Gov. Jim Hunt convened special session focused on crime, resulting in most substantial infusion of new resources for juvenile justice in its history: $16.4 million in recurring appropriations. Allocated to support two additional Eckerd camps; expansion of Governor’s One-on-One Program; increased levels of staffing to operate an additional 147 training school beds; establish alternatives to detention programs in selected judicial districts; and increased funding for community-based alternatives programs.

Gov. Hunt implemented Support Our Students Initiative, aimed at preventing juvenile crime by providing after-school enrichment activities for students in grades K-9. Transferred to Division of Youth Services in 1996.

Funds appropriated to build new 24-bed juvenile detention facility in Wake County to replace existing aged 14-bed facility.

The General Assembly mandated a comprehensive study of the state’s juvenile justice system, to include a review of the Division of Youth Services as well as the Juvenile Services Division of the Administrative Office of the Courts. DHHS contracted with Research Triangle Institute, who worked with the Office of Justice Research at UNC-Charlotte, as well as the Division of Youth Services, to complete the study.

State entered into settlement agreement on lawsuit brought by Prisoner Legal Services pertaining to conditions in seven state-operated detention centers. State centers experienced severe overcrowding in 1993 and 1994. Overcrowding was alleviated with completion of construction projects in all five training schools and the opening of Umstead Detention Center, a temporary facility located in Butner, with accommodations for 32 students.

General Assembly transferred former Richmond Correctional Center in Rockingham to Division of Youth Services. Following renovation, facility will be used to accommodate 30 juveniles bound-over to Superior Court for trial. Funding was also appropriated in 1995 to construct 24-bed secure detention center in Winfall (Perquimans County). Funding was also provided for the addition of 12 beds to the Gaston Regional Juvenile Detention Center in 1995.
 

Division of Youth Services implements a unified treatment program designed to emphasize teaching youth how to live successfully outside the training school environment.

August - New wing opened at Gaston Regional Juvenile Detention Center, doubling the size of the facility from 12 to 24 beds.

September - Gov. Hunt named a 19 member commission to review the state’s Juvenile Code and to make recommendations for improving the juvenile justice system. In addition to endorsing the establishment of a uniform information system capable of tracking a youth throughout his experiences with the system, an advisory committee of the Governor’s Commission on Juvenile Crime and Justice appointed in September 1997 recommended combining the Juvenile Services Division with the Division of Youth Services into a Cabinet-level department. (Rideout, 1997)

The General Assembly continued to support Gov. Hunt’s overhaul of the juvenile justice system by boosting local community prevention efforts (created Juvenile Crime Prevention Councils in each county) and establishing the new Office of Juvenile Justice. OJJ was charged with coordinating juvenile justice and delinquency prevention strategies; helping community leaders develop juvenile crime prevention plans in all 100 counties; and implementing new tougher laws to change the way young offenders were sentenced. OJJ provided oversight to the state’s juvenile court offices, training schools, detention centers, JCPCs and after-school mentoring programs. OJJ was created through merging the Division of Youth Services in DHHS and the Juvenile Services Division in the Administrative Office of the Courts, and was housed temporarily in the Office of the Governor. (Governor James B. Hunt Jr.'s Report to the Legislature: The Plan of Reorganization for the North Carolina Juvenile Justice System, 2000)

July - Juvenile Detention Center Study issued by O’Brien Atkins recommended the addition of 208 beds and renovation of support areas with increased security. (Samarkand – 120 beds; Stonewall Jackson – 40 beds; Juvenile Evaluation Center – 48 beds) Estimated cost: $20.34 million

February - Stonewall Jackson: Allegations of staff member having sexual relations with students. Staff member terminated and criminally charged; investigated by Cabarrus County Sheriff’s Office.

June - Juvenile Detention Center Study issued by O’Brien Atkins to include 100 bed assessment/treatment planning center at C.A. Dillon. Estimated cost: $9.1 million.

August - Samarkand: Allegations of sexual activity with female students; investigation conducted by Moore County DSS, Moore County Sheriff’s Office and SBI.

October - C.A. Dillon: Juveniles assaulted by staff, housed naked in room for three days. Eight staff forced resignations or terminated, including forced resignation of facility director. Incident investigated by SBI.

A staffing study was completed in October to evaluate the staffing levels in the five training schools and 10 detention centers. Noted in the study was that:

• The actual number of beds at the training schools often exceeds the rated bed capacity, especially at Samarkand and Stonewall Jackson. Additionally, the actual average population regularly exceeds the rated bed capacity.
• Questions existed regarding the future viability of Dobbs as a site for a training school, due to potential for construction of an airpark near the facility and the facility’s lack of fencing and thus security.
• Three months was stated as the common length of time to fill routine entry-level positions at the Juvenile Evaluation Center in Swannanoa.
• Some staff expressed that adult correction jobs had “lower standards” than juvenile jobs, allowing some applicants with “minor misdemeanor” convictions to be hired in the adult system. It was stated that a greater number of potential applicants could be reached if the adult and juvenile systems used the same hiring standards.

Recommendations from this study included:

• Integrating treatment and direct care personnel under a consolidated psychological services function;
• Phasing out the Youth Home program (initiative designed to provide assistance to selected juveniles trying to reintegrate into the community)
• Apply same hiring standards to juvenile justice officers as to correctional officers.
• Completely review DJJ internal relationships to develop a classification structure that is internally consistent and externally competitive.
• Undertake a detailed approach to determine if two-three month lag time in hiring is realistic and unavoidable or if process change could significantly reduce the time involved.
• Eliminate campus police force at Juvenile Evaluation Center in Swannanoa. (Accredited police force through Buncombe Sheriff’s Office, initially authorized by the General Assembly following two homicides committed by juveniles prior to the establishment of DJJDP). (Office of the State Auditor, 2003)

November - After a final name-change the Department of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention became the official agency for at-risk youth in North Carolina. DJJDP shifted its treatment methods from correctional to therapeutic, to better prepare juvenile offenders to re-enter their communities as productive members of society.
(Office of the State Auditor, 2003)

April - Discontinued ACA accreditation due to budget situation. Department decided to maintain mandatory standards and self-audit YDCs through a Central Office Site Team.

July - Stonewall Jackson: escape off campus of six juveniles. Staff and juveniles disciplined, incident investigation by DJJDP. 72.5 positions cut from YDCs. Dillon=15; Dobbs=6; Samarkand=7; Stonewall Jackson=28; Swannanoa=15.5

Fall - Closed girls’ and boys’ transition homes at Samarkand due to staff shortages.

December - Swannanoa: Allegations of staff member having sexual relations with students. Staff member terminated and criminally charged, incident investigated by SBI.

April - DJJDP's Alexander Detention Center held an Open House on to show off the new 24-bed secure custody located in Taylorsville. The new facility replaced the former Wilkes Detention Center in North Wilkesboro. 

June - Dobbs boys’ transition home closed due to staff shortage.

Stonewall Jackson – McWhorter Housing Unit closed due to budget cuts.

Umstead Detention Center relocated to E Cottage at C.A. Dillon YDC due to budget cuts, saving DJJDP about $1 million.

September - C.A. Dillon Assessment and Treatment Planning Center opened, as does center for females on Samarkand campus. Dillon center completes initial processing and health, behavioral and educational assessment before assigning male juvenile to one of the YDCs. Females remain at Samarkand following assessment.

May - Performance Audit of DJJDP’s YDCs and juvenile detention centers was issued by the Office of the State Auditor at the request of the Buncombe County legislative delegation. Conclusions of the audit included:

• Safety and security. YDC’s poor physical condition, age and construction increase security risks. Campus-style layouts further increase security risks by requiring that juveniles to be moved from building to building for meals, classes and housing. Some detention centers are overcrowded, increasing stress on juveniles and staff.
• Juvenile education/treatment. A lack of clarity exists about the importance and role of clinical treatment and rehabilitation in the system, with programs disorganized, lacking in resources and not allocated sufficient time. A need exists for more group treatment, family treatment and increased one-to-one therapy.
• Staffing and training. Sixty-one percent of DJJDP’s vacancies occur in the YDCs and detention centers, with vacancies remaining open for more than a year on average. Turnover rates for the centers have been high – almost 20 percent annually – resulting in uneven staffing distribution.
• Management controls. Changing from a correctional to a therapeutic model has led to communication problems, and inaccessible offender data hampers operations.

Audit recommendations included:

• Support from Office of the State Auditor for DJJDP’s request to construct three new youth development centers, as well as for the development of options for consideration by the General Assembly, including the construction of five new, smaller facilities at the current location; or building three new facilities, and significantly renovating two existing facilities.
• DJJDP should issue a clear statement about the importance and role of treatment in the system, and finalize program policies and procedures with specific goals and timetables. 

Per DJJDP’s audit response, the department contracted with an architectural firm to develop a comprehensive facility plan that will focus on replacing the current outdated facilities with 500 newly constructed beds in three facilities across the state. 

March - The State Advisory Council on Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, with a unanimous vote, supported DJJDP’s efforts to build a comprehensive strategy and its plans to build 13 smaller youth development centers as part of that strategy.

DJJDP’s comprehensive strategy is based on strengthening families; supporting core social institutions; promoting delinquency prevention; intervening immediately and effectively when delinquent behavior occurs; and identifying and controlling the small group of serious, violent and chronic juvenile offenders

As part of this comprehensive strategy, DJJDP recommended building 13 smaller juvenile facilities, closer to the youth’s family, along with a new approach in treatment: changing from correction to therapeutic, from guard to counselor.

The plan adopted for recommendation to the governor and General Assembly proposes the following facilities, each to be built around a base facility design of four eight-bed housing units:

• One 96-bed facility in Cabarrus County
• One 64-bed facility in Buncombe County
• 11 32-bed facilities in Catawba, Forsyth, Guilford, Chatham, Moore, Cumberland, Pitt, Lenoir, Nash, Onslow and Brunswick counties
• One 105-bed facility already established at Dillon in Granville County
• Two treatment and planning centers

O’Brien Atkins and Huskey & Associates submitted their Youth Development Center Operational Program report, developed with input of focus groups held with staff, key stakeholders and the State Advisory Council on Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention. The report provided detailed recommendations/descriptions for YDC admissions/assessment; housing; security; juvenile programs and services; and support services. The recommendations were based on principles including:

• Juveniles should be placed in the YDC closest to their home community when possible.
• Small living units should be designed for eight beds and should be grouped in clusters equal to 32 beds.
• Housing units should promote direct continuous social interaction among juveniles with adult role models.
• Housing units should be staffed with sufficient number of well-trained and competitively compensated staff to maintain appropriate juvenile to staff ratios (direct care staff 1:4 to ensure safety and enhance therapeutic care).
• Staffing should be based on shift relief factor of 1.7 for an eight-hour shift to ensure round-the-clock coverage that ensures adequate juvenile to staff ratios.
• Housing unit assignments should be based primarily on age, gender, treatment, educational needs and developmental level of juveniles, as well as assessment of juvenile’s ability to adjust to the facility environment.
• YDCs should house juveniles in the least restrictive housing unit based on age, gender, developmental level, therapeutic needs, behavior and safety of the facility and the community.
• The level of needs of a portion of the juveniles is so severe that they should be housed in self-contained units, which should be clinically supervised and include time-out rooms. These units should provide an intensive therapeutic environment where juveniles can develop the skills to be successful.

The report recommended three replacement YDCS: one 256-bed YDC with 32 housing units; one 160-bed YDC with 20 housing units; and one 96-bed YDC with 12 housing units. Security measures for each YDC would include perimeter and internal fencing; a cluster design for housing units; non-campus-like design to allow direct supervision; and strategically-placed video cameras.

Summer - General Assembly passed HB1795 to provide $4.4 million to DJJDP to continue facility planning; additionally passed a COPs finance package to set aside $35 million to replace youth development centers. DJJDP was asked to present detailed facility and transition plan to legislature in November, and a staffing plan in December.

September - Juvenile found dead in his room at Umstead Detention Center following apparent suicide; internal administrative investigation and SBI investigation follows. In 2005 juvenile’s mother files civil action with Industrial Commission against DJJDP alleging negligence in failing to provide a safe and secure facility. DJJDP admits negligence in this case in 2006, and tendered a tort claim of $500,000 to end the lawsuit.

November - DJJDP responded to the 2003 State Auditor’s performance audit with a plan to replace existing deteriorating, dangerous facilities as well as a plan to improve the programming offered to youth committed to the department and assigned to these facilities. Research by independent consultants to the architects, review of national practices/trends, and input from stakeholders including the State Advisory Council on Juvenile and Delinquency Prevention and community members at community focus groups across the state moved the discussion to smaller facilities.

DJJDP presented a detailed plan to the Joint Legislative Corrections, Crime Control, and Juvenile Justice Oversight Committee that laid out a desire for smaller facilities located closer to the communities from which youth live. The Department recommended that Phase One of the plan (a 96-bed in Cabarrus County and four 32-bed facilities in Chatham, Edgecombe, Lenoir, and Guilford counties) be implemented and that the remaining 288 beds allocated among seven 32-bed facilities, as well as current beds at Dillon, be re-examined after further analysis of population trends and assessment processes. DJJDP planned to develop Phase Two of the plan for presentation to the 2006 legislative session.

The four replacement youth development centers opened in 2008. In April, both Chatham YDC and the Lenoir Complex at Dobbs YDC opened. The new Chatham County YDC will house 32 females in four different eight-bed housing units. A blended education-treatment Model of Care will serve as its programming. The Chatham County YDC was built at a cost of approximately $6 million, and has a planned annual operating budget of slightly more than $3 million. 

The Lenoir Complex at Dobbs YDC will house 32 youth in four different eight-bed housing units. A blended education-treatment Model of Care will serve as its programming. The Lenoir Complex was built at a cost of approximately $6 million and has a planned annual operating budget of slightly more than $3 million. 

The third replacement youth development center was dedicated in May 2008. The new Edgecombe YDC will house 32 youth in four different eight-bed housing units. A blended education-treatment Model of Care will serve as its programming. Edgecombe YDC was built at a cost of approximately $6 million and has a planned estimated annual operating budget of $4 million.

The final replacement youth development center was dedicated in July 2008. The new Cabarrus Complex at Stonewall Jackson YDC will house 96 youth. The Cabarrus Complex was built at a cost of approximately $15.5 million and has a planned estimated annual operating budget of $11.3 million.

March - Budget cuts forced the closure of Swannanoa Valley Youth Development Center and Camp Woodson Wilderness Challenge Program. 

Summer - General Assembly eliminates funding and staffing at Samarkand YDC, closing the facility’s doors. Juveniles currently committed at Samarkand were moved to the state’s other YDCs, and DJJDP was encouraged to increase the use of community-based alternatives to commitment to reduce the need for YDCs across the state.

January - DJJDP was one of three agencies that merged to become the Department of Public Safety. DJJDP became the Division of Juvenile Justice.

November - To better utilize and manage tight resources, and in answer to declining detention numbers, Perquimans Juvenile Detention Center, located in Hertford, was closed.

January - As enacted during 2012 session of General Assembly, Edgecombe Youth Development Center – one of four new facilities opened in 2008 – was closed in January 2013.

July - Per order of the 2013 session of General Assembly, the Buncombe Regional Juvenile Detention Center and Richmond Juvenile Detention are closed.

September - As part of its continuing consolidation efforts, the Department of Public Safety integrated the divisions of Adult Correction and Juvenile Justice and established the Division of Adult Correction and Juvenile Justice.

October - Per order of the 2013 session of the General Assembly, the Lenoir Complex at Dobbs Youth Development Center – one of four new facilities opened in 2008 – was closed.

August - The Gaston Juvenile Detention Center moved to the renovated Kirk building on the Stonewall Jackson Youth Development Center campus in Concord, adding six beds and receiving a new name: Cabarrus Juvenile Detention Center.

November - The Insight Crisis and Assessment Center opened in the renovated Housing Unit D on the C.A. Dillon YDC Campus, providing crisis beds to Central and Eastern areas.

April - The renovated Edgecombe Youth Development Center was opened in Rocky Mount, increasing capacity by 12 beds to 44. Concurrent with the opening of Edgecombe YDC was the closure of C.A. Dillon YDC in Butner, which opened in 1968.The Bridges Crisis and Assessment Center opened in the former Forsyth Juvenile Detention Center, providing crisis beds to the Piedmont area.

September - The Western Area Multipurpose Juvenile Crisis and Assessment Center opened in Asheville, in the renovated former Buncombe Juvenile Detention Center. This nine-bed center, operated through a public-private partnership with the Methodist Home for Children, will provide crisis intervention, assessment and service planning for adjudicated youth who require a temporary out-of-home placement to stabilize their behaviors. The Asheville Center, unlike the other crisis centers, has the capacity to offer secure custody to children in the western area.    

May - The renovated Lenoir Complex at Dobbs Youth Development Center was reopened in Kinston as Lenoir Youth Development Center, increasing capacity by 12 beds to 44. Concurrent with the opening of Lenoir YDC was the closure of Dobbs YDC in Kinston, which opened in 1947.

June - The N.C. General Assembly raised the age of juvenile jurisdiction for nonviolent crimes to age 18, following years of research, study and education on the topic. Effective Dec. 1, 2019, 16 and 17 year old individuals who commit crimes in North Carolina will no longer automatically be charged in the adult criminal justice system.

In late winter/early spring 2020, the coronavirus pandemic and its associated restrictions and safety concerns brought global and local impacts to Juvenile Justice, North Carolina’s judicial system and community program providers. Juvenile Justice established on March 12 a broad multi-disciplinary team that instituted changes to operations and procedures within juvenile facilities and offices beginning in mid-March. These operational adjustments included efforts to keep or bring facility populations as low as possible, but also to protect those juveniles who must be held in secure custody. Changes included such items as suspending visitation and volunteer activities at all juvenile justice facilities, until conditions are deemed safe, and handling necessary court hearings via videoconference, to reduce potential exposure opportunities for juveniles and staff members to COVID-19. 

The Division also increased efforts to use alternatives to detention (such as electronic monitoring, home confinement, community-based programs, etc.) when appropriate for juveniles with nonviolent complaints who are awaiting adjudication within juvenile court. We reviewed juvenile cases for those who might be appropriate for release and brought them to the attention of the detaining judges for approval of release
to community-based services