Judge ends oversight of juvenile prisons

Associated Press

COLUMBUS

A federal judge on Tuesday ended the court-ordered oversight of Ohio’s juvenile prison system stemming from a decade-old lawsuit alleging the system was permeated by a culture of violence.

The 2004 complaint accused the Department of Youth Services of excessive use of force against children, providing inadequate education, medical and mental health care and failing to adequately train and supervise staff.

The lawsuit also said the agency made arbitrary and excessive use of isolation and seclusion, failed to provide an adequate grievance process and failed to provide equal access to placement and services for girls and young women.

U.S. District Court Judge Algenon Marbley ended most monitoring of the system two years ago and terminated remaining oversight at a hearing Tuesday afternoon. Marbley’s ruling also ended the Justice Department’s involvement in the case, which began over concerns about an overuse of isolation as discipline for youth.

“This has been a model case because everyone came together with one goal: the best outcome for our youth,” said Marbley.