The Texas Youth Commission (TYC) was a Texas state agency which operated juvenile corrections facilities in the state. The commission was headquartered in the Brown-Heatly Building in Austin. As of 2007, it was the second largest juvenile corrections agency in the United States, after the Florida Department of Juvenile Justice.Moore, Solomon. "Troubles Mount Within Texas Youth Detention Agency." The New York Times. October 16, 2007. Retrieved on July 5, 2010. As of December 1, 2011, the agency was replaced by the Texas Juvenile Justice Department.Home page . (Archive) Texas Youth Commission. Retrieved on April 28, 2012.
History The Gilmer-Aikin Laws in 1949 established the Texas Youth Development Council. In 1957 the state reorganized the agencies, placing the juvenile corrections system and homes for dependent and neglected children into the Texas Youth Council. In 1983 the Texas Legislature gave the agency its current name, the Texas Youth Commission."A Brief History of the Texas Youth Commission." Texas Youth Commission. Retrieved on May 23, 2010.
In September 2008 the TYC had 2,200 inmates, half the number it had 18 months previously.Sandberg, Lisa. "Bureaucratic ranks flourish at TYC." Houston Chronicle. September 7, 2008. Retrieved on June 3, 2010.
On June 3, 2011, the TYC announced that it was closing three facilities by August 31, 2011, affecting 700 employees and 400 prisoners, due to state budget cuts."TYC Announces Closure of Three Facilities ." Texas Youth Commission. Retrieved on July 3, 2011. The governing board selected the three facilities that would close."Youth lockup to close." The Beaumont Enterprise. June 4, 2011. Retrieved on September 29, 2011. After the closings the TYC will have six secure facilities remaining."TYC Parents Frequently Asked Questions Regarding Facility Closures." Texas Youth Commission. June 17, 2011. Retrieved on July 3, 2011.
On December 1, 2011, the Texas Juvenile Justice Department was formed, replacing TYC and the Texas Juvenile Probation Commission.Mitchell, Mitch. "Concerns raised over merger of Texas' juvenile justice agencies." Fort Worth Star-Telegram.Thursday May 19, 2011. Retrieved on September 23, 2011."Home". Texas Juvenile Justice Department. Retrieved on April 28, 2012.Ward, Mike. "Texas closing prison as part of cutbacks ." Killeen Daily Herald. Wednesday August 3, 2011. Retrieved on September 30, 2011.
Child sexual abuse scandal On 23 February 2007, The Texas Observer published a news story detailing allegations of child sexual abuse by staff members at the West Texas State School near Pyote. Following an investigation by the Texas Rangers and the FBI in February and March 2005, two of the highest-ranking officials at the school, assistant superintendent Ray Brookins and principal John Paul Hernandez had been accused of having sexual relations with several students over an extended period. On February 28 Republican Governor Rick Perry dismissed chairman Pete C. Alfaro, who had been named to the commission in 1995 by then Republican governor George W. Bush, and called for the dismissal of acting executive director Neil Nichols.
On March 2, more allegations surfaced of sexual abuse at the Ron Jackson State Juvenile Correctional Facility in Brownwood, leaving McAllen Democrat Juan Hinojosa to state that the situation at Pyote "is not an isolated incident." The same day, the Austin American-Statesman reported its possession of an internal report on the sexual abuse misconduct investigations, with four extra paragraphs that were redacted in the final public version detailing involvement of several top officials in 2005. Also on the same day, Gov. Rick Perry appointed Jay Kimbrough as "Special Master".
As the scandal gained public attention, more allegations were uncovered. The TYC admitted that at least 10 teenage boys were victimized at the West Texas State School, and newspapers reported on some 750 complaints of sexual misconduct against correctional officers and other TYC employees since January 2000. TYC Inspector General Ray Worsham was later implicated in the alteration of the misconduct investigations report. On 28 March, Gov. Perry appointed Kimbrough conservator of the TYC.
ACLU lawsuit On 13 June 2008, the American Civil Liberties Union filed a class action lawsuit, K.C. v. Nedelkoff, against the TYC on behalf of five girls and "all girls and young women who are now or in the future will be confined in Brownwood State School".K.C. v. Nedelkoff - Plaintiffs' Motion For Class Certification And Memorandum In Support Of Motion For Class Certification The ACLU charged that girls were "regularly placed in punitive solitary confinement," that "[u]pon entering or exiting solitary confinement and on other occasions when they have not left the facility - for example, when they finish a work assignment within the prison - girls are subject to invasive strip searches. When girls resist, guards regularly use physical force, pepper spray, handcuffs and leather straps to force them to comply," and that the "treatment the girls have suffered violates their constitutional rights under the Fourth, Fifth, Eighth, and Fourteenth Amendments" as well as articles 3, 19, 23, 34, 37, and 39 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child and articles 7 and 10 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.K.C. v. Nedelkoff - Class Action Complaint For Declaratory And Injunctive Relief
In an official press release, Conservator Nedelkoff responded to the lawsuit saying he was "disappointed" and that he "look[s] forward to working with the ACLU, along with our Texas advocacy partners, to address all concerns mentioned in this lawsuit," and Ombudsman Will Harrell stated that he was also "disappointed" and that "most of the allegations mentioned are being addressed." Deputy Commissioner for Programs and Treatment Dianne Gadow, ultimately responsible for Youth Rights, made no comment on the matter.
Operations In Texas a juvenile offender is a person who is at least 10 years of age but has not yet turned 17 while committing an act referred to as "delinquent conduct" (an act that, if committed by an adult, would result in confinement in a jail or imprisonment) or "conduct in need of supervision" or a "CINS violation" (an act that refers to conduct that, if committed by an adult, would result in a fine, or conduct that may only be committed by children such as truancy). If a juvenile received an "adjudication," it is a finding that the juvenile committed "delinquent conduct" or a "CINS violation," equivalent to a conviction in an adult court system. Among the possible outcomes for youth adjudicated for "delinquent conduct" is being sent to a TYC institution."Overview of the Juvenile Justice System in Texas ." Texas Youth Commission. Retrieved on May 6, 2010.
Juvenile court judges sentence youth offenders to the custody of the TYC. Juveniles in TYC can be classified as either General Offenders, Level A or B Violent Offenders, Firearms Offenders, Controlled Substance Dealers, or Chronic Serious Offenders. They either receive a determinate or indeterminate sentence. Most offenders receive indeterminate sentences, meaning there is no set end date to the sentences. The commission defines a minimum stay or period of confinement, between 9 and 24 months, (known as a minimum length of stay or MLOS) or (Minimum Period of Confinement or MPOC) for each offender with an indeterminate sentence, and the prisoner may be released from custody depending on his or her participation in the program. The child may stay in TYC custody until reaching 19 years of age. Some courts set specific sentences for TYC offenders; the sentences may be up to 40 years. If TYC officials determine that the offender satisfactorily completed the TYC program while in TYC custody, the offender may serve the rest of his or her court-defined sentence while on adult parole instead of serving time in a Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ) adult prison."How Offenders Move Through TYC ." Texas Youth Commission. Retrieved on May 6, 2010. A child committed to the TYC system on or before June 7, 2007, may be held by the agency until the age of 21."Where Will My Child Go & For How Long?." Texas Youth Commission. Retrieved on May 23, 2010. Offenders with determinate sentences occupy about 20% of the slots at high restriction facilities."Sentenced Offenders." Texas Youth Commission. Retrieved on June 24, 2010.
Upon admittance to the TYC system, offenders undergo orientation and are placed in assessment units before being sent to their final assignments. Boys are sent to the McLennan County State Juvenile Correctional Facility in unincorporated McLennan County, near Mart."Mart city, Texas ." U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved on May 6, 2010. Girls are sent to the Ron Jackson State Juvenile Correctional Complex in Brownwood. The Marlin Orientation and Assessment Unit, located in Marlin,"Facility Address List." Texas Youth Commission. November 10, 2001. Retrieved on June 24, 2010. served as the place of orientation for children of both sexes being committed into TYC from the facility's opening in 1995 to its transfer out of TYC in 2007."How Offenders Move Through TYC." Texas Youth Commission. November 10, 2001. Retrieved on June 24, 2010. In the 1960s TYC's reception center for boys was in Gatesville and its reception center for girls was in Brownwood."Texas Youth Commission: An Inventory of Morales Case Files at the Texas State Archives, 1949-1990, undated (bulk 1969-1989)." Texas State Library and Archives Commission. Retrieved on September 27, 2010.
TYC offenders may use the internet while working on certain projects for school; they are never allowed to access e-mail accounts and social networking sites like Facebook, MySpace, and Twitter."Looking Ahead: Taking Responsibility & Defining Your Future." Texas Youth Commission. 7. Retrieved on May 23, 2010.
Demographics of offenders In the fiscal year of 2009, of the children incarcerated at TYC facilities, 48% of new arrivals had committed violent offenses. Of the population, 91% were male and 9% were female. 45% were Hispanic, 40% were African-American, and 20% were White. According to the TYC, 43% of the inmates admitted to being members of gangs during intake. 16 was the median age of commitment."Who Are TYC Offenders?" Texas Youth Commission. Retrieved on May 13, 2010.
As of 2010 of the children with known citizenships who were in secure facilities, in halfway houses, in contract programs, and on parole, 3,925 (93.68%) were Citizens of the United States. 224 (5.35%) were citizens of Mexico. Other countries represented included Australia, Canada, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Indonesia, Iraq, South Korea, Pakistan, Russia, Venezuela, and Vietnam."TYC Population with Known Citizenship." Texas Youth Commission. Retrieved on May 13, 2010.
Facilities
At the time of its closure, the TYC operated correctional institutions and halfway houses."TYC Facilities." Texas Youth Commission. Retrieved on May 6, 2010.
Institutions: Corsicana Residential Treatment Center - Corsicana The center was for youth with mental illnesses or severe emotional disturbances"Corsicana Residential Treatment Center ." Texas Youth Commission. Retrieved on June 16, 2010. Evins Regional Juvenile Center - unincorporated Hidalgo County Gainesville State School - unincorporated Cooke County Giddings State School - unincorporated Lee County Ron Jackson State Juvenile Correctional Complex (Unit I) - Formerly Brownwood State School"Facility Address List." Texas Youth Commission. February 2, 2002. Retrieved on May 6, 2010. - Brownwood