During the 2016 legislative session, Gov. Terry McAuliffe and the General Assembly reached historic agreement in three critical areas. First, due to declining populations of youth in state custody, they agreed that DJJ could close one of two remaining oversized and aging juvenile correctional centers (JCCs) — Beaumont or Bon Air — both of which are located near Richmond. Second, they agreed that the state would reinvest the savings from downsizing into a statewide continuum of evidence-based services and alternative placements for juveniles. Third, to meet the needs of the many youth committed to state custody from the Hampton Roads area, they agreed on bond funding to construct a 64-bed, therapeutic JCC in Chesapeake and authorized planning funds to address the correctional needs for the rest of the state.
The legislature also established an interagency task force to make recommendations for optimal utilization of these new facilities, and directed the members to submit an interim report on its findings in order to receive planning money for the Chesapeake facility. The report was submitted this month and provides a road map for moving ahead with Chesapeake and designing facilities that are built for safety and rehabilitation, not just for securing youth.
The Chesapeake facility’s 64 beds make it 70 percent smaller than Beaumont Juvenile Correctional Center, which will close by the end of June 2017. The new facility will be located near families and service providers of committed youth from Hampton Roads, and will provide a setting that supports DJJ’s rehabilitative goals.
The department is also creating community-based alternatives to JCCs. At the beginning of 2014, DJJ had only large centers available for youth committed to state custody. As of today, DJJ has added eight residential programs in local juvenile detention centers across the state. The new placements are in smaller settings, and closer to most youths’ homes. These, along with other policy and administrative actions, allowed DJJ to safely reduce its JCC population by more than half since 2014, to just over 270 youth today.
Additionally, DJJ will contract with regional service coordinators who will lead development of a statewide continuum of evidence-based services and additional alternative placements to effectively serve youth in their communities. This new initiative is budgeted using funds derived from reinvestment as well as administrative and operational efficiencies within the department.
Brian Moran, Virginia’s secretary of public safety and homeland security, says:
Unfortunately, some still misunderstand the certain benefits of the transformation plan and misrepresent the results of our progress thus far. What’s true is that there is bipartisan support for each change described here and the significant changes DJJ is making. What’s true is that we are dramatically shrinking our old, adult-style correctional footprint, and moving toward modern, small rehabilitative facilities and alternative placements. And what’s true is that there are some youth and some situations that will require time in secure custody in order to keep communities safe and provide the services and setting that will most effectively address their complex needs.
“These bipartisan-supported changes not only will produce better rehabilitative results for youth throughout our juvenile justice system but also will provide safer communities and savings for our taxpayers. Once this transformation is complete, we project reductions in our facility footprint by at least two-thirds, and substantial annual investments in the statewide continuum of services.
I am extremely proud of our progress, the hard work of the DJJ staff and the bipartisan support we have enjoyed. To secure our early gains, it will be critical that we maintain unity of purpose. This is a precious opportunity to make Virginia a safer and better place for our communities and for our children. We must not waste it.
