The Associated Press has an article about the remedial plan to improve conditions in six juvenile justice facilities in Illinois. The plan, released yesterday, comes as a result of a joint settlement reached by the ACLU of Illinois and the Illinois Department of Juvenile Justice. The ACLU of Illinois filed a lawsuit in 2012 on behalf of detained youth to address substandard conditions in the facilities. The remedial plan outlines five areas of improvement including education, mental health treatment, idleness, solitary confinement, community placement, and resources for LGBT youth. The Associated Press spoke with the ACLU of Illinois' Adam Schwartz about the issue of inadequate staffing:
"There are two ways the state of Illinois can meet the youth to staff ratios in the plan," Adam Schwartz, senior legal counsel for the ACLU said. "One can be to reduce the number of youths who are locked up in these places. The other would be to increase the number of staff. By far the less expensive solution ... would be to lock fewer of these youths up."
