SCIOTO FACILITY Report outlines problems at prison

The consultant found problems with abuse and care.
COLUMBUS (AP) -- Guards at Ohio's only youth prison for girls used excessive force and authorities conducted incomplete and meaningless investigations into reports of abuse, according to a draft report by a state-hired consultant.
The Ohio Department of Youth Services, which runs the state's eight juvenile prisons, commissioned the report after complaints in January from advocacy groups about conditions at Scioto Juvenile Correctional Facility.
About 120 girls between 12 and 21, all convicted in Ohio juvenile courts of felonies, live in the prison, about 15 miles north of Columbus. Scioto also has 185 boys in separate buildings.
The report, by consultant Fred Cohen of Tucson, Ariz., said there have been improvements since a new superintendent was hired in February.
But in "virtually every aspect of custody and care, Scioto has not provided the treatment and rehabilitation these girls need and deserve," according to the draft, obtained by The Columbus Dispatch.
Response to findings
Youth Services Director Geno Natalucci-Persichetti said the report was more negative than he expected. Though he questioned some characterizations, he didn't dispute the assessment.
"Overall, it's not too far from my understanding of the depth of the problems," he said. "We've already responded and have already started dealing with some of the issues."
Kim Brooks Tandy, director of the Children's Law Center, a regional advocacy group in Covington, Ky., said she hopes the report backs up the urgent need for reforms that she and others have been demanding.
"We raised very serious concerns earlier in the year about the abuses and the care that these girls get in this facility. I think this report speaks for itself -- that the situation is dire and needs immediate attention in many respects," she said.
Problems
Among the problems cited :
UA girl who left the prison three months pregnant and moved in with a guard. Administrators knew of the relationship, but did not discipline the guard.
UGuards used excessive force and broke girls' arms.
"We certainly feel the environment there can be improved," said Peter Wray of the Ohio Civil Service Employees Association, the union representing guards. "The situation has been sliding for some time, particularly since budget cuts."
Training for guards has been cut as part of the overall budget reductions the past several years, Wray said. The Youth Services budget totals $203 million, about the same as funding in 1999.
But the report notes some problems have gone on for years and could be fixed at little or no expense.
"Money alone will not bring desired change. There must be a renewed sense of mission," according to the report.