Child-welfare advocates concerned about adult/youth justice divisions merging

by Craig Jarvis, Under the Dome, September 12, 2013.

There is concern by some child-welfare advocates over the decision to merge the adult and juvenile prison sections of the state Department of Public Safety.

The merger was announced Tuesday as part of the consolidation of related state agencies that has been underway since 2011, in addition to more recent directives to find additional savings.

Rob Thompson, executive director of the Covenant with North Carolina’s Children, said Wednesday the merger raises questions about how well the state can focus on teenagers.

“Preventing juvenile crime and rehabilitating youthful offenders demand a different model than adult corrections,” Thompson said in a statement. “We are concerned that the new structure will lead to a decreased emphasis on youth-focused programming.”

The advocacy group notes that there was a cabinet-level department on juvenile justice from 2000 to 2011, during which time the juvenile crime rate dropped 27 percent. Then-Gov. Bev Perdue in 2011 ordered with legislative approval the merger of three departments -- Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, Correction and Crime Control and Public Safety – into the new Department of Public Safety.

This week the department announced it would consolidate the adult prison and juvenile justice divisions, which includes community-based supervision and programs. But, new DPS Secretary Frank Perry stressed, “There will be no mixing of juveniles and adults under supervision in facilities or in community programs anywhere.”

Perry said the changes only affect upper-level management of the division. David Guice, who will run the newly consolidated division, in a letter sent across the state Tuesday, sought to emphasize that and to reassure those involved in the system.

“DPS recognizes that the evidence-based methods of working with a juvenile population differ greatly from those used with an adult population, and we will not change the way that Juvenile Justice employees work with children,” Guice wrote.

Still, Thompson says, the change in organization could signal a de-emphasis on juveniles.

“Two years ago, the head of juvenile justice was one step removed from the Governor and had an independent budget dedicated to youth programs. Now, the juvenile justice budget is wrapped up in the behemoth of adult corrections and there is no longer a division head focused exclusively on youth,” Thompson said.

Perry also announced Tuesday that Ellis Boyle will be his new deputy secretary and retain the role of general counsel, which will save $120,000 in annual salary. Also, Gregory K. Baker will replace Perry as commissioner of the law enforcement division. The promotions followed the July departure of Secretary Kieran Shanahan and Chief Operating Officer Edward "Sonny" Masso.

Perry said further upper-management reorganization will save more than $200,000 in annual salaries, with another $50,000 saved by the end of the year.