Why King County's youth jail won't close by 2025, as pledged
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This facility that opened in 2020 houses King County's youth detention center. Photo: Melissa Santos/Axios
King County won't close its youth jail by next year, as County Executive Dow Constantine previously pledged during the 2020 Black Lives Matter protests.
Why it matters: The county executive's goal of ending youth incarceration won't be fulfilled until 2028 at the earliest, King County officials announced Jan. 31.
State of play: Constantine and other county officials say they need more time and money to launch the programs that could replace the youth jail, which is part of a voter-approved youth justice center that opened in 2020.
- Officials say they may also need to seek changes to state law to try new approaches, such as opening a 24-hour "respite" center where police could take children instead of detention, plus community group homes where kids could stay while awaiting trial.
- The idea would be to assess kids and connect them to counseling, housing and other services they may need, rather than putting them in locked cells.
The latest: In a news release, Constantine cited racial disparities in the county's juvenile detention population as a major problem that must be fixed.
- "That will require new systems, spaces, practices, and the collaboration of our entire community," Constantine said.
Zoom in: King County is facing up to a $100 million shortfall in its next two-year budget, complicating efforts to launch new juvenile justice programs.
- State law also requires that large counties like King operate a juvenile detention facility, and there's disagreement about whether some of the alternative ideas would comply, according to a recent advisory committee's report.
Friction point: Members of the county advisory committee were split on what level of security was appropriate.
- The debate highlights some of the political difficulties of getting rid of secure detention entirely, especially when prosecutors say juvenile crime is up.
By the numbers: Prosecutors filed 68 felony assault cases against juveniles in King County last year, up from 54 in 2019, according to data the prosecutor's office shared with Axios.
- Vehicle theft charges against minors more than doubled in the same time frame, from 70 cases in 2019 to 159 last year, the office said.
What they're saying: "Sadly we have juveniles who commit serious violent crimes," King County prosecutor Leesa Manion wrote in an email earlier this month.
- "The community is deserving of a respite from their behavior, and it is appropriate to hold these individuals in a secure and therapeutic environment."
Yes, but: Manion said there is significant work to do to make the juvenile detention facility "more therapeutic, so that young people start to receive necessary behavioral health interventions from day one — even as they face charges."
- Roxana Gomez, youth policy program director for the American Civil Liberties Union of Washington, said via email that the delay in closing the youth jail "makes the work to improve conditions at the youth facility ever more pressing and urgent."
What's next: The county plans to propose budget changes to improve the current detention center by March 31.
- County officials will also draft proposed tweaks to state law by Oct. 15, while continuing to discuss how detention alternatives should work.