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| Prison workers air complaints |
| By South Florida Sun-Sentinel |
| Published: 10/20/2003 |
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Citing serious concerns for their safety, 11 state employees required to monitor Florida's troubled girls prison have filed a grievance with the Department of Juvenile Justice. The 100-bed Florida Institute for Girls has been plagued by allegations of sexual misconduct, abuse and poor supervision since it opened more than three years ago west of West Palm Beach. Those allegations came to the attention of Palm Beach County State Attorney Barry Krischer in mid-June. Krischer called for a grand jury investigation, which is under way. After a litany of incidents culminated in mid-July with two girls suffering broken arms while being restrained, Juvenile Justice froze admissions at the privately run prison. It also placed its own employees at the facility 16 hours a day, seven days a week, to keep watch. The detention employees who signed the grievance wrote that they all initially declined when asked whether they would volunteer to work at the prison. So, they wrote, they were forced to do so. "It has been found that there is no structured programs in place for the inmates, they are very disrespectful towards the guards that are already working there, they are very abusive and there is no behavior modification program in place to help the inmates with their problems," the state workers wrote. "This is a very dangerous position that DJJ staff is placed in." The employees also expressed concern that the state facilities where they typically work are at risk, because those programs are not fully staffed when they are at the prison. "We as DJJ workers feel betrayed and let down by the Administration of our facility for forcing their workers to work under these conditions," they wrote. Darryl Olson, Juvenile Justice regional director for residential and correctional services, said Tuesday that he had not seen the letter but had talked with his counterpart who oversees detention services. He said he plans to meet with each of the state employees to hear their complaints firsthand. Olson said the private company that runs the prison, Premier Behavioral Solutions, has shown a willingness to address the prison's problems. |
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