Despite a statewide push to reduce adult jail populations to prevent spread of the coronavirus, L.A. County kids and young people face hurdles when they seek release
The 17-year-old had been held in a La Verne juvenile camp for three months for a probation violation, the latest in a string of them stemming from a years-old drug possession charge, she said. But with county and state officials trying to lower jail populations to reduce the risk of a coronavirus outbreak, her son seemed like the perfect candidate to be let out early.
Despite concerns about how rapidly the coronavirus could spread in jails, attorneys and parents said juvenile judges have rejected numerous pleas for the early release of youths during the pandemic, even in cases supported by the L.A. County Probation Department. In some cases, the pleas came from juveniles who had an elevated risk of contracting the virus or little time left on their sentence, yet judges declined to even hold a hearing.
In recent weeks, L.A. County probation officials say they’ve made an effort to shrink the population of juvenile halls and camps, submitting to the courts a list of 59 young detainees to be considered for early release. The court released 39 of the youths and set an additional 27 free last week without the Probation Department’s recommendation, Adam Wolfson, communications director for the agency, said.
Defense attorney Rachel Steinback expressed similar frustrations when one of her clients was denied early release on April 10. The client, an asthmatic 17-year-old with less than five weeks left in custody for a non-violent property crime, had the support of his probation officer when Steinback petitioned for his release.
The population of L.A. County’s juvenile halls and camps has dipped sharply in the past six weeks. The number of youths in custody fell from 819 on March 1 to 590 on April 17, a drop of 26%.
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