Pandemic Causes Youth Prison Problems
New report finds switch to virtual education and other changes taking a toll on youth, staff at Lincoln Hills, Copper Lake.
The latest report from a court appointed monitor of the state-run youth prisons at Lincoln Hills and Copper Lake shows that the pandemic is taking a toll on the children and staff.
The monitor, Teresa Abreu, visited the facility in December. She wrote: “There is a definite change in the overall atmosphere from the last visit.”
One of the biggest issues affecting the day-to-day atmosphere at the facility, she wrote, was the switch to virtual learning. The children are not receiving the same level of education and staff that work in the living units are complaining of an increased workload now that they have to help students with Zoom classes and their schoolwork.
Along with major changes to the education programs at the facility have come adjustments in operations to mitigate the spread of COVID-19. Staff follow guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on personal protective equipment. Admissions occur every two weeks and youth are quarantined for 14 days and medically supervised before they join the general population.
The changes to education and programming are having a “negative impact on overall youth behaviors,” the monitor reported, leading to increases in fights, assaults and the use of restraints and isolation. And all of this will “have long-term impacts on issues such as the overall facility climate, safety, and length of stay.”
“It is clear by the data, shift reports, and youth and staff attitudes, that boredom is taking its toll,” the monitor wrote.
The monitor wrote that the pandemic is clearly contributing to some of the problems noticed during the December visit. But those problems might be mitigated, she added, “if additional support staff were on site providing more normalized facility operations, primarily around education, treatment, mental health services, etc.”
The “normalization of facility operations would go a long way toward reducing incidents of violence and other behavioral issues stemming from the lack of meaningful programs,” she wrote.
The monitor’s report recommends returning in-person education to the facility “as soon as reasonably possible.” While the number of educational hours has been consistent, the quality of education has been greatly reduced. Youth are having trouble with virtual learning and many are complaining about “not learning anything.” The children are “bored and wanting to go to school” and are complaining of not getting outside time.
The monitor also reported that staff complained about “a lack of ways to hold youth accountable as well as a lack of incentives that will foster improved behaviors.” Staff said there were now “less ‘tools’ available to manage behavior.”
In recent reports, the monitor has noted that the use of restraints — physical and mechanical — has risen. This, she writes, “is very typical of a facility transitioning from and eliminating the use of OC (pepper spray) as staff develop new skills for deescalation and behavior response techniques.”
Restraints are used to “subdue an otherwise uncontrollable youth” to prevent injury to them or others. The rise in the use of restraints, the monitor wrote, “is more reflective of the lack of meaningful education and other programs as a result of the operational changes occurring as a result of the pandemic.”
More about the Coronavirus Pandemic
- Milwaukee County Announces New Policies Related to COVID-19 Pandemic - County Executive David Crowley - May 9th, 2023
- DHS Details End of Emergency COVID-19 Response - Wisconsin Department of Health Services - Apr 26th, 2023
- Milwaukee Health Department Announces Upcoming Changes to COVID-19 Services - City of Milwaukee Health Department - Mar 17th, 2023
- Fitzgerald Applauds Passage of COVID-19 Origin Act - U.S. Rep Scott Fitzgerald - Mar 10th, 2023
- DHS Expands Free COVID-19 Testing Program - Wisconsin Department of Health Services - Feb 10th, 2023
- MKE County: COVID-19 Hospitalizations Rising - Graham Kilmer - Jan 16th, 2023
- Not Enough Getting Bivalent Booster Shots, State Health Officials Warn - Gaby Vinick - Dec 26th, 2022
- Nearly All Wisconsinites Age 6 Months and Older Now Eligible for Updated COVID-19 Vaccine - Wisconsin Department of Health Services - Dec 15th, 2022
- City of Milwaukee Bi-Weekly COVID-19 Update - City of Milwaukee Health Department - Dec 9th, 2022
- MKE County: COVID-19 Disease Burden Remains Stable - Graham Kilmer - Nov 25th, 2022
Read more about Coronavirus Pandemic here
More about the Lincoln Hills and Copper Lake Facilities
- Milwaukee Youth Prison Costs Grow 71% - Jeramey Jannene - Mar 1st, 2023
- Eyes on Milwaukee: Council Approves New Youth Prison in Milwaukee - Jeramey Jannene - Jan 17th, 2023
- Eyes on Milwaukee: New Youth Prison Wins Key Endorsement - Jeramey Jannene - Jan 10th, 2023
- Eyes on Milwaukee: New Youth Prison Gains Plan Commission Approval - Jeramey Jannene - Dec 12th, 2022
- Problems, Staffing Shortages Still Plague Lincoln Hills - Isiah Holmes - Dec 10th, 2022
- MKE County: County Hits 4-Year High of Youth in State Prisons - Graham Kilmer - Nov 28th, 2022
- Youth Correctional Facility Faces Obstacles - Edgar Mendez - Nov 12th, 2022
- MKE County: Vote Could Send More Youth to Lincoln Hills - Graham Kilmer - Sep 22nd, 2022
- Lincoln Hills Faces Rising Population, Staff Shortage - Isiah Holmes - Sep 20th, 2022
- MKE County: State Finance Committee Approves Funding For County Youth Justice Center - Graham Kilmer - Aug 16th, 2022
Read more about Lincoln Hills and Copper Lake Facilities here
No one has ever given a reason for the closing of the youth correction facility at Wales in Waukesha County. It was close enough to Milwaukee to have a very adequate pool of staff. It’s location was also convenient for families of incarcerated youth to visit. It was moved up north, imploded, and is costing the State millions of dollars in legal settlements with former inmates.