January 10, 2020
Director Ryan Gies Ohio Department of Youth Services 4545 Fisher Road, Suite D Columbus, OH 43228
Dear Director Gies,
We, the undersigned members of the Ohio Senate Democratic Caucus, write today because of our deep concern about the safety of juvenile inmates at Ohio Department of Youth Services (DYS) facilities.
Though DYS provided an optimistic portrait during our most recent Correctional Institution Inspection Committee (CIIC) committee hearing, it does not match the findings from a recent U.S. Department of Justice survey.1 This report revealed alarming information about the rate of Ohio youth inmates who have experienced sexual victimization at our facilities. Nearly one in six juvenile inmates have reported either youth- or staff-coerced victimization. It is unacceptable that children under our purview are exposed to such sexual and physical violence.
According to the survey, Ohio has the highest percentage of youth that are reporting sexual abuse at any juvenile detention system in the country. Governor Mike DeWine said the report was very concerning and the rate of sexual victimization at DYS facilities is “alarming.”2
Therefore, we are requesting more information from DYS about violent incidents in our juvenile facilities, including: All reports of physical and sexual violence that have occurred over the past six months in the following Department of Youth Services facilities: Circleville Juvenile Correctional Facility, Cuyahoga Hills Juvenile Correctional Facility, and Indian River Juvenile Correctional Facility
1 https://www.bjs. gov/content/pub/pdf/svryjf18.pdf 2 https://www.dispatch.com/news/20191212/ohiorsquos-juvenile-prisoners-report-highest-rate-of-sexual- victimization-in-nation
We anticipate that these records are stored in a manageable and readily available way. Given the severity of the reports and the danger and long-term trauma these facilities are unnecessarily exposing our children to, we expect a prompt response.
Sincerely,
Sandra Williams Kenny Yuko Cecil Thomas Assistant Minority Whip Minority Leader Assistant Minority Leader st 21 District 25th District 9th District
Sean J. O’Brien Nickie J. Antonio Hearcel Craig Minority Whip State Senator State Senator 32nd District 23rd District 15th District
Teresa Fedor Tina Maharath Vernon Sykes State Senator State Senator State Senator 11th District 3rd District 28th District
cc: Julia Walburn, Department of Youth Services Assistant Director