Federal justice officials have ended monitoring of Georgia's Department of Juvenile Justice. The announcement was made this morning by Governor Sonny Perdue and the state's Juvenile Justice Commissioner, Albert Murray.
In 1998, Georgia entered into a memorandum of agreement with federal justice officials. It was the result of a stinging federal report that detailed conditions of overcrowding, lack of staff training, poor medical care, and inmate abuse among the problems in the state's juvenile facilities.
The Governor today:
In 1998, Georgia entered into a memorandum of agreement with federal justice officials. It was the result of a stinging federal report that detailed conditions of overcrowding, lack of staff training, poor medical care, and inmate abuse among the problems in the state's juvenile facilities.
The Governor today:
"...we have made strategic investments and placed a focus on improving the level of care these young people receive. Our goal in this agency is to ensure that every child coming through these facilities is treated as if they were our own son or daughter, and I want to thank Commissioner Albert Murray and the rest of the DJJ staff for making the needed changes and improvements to bring our system to the level Georgians expect and deserve."The lead monitor for U.S. DOJ, Dr. David Roush, wrote in the final report that he has seen substantial improvement in many programs during his 10-year involvement with DJJ. Roush singled out DJJ’s Office of Medical Services and Office of Behavioral Health Services, which he wrote are used as models for juvenile justice systems nationwide.
