Judge orders LA County juvenile hall youth relocation plan, officers plead not guilty
Matters involving the troubled Los Padrinos Juvenile Hall made their way through court on Friday, with a Los Angeles Superior Court judge ordering the county to come up with a plan to move youth out of the facility, while a group of corrections officers pleaded not guilty to child abuse charges and more.
Los Padrinos has faced management and operational issues since it hastily reopened in 2023 to house detainees relocated from Central Juvenile Hall in Boyle Heights and Barry J. Nidorf Juvenile Hall in Sylmar, which were both ordered closed by the state.
The facility has suffered from short-staffing, allegations of violence among detainees sometimes while probation officers allegedly stood by without intervening, and escape attempts.
Superior Court Judge Michael Espinoza ordered on Friday that the county is to come up with a plan to relocate detained youth out of the Downey juvenile hall as state regulators say it is unsuitable to house them.
Meanwhile in another courtroom on Friday, eight corrections officers were arraigned on charges that they enabled "gladiator fights" at Los Padrinos. They pleaded not guilty to charges of child abuse, conspiracy, and battery.
The eight defendants are part of the 30 corrections officers that were charged in early March by California Attorney General Rob Bonta.
According to Bonta's Office, the charged officers allowed and sometimes encouraged 69 fights at Los Padrinos between July 1, 2023, and December 31, 2023. State prosecutors said 143 kids between the ages of 12 and 18 were beaten during those six months.
The bulk of probation officers charged in the case were arraigned on March 3. The director of Los Padrinos is among the charged officials. Defense attorney Tom Yu said his client pleaded not guilty. Yu previously said that the officers weren't aware of the fights.
In December, the California Board of State and Community Corrections declared Los Padrinos unsuitable to house youth detainees, most notably because of staffing deficiencies.
Lacking any viable alternative to house the detainees, the county has continued to operate the facility despite the state order and the county Public Defender's Office has been challenging the continued use of Los Padrinos, claiming youth in the facility are unsafe.
The Probation Department issued a statement Friday afternoon saying it will "move swiftly to implement a depopulation plan for Los Padrinos Hall that aligns with our broader facilities strategy and prioritizes public safety."
"We are grateful that Judge Espinoza recognized the progress the department has made and upheld the importance of a measured approach -- one that avoids the release of youth and supports a safe and orderly transition toother youth facilities," according to the department.
Officials with the department said they had already planned to relocate high-needs young men and women from Los Padrinos, and that the ruling allows them to accelerate the move.
