a juvenile escapes or leaves a halfway house, OJJ must notify sheriff’s, law enforcement and the media,” Connick said.
Rep. Alonzo Knox, D-New Orleans joined Williams in calling out OJJ.
He chairs the state legislative Task Force on Juvenile Offender Policies.
“I want the public to know that this issue just isn’t isolated to New Orleans,” Knox said. “This is a statewide issue. It is an unfortunate trend that we’re seeing as it relates to juvenile crime and an increase in juvenile crime.”
Williams maintains there are a lot of things broken in the juvenile justice system that are not serving children well and aren’t serving the public well.
“If someone escapes from a penal facility, whether it’s out of town or down the street at OJJ, if the head of that facility does not alert the public immediately, then I’m going to alert the public immediately,” Williams said.
Williams noted Jefferson is the third juvenile escapee in less than a year.
Two other teen escapees, Lynell Reynolds and Curtis Tassin, made headlines when each of them escaped earlier this year.
Both of them are back in custody, but not before putting the community at risk.
Kai Jefferson remains on the run.
WWL Louisiana received this statement from OJJ:
“The Office of Juvenile Justice (OJJ) can confirm that the youth in question did not escape from Bridge City. OJJ must abide by the state laws when it comes to identifying young offenders under our care. The Louisiana Children’s Code Article 412 states that certain information concerning juvenile offenders is considered confidential and cannot be made public, including names. When there is an incident involving a youth at a non-secure residential group setting, OJJ reports whether the youth is an escapee, runaway or missing person, as well as whether the youth is a delinquent or status offender—then a warrant is filed. Once the juvenile court judge signs the warrant, a copy of the signed warrant is provided to the District Attorney, the youth’s attorney, and OJJ. Once we have a signed copy of the warrant it is then entered into the National Crime Information Center (NCIC) to notify all law enforcement to arrest the youth. Bridge City Center for Youth (BCCY) is the state control center where all active warrants are entered for any youth in OJJ’s custody, whether secure care or non-secure care. This means the warrant will always return to BCCY with details about the specific location where the youth was housed.”
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