Judges now hesitant to put kids in state juvenile prisons

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By The Arizona Republic

Published: 03/01/2004

The arrest of a youth corrections officer for sexually abusing a young inmate should be enough to stop judges from sending teenagers to the state's juvenile prisons, a Phoenix, Ariz. attorney said.
Judges in Coconino County already have done so because of problems outlined in a recent federal report, keeping the teens instead at the juvenile detention center in Flagstaff.
"They have a duty under the law to stop until they know the kids are safe there," said Barbara Cerepanya, a longtime Phoenix attorney and child advocate.
A Jan. 17 report by the U.S. Department of Justice said children held in Arizona's youth prisons are sexually and physically abused by staff and other young inmates with an "incredibly disturbing frequency."
Maricopa County Juvenile Court Judge David Cole, like other judges, sends children to juvenile corrections as a last resort. After reading the federal report, he said, "There is no doubt in my mind that I will think longer and harder before I do it because I don't want to put a kid at risk."
Cerepanya said children sent to youth prisons often have mental health, substance abuse and learning problems. The worst kids are sent to adult prison.
Patti Cordova of the Department of Juvenile Corrections said officials are reopening abuse claims made in the past three years.
That search led them to a new one: Officer Kathleen Liden, 43, of Mesa, was arrested last Wednesday, accused of sexually abusing a 16-year-old boy while on the job at Adobe Mountain, according to court records.
She was free on a $36,000 bond last Thursday and ordered to wear an electronic ankle bracelet to monitor her movements. She cannot have unsupervised contact with minors.
The suspected incidents took place in 2003.

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