U.S. Judge Matthew Kennelly approved a comprehensive remedial plan to address the issues first raised by the ACLU of Illinois in a 2012 lawsuit against the Department of Juvenile Justice and confirmed by a consent decree signed by both parties in December 2012. The plan establishes parameters and time tables under which the department needs to address issues of confinement, community placement, safety, and how it provides mental health and educational services. ACLU of Illinois staff attorney Lindsey Miller explained that the plan establishes enforceable rations between staff and incarcerated youth and mandates full-day education programs:
“We’re very proud that the plan is going to ensure every day is a full day of school,” Miller said. “It’s going to ensure ratios so that students will thrive in the classroom and benefit when they leave the facility.”
