Special Review of High-Risk Issues at the Heman G. Stark Youth Correctional Facility

The California Office of the Inspector General (OIG) reviewed institutional files and logs, reviewed relevant laws and policies, and made six visits to the facility to inspect various areas of the facility and observe youth, staff, and management interactions, as well as interview senior management staff. The OIG sought to assess living conditions for youth on restricted program status and identify situations in which the California Division of Juvenile Justice or the facility's management and staff failed to provide the minimum required services and also to evaluate conditions that may endanger staff, wards, or the public. The OIG investigation focused only on the services and programming provided to youth in the restricted and transitional programs.

The OIG reviewers determined that in 2006, less than one percent of the 323 youth confined to the special management program received educational instruction. Only seven youth received at least three hours per day out of their rooms. About half the youth in a transitional program between the special management program and less-restrictive programs received only about two hours of recreation time out of their rooms each day and were not allowed to leave their housing building. The transitional program also lacked a limit on the number of days before youth should be able to transfer to the general population. Mental health screening programs were not consistently performed for youth in the facility's parole violator program.