Alameda County Supervisors: No More Youth Prisons!

In 2007, Alameda County opened a brand-new juvenile detention complex at a cost of $176 million. The Alameda County Probation Department is the agency in charge of the juvenile prison system operating under the direction of the Alameda County Board of Supervisors. Each year taxpayers shell-out $48 million to maintain this facility even though 60% of the beds are empty. Now, flush with an additional $55 million, the Alameda County Board of Supervisors is planning to expand the juvenile detention facilities by attaching its Camp Sweeney to the current complex-- tripling its size and creating what some local residents call a "prison city" to be constructed on the active Hayward earthquake fault a few feet away from a major thoroughfare between San Leandro and Castro Valley. What's most surprising; there are only 15 male youths at Camp Sweeney right now...that's a cost of $3.7 million dollars per youth just to move them!
Constantly under-staffed, the Alameda County Probation Department has hired a number of questionable applicants to serve as probation officers and executive level management staff. As a result, there have been several high profile lawsuits around youth abuse, a lack of programming and under-staffing. In addition to large systemic turnover of staff, there have been two Chief Probation officers in 3 years. One resigned after being the subject of a lawsuit alleging sexual harassment; the other was 'terminated'. As the only juvenile detention center in Alameda County, it is critical that the facilities are safe and well-operated. Not only is there no staffing plan for the new 10 acre expansion, the only security buffer between the youth inmates and the community is a rod iron fence. The majority of the youth committed to this juvenile detention facility are from Oakland and Hayward, and have some form of gang affiliation. There is no plan to safeguard the youth and the public from gang retaliatory acts such as drive-by shootings, home-made bombs, or other methods of outside attack. The proposed design and location also makes escape or entrance to the detention center fairly easy. The current and ongoing chaotic environment with the Probation department itself only adds to the prediction that this juvenile detention center expansion will do more harm than good.
However, there are alternatives to over-expanding the juvenile detention facilities. The Alameda County Board of Supervisors can re-evaluate this proposal and rebuild Camp Sweeney in its current location and size, which is proportional to the real number of committed youth, and shift the focus onto the rehabilitative services they need to transition back into home and school life. The current location is away from the roadway, secure and quiet-- just like an actual camp.
This process to expand Alameda County's juvenile detention center has been moving quickly and very quietly. Please contact the Alameda County Board of Supervisors and tell them that we don't need a bigger youth prison! The board is planning to "rubber stamp" this project on May 10, 2016 at their regular board meeting in Oakland, California.

Supervisor Nate Miley, Castro Valley: Phone: 510.670.5717 or 510.272.6694

Supervisor Wilma Chan, San Leandro: Phone: 510.278.0367 or 510.272.6693

Supervisor Richard Valle, Hayward: Phone: 510.259.1097 or 510.272.6692

Supervisor Keith Carson, Oakland: Phone: 510. 272. 6695

Supervisor Scott Haggerty, Livermore/Pleasanton: Phone: 925.551.6995