IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF MISSISSIPPI
JACKSON DIVISION

THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,
Plaintiff,
v.
THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI; Ronnie Musgrove, Governor of the State of Mississippi; THE MISSISSIPPI DEPARTMENT OF HUMAN SERVICES; Thelma Brittain, Executive Director; THE MISSISSIPPI DIVISION OF YOUTH SERVICES; Willie Blackmon, Director; Irvin Holston, Acting Administrator of Oakley Training School; Richard James, Acting Administrator of Columbia Training School;
Defendants.

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 )CIVIL ACTION NO: ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) )
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COMPLAINT

1. This action is brought by the Attorney General, on behalf of the United States, pursuant to the pattern or practice provision of the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994, 42 U.S.C. § 14141, to enjoin the State of Mississippi from depriving youth confined in Mississippi’s Oakley Training School in Raymond, Mississippi (“Oakley”) and Columbia Training School in Columbia, Mississippi (“Columbia”) of rights, privileges, or immunities secured or protected by the Constitution and laws of the United States.

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 JURISDICTION, STANDING, AND VENUE 2. This Court has jurisdiction over this action pursuant to 28 U.S.C. §§ 1331 and 1345. 3. The United States is authorized to initiate this action pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 14141. 4. Venue in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi is proper pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1391(b). All claims set forth in the Complaint arose in this District.
DEFENDANTS 5. Defendant STATE OF MISSISSIPPI (“STATE”) is responsible for the administration of juvenile justice in the State. The STATE operates, or contracts for the operation of, all secure juvenile justice facilities in the State. This action concerns the administration of Oakley and Columbia (collectively referred to as “the facilities”). The facilities house youth in STATE custody who are confined for periods of time established by the youth and chancery courts. 6. Defendant Mississippi DEPARTMENT OF HUMAN SERVICES establishes the general policy to be followed by its juvenile institutions and contractors; provides leadership in developing programs to rehabilitate youth committed to STATE custody; and is responsible for the promulgation of all rules and regulations

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 necessary and appropriate to the administration of the Mississippi DIVISION OF YOUTH SERVICES, including the operation of Oakley and Columbia.
7. Defendant Mississippi DIVISION OF YOUTH SERVICES is responsible for providing for the supervision, detention, education, medical care, mental health care, and rehabilitation of youth committed to the STATE’s custody at Oakley and Columbia.
8. Defendant RONNIE MUSGROVE is the Governor of Mississippi, and, in this capacity, heads the executive branch of Mississippi’s government. The Governor of Mississippi, as chief of the executive branch, has the duty to ensure that the departments that compose the executive branch of Mississippi guarantee the constitutional and federal statutory rights of the youth confined in secure juvenile correctional facilities owned and operated by, or providing services on behalf of, Mississippi.
9. Defendant THELMA BRITTAIN is the Executive Director of the Department of Human Services, and, in this capacity, exercises administrative control of, and has responsibility for, the operation of Oakley and Columbia.
10. Defendant WILLIE BLACKMON is the Director of the Division of Youth Services, and, in this capacity, exercises administrative control of, and has responsibility for, the operation of Oakley and Columbia.

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 11. Defendant IRVIN HOLSTON is the Acting Administrator of Oakley and is responsible for the administration and day-to-day operations of Oakley. 12. Defendant RICHARD JAMES is the Acting Administrator of Columbia and is responsible for the administration and day-to-day operations of Columbia. 13. The individual Defendants named in ¶¶ 8 - 12 above are sued in their official capacities. 14. Defendants are legally responsible, in whole or in part, for the operation of and conditions at the facilities; for ensuring that all youth in the facilities receive appropriate treatment, training, and education commensurate with their needs and abilities; and for ensuring that programs in the facilities are consistent with the Division of Youth Services’ mission to provide opportunities for the treatment and rehabilitation of youth. 15. All relevant acts or omissions described below have been undertaken by the STATE, a political subdivision of the STATE, or an official, employee, agent or person acting on behalf thereof.
FACTUAL ALLEGATIONS 16. Defendants are governmental authorities or agents thereof with responsibility for the administration of juvenile

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 justice or the incarceration of youth within the meaning of 42 U.S.C. § 14141.
17. Defendants have engaged, and continue to engage, in a pattern or practice of failing to ensure that youth at Oakley and Columbia are adequately protected from harm and from undue risk of harm from staff abuse and abusive institutional practices.
18. Defendants have engaged, and continue to engage, in a pattern or practice of subjecting youth at Oakley and Columbia to unreasonable isolation and restraints (including mechanical and chemical restraints), and failing to provide adequate due process for youth.
19. Defendants have engaged, and continue to engage, in a pattern or practice of failing to ensure that youth at Oakley and Columbia receive adequate mental health care and rehabilitative treatment.
20. Defendants have engaged, and continue to engage, in a pattern or practice of failing to ensure that youth at Oakley and Columbia receive adequate medical care.
21. Defendants have engaged, and continue to engage, in a pattern or practice of failing to provide adequate educational services to the youth confined at Oakley and Columbia.
22. The youth residing in Oakley and Columbia include youth with mental illness, mental retardation, and other learning

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 disabilities who fall within the meaning of “children with disabilities” as defined in the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, 20 U.S.C. § 1401(a)(1).
23. Defendants have engaged, and continue to engage, in a pattern or practice of failing to provide adequate special education and related services to the qualified youth confined at Oakley and Columbia.
VIOLATIONS ALLEGED 24. Through the acts, practices, and omissions alleged in ¶¶ 17 - 23, Defendants have engaged, and continue to engage, in a pattern or practice of depriving youth confined at Oakley and Columbia of rights, privileges, or immunities secured or protected by the Constitution of the United States, including the Eighth and Fourteenth Amendments, and in violation of 42 U.S.C. § 14141(a). 25. Through the acts, practices, and omissions alleged in ¶¶ 21 - 23, Defendants have engaged, and continue to engage, in a pattern or practice of failing to comply with the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (“IDEA”), 20 U.S.C. § 1401 et seq., and the regulations promulgated pursuant thereto, thereby depriving qualified youth of their rights under that Act and violating 42 U.S.C. § 14141(a).

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 26. Unless restrained by this Court, Defendants will continue to engage in the conduct and practices set forth in ¶¶ 17 - 23 that deprive youth confined at Oakley and Columbia of rights, privileges, or immunities secured or protected by the Constitution of the United States and federal law.
PRAYER FOR RELIEF 27. The Attorney General is authorized, pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 14141, to seek equitable and declaratory relief. WHEREFORE, the United States prays that this Court enter an order permanently enjoining Defendants, their officers, their agents, employees, subordinates, successors in office, contractors, and all those acting in concert or participation with them from continuing the acts, practices, and omissions set forth in ¶¶ 17 - 23, above, and to require Defendants to take such action as will provide legal and constitutional conditions of care to youth confined at Oakley and Columbia and any other secure facility to which defendants transfer youth confined at Oakley and Columbia during the pendency of this action. The United States further prays that this Court grant such other and further equitable relief as it may deem just and proper.

/s/ Dunn O. Lampton
DUNN O. LAMPTON United States Attorney
Southern District of Mississippi 188 East Capitol Street, Suite 500 Jackson, MS 39201 (601) 965-4480 (601) 965-4409 (FAX) MS. Bar Number 1790
_/s_/__Ro_b_e_rt__G_._A_n_de_r_s_on______ ROBERT G. ANDERSON Assistant United States
Attorney Chief, Civil Division 188 East Capitol Street, Suite 500 Jackson, MS 39201 (601) 973-2819 (601) 965 4409 (FAX) MS. Bar Number 1589
_/_s/__M_it_z_i_D_e_a_se__P_ai_g_e______ MITZI DEASE PAIGE Assistant United States
Attorney 188 East Capitol Street, Suite 500 Jackson, MS 39201 (601)973-2840 (601)965-4409 (FAX) MS. Bar Number 6014

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Respectfully submitted,
/s/ R. Alexander Acosta
R. ALEXANDER ACOSTA Assistant Attorney General Civil Rights Division
_/_s/__S_ha_n_e_tt_a__Y.__C_ut_l_a_r ____________ SHANETTA Y. CUTLAR Chief Special Litigation Section
/s/ Judy C. Preston
JUDY C. PRESTON Deputy Chief Special Litigation Section
/s/ Jim Eichner
_____________________________ JIM EICHNER (Lead Counsel) Special Counsel Special Litigation Section TAMMI R. SIMPSON RYAN H. RAINEY S. NICOLE NARDONE Trial Attorneys U.S. Department of Justice Civil Rights Division Special Litigation Section 950 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20530 (202) 514-9811 (202) 514-0212 (FAX)

 
 US v. Mississippi Consent Decree
UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF MISSISSIPPI
JACKSON DIVISION
THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, Plaintiff v.
THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI, et al., Defendants
CIVIL ACTION NO.: 3:03-cv-1354WSu
AGREEMENT

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TABLE OF CONTENTS I. INTRODUCTION II. DEFINITIONS III. CONSTITUTIONALLY REQUIRED CARE IV. SUBSTANTIVE REMEDIAL MEASURES
A. PROTECTION FROM HARM B. SUICIDE PREVENTION C. MEDICAL AND DENTAL CARE V. COMPLIANCE AND QUALITY ASSURANCE VI. MONITORING AND ENFORCEMENT VII. REPORTING REQUIREMENTS AND RIGHT OF ACCESS VIII. IMPLEMENTATION AND TERMINATION I. INTRODUCTION
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(A) On May 8, 2002, the United States notified State of Mississippi officials of its intent to investigate conditions of confinement at the Oakley Training School ("Oakley") in Raymond, Mississippi and Columbia Training School ("Columbia") in Columbia, Mississippi, pursuant to the Civil Rights of Institutionalized Persons Act ("CRIPA"), 42 U.S.C. § 1997 and the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994, 42 U.S.C. § 14141 ("Section 14141").
(B) Between June 24 and September 27, 2002, the United States toured Oakley and Columbia with consultants in the fields of juvenile justice, medicine, mental health care, education, and sanitation.
(C) Throughout the course of the investigation, the United States received complete cooperation and access to all facilities and documents from the State of Mississippi.
(D) On June 19, 2003, the United States issued a findings letter pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1997(a)(1), which concluded that certain conditions at Oakley and Columbia violated the constitutional and federal statutory rights of juveniles confined in the facilities.
(E) The Court has jurisdiction over this action pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1331, 28 U.S.C. § 1345, and 42 U.S.C. § 14141. Venue is proper in this district pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1391 (b).
(F) Defendants in this action are the State of Mississippi, and the Mississippi Department of Human Services, and their successors, contractors and agents. The State of Mississippi shall ensure that all State agencies take any actions necessary to comply with the provisions of this Agreement.
(G) For purposes of this lawsuit only and in order to settle this matter, the State of Mississippi consents to the entry of a finding that it has violated the federal rights of juveniles at Oakley and Columbia in each area addressed in Section IV of this Agreement. The State is firmly committed to providing legally adequate conditions by instituting the remedial measures required by this Agreement.
(H) The State asserts that it has made improvements in the following areas since 2002: grievance system, greater access to attorneys, religious freedom, new medical facilities, increased educational staff. The United States takes no position on the validity of the foregoing State assertions.
(I) The United States and the State of Mississippi stipulate and agree that all of the prospective relief in this Agreement is narrowly drawn, extends no further than necessary to correct violations of federal rights, is the least intrusive means necessary to correct these violations, and will aid public safety and the operation of Oakley and Columbia.
(J) The parties to this Agreement agree and represent to the Court that this Agreement complies in all respects with the provisions of 18 U.S.C. § 3626(a), and may serve as the factual and legal basis for a Court order issued pursuant to those provisions.
(K) The issue of liability has not been litigated. The parties ask the Court to approve this Agreement without a full hearing on the merits, on the basis of the United States' Complaint and the above stipulations.

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(L) This Agreement is not intended to have any preclusive effect except between the parties. Should the issue of the preclusive effect of this Agreement be raised in any proceeding other than this civil action, the parties agree to certify that this Agreement was intended to have no such preclusive effect.
(M)This Agreement and the Memorandum of Agreement shall not be used against the State in any proceeding other than a proceeding between the United States and the State of Mississippi.
(N) Nothing in this Agreement or the Memorandum of Agreement shall prevent the State from modifying or closing Oakley or Columbia, or developing alternative community placements for the youth currently in the facilities.
(O) No person or entity is intended to be a third-party beneficiary of the provisions of this Agreement or the Memorandum of Agreement for purposes of any civil, criminal, or administrative action, and accordingly, no person or entity may assert any claim or right as a beneficiary or protected class under these agreements. These agreements are not intended to impair or expand the right of any person or organization to seek relief against the State, Division or its officials, employees, or agents for their conduct or the conduct of Division employees; accordingly, they do not alter legal standards governing any such claims, including those under Mississippi law.
II. DEFINITIONS
In this Agreement, the following definitions apply:
(P) "Columbia" means the Columbia Training School located at 1730 Highway 44, Columbia, Mississippi, and any facility that is built to replace or supplement Columbia.
(Q) "Division" means the Division of Youth Services within the Mississippi Department of Human Services that oversees the safety, treatment, and rehabilitation of juveniles residing at Oakley and Columbia.
(R) "DOJ" means the United States Department of Justice, which represents the United States in this matter.
(S) The term "Ironwood" shall refer to the stand alone building located on the Oakley campus and in use as of the DOJ's 2002 investigation.
(T) "Effective Date" means the date the Agreement is entered by the Court.
(U) "Implement" means to give practical effect and ensure actual fulfillment by concrete measures, including appropriate training of relevant staff.
(V) "Include" or "including" means "include, but not be limited to" or "including, but not limited to."
(W) "Isolation" means placement of a youth alone in a locked room. The term isolation does not apply to locking a youth in a room during the hours of 9:30 p.m. to 5:30 a.m. or a similar eight-hour period for sleep.

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(X)"Oakley" means the Oakley Training School, which is also known as the Mississippi Youth Correctional Complex, and is located at 2375 Oakley Road, Raymond, Mississippi, and any facility that is built to replace or supplement Oakley.
(Y) "Memorandum of Agreement" refers to the Rule 41 Agreement between the United States and the State of Mississippi resolving the United States' education, special education, mental health, and rehabilitative services claims in this action.
(Z) "Restraints" means any chemical or mechanical device, including OC spray, used to control the behavior of a youth.
(AA) "Qualified medical professional" means a physician, nurse or other medical provider licensed and sufficiently trained to provide the services he or she undertakes to provide.
(BB) "Qualified mental health professional" means a mental health care provider licensed and sufficiently trained to provide the services he or she undertakes to provide.
(CC) "Quality Assurance Program" means a system of self-auditing and improvement to assess the implementation and effectiveness of all remedies instituted pursuant to this Agreement, to identify deficits that may exist, and to effectuate new measures to cure deficits identified.
(DD) "SIU" means the Special Intervention Units at Oakley and Columbia, designed for youth with behavioral and disciplinary problems and youth who are suicidal.
(EE) "State" means the Defendants as described in paragraph F above.
(FF) "Suicide Precautions" means any level of watch, observation or measures to prevent self-harm.
(GG) "The facilities" means Oakley and Columbia, collectively, and any residential secure facilities operated by or under contract with the Division of Youth Services.
(HH) "Train," means sufficiently instruct in the skills addressed, including ongoing assessment of mastery of instructional material.
(II) "Youth" means any juvenile or juveniles committed by a court to and residing at the facilities during the operation of this Agreement.
III. CONSTITUTIONALLY REQUIRED CARE
The purpose of this Agreement is to protect some of the constitutional rights of juveniles committed to Oakley and Columbia. The terms and requirements of this Agreement shall be interpreted to be consistent with the remedial measures necessary to protect these constitutionalrights of the juveniles.
IV. SUBSTANTIVE REMEDIAL MEASURES
A. PROTECTION FROM HARM

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(1) Protection from Harm The State shall, at all times, provide youth in the facilities with reasonably safe living conditions.
(2) Protection from Abuse The State shall ensure that youth are protected from violence and other physical or sexual abuse by staff and other youth.
(3) Protection from Abusive Institutional Practices The State shall ensure that abusive institutional practices such as hog-tying, pole shackling, "sitting in a chair," "guard duty," making youth eat vomit, making youth run with tires around their bodies, or run with mattresses, cease immediately.
(4) Protection from the "Dark Room" The State shall immediately cease using the "dark room" cells at Columbia for the inappropriate punitive isolation of girls in the SIU.
(5) Ironwood Ironwood is closed and shall not be used for youth committed to the Division during the life of this Agreement.
(6) Protection from Undue Restraints The State shall ensure that youth are not subjected to unreasonable restraints and that restraints are never used to punish youth. The State shall develop and implement policies, procedures and practices to ensure that only safe methods of restraint are used at the facilities, and only in those circumstances necessary for safety and security.
(7) Reporting of Staff Misconduct and Other Serious Incidents The State shall develop and implement appropriate policies, procedures, and practices to ensure that all incidents of staff-on-youth and youth-on-youth violence, inappropriate staff relationships with youth, and abusive institutional practices are reported to appropriate individuals, and that such reporting may be done through confidential means, without fear of retaliation. The State shall ensure that all incidents are adequately documented and reported appropriately and with sufficient detail, including the facts of the incident, any injury that occurred as a result of the incident, and in a way that permits review.
(8) Health Care Inquiries Regarding Injury A nurse or other health care provider shall question, outside the hearing of other staff or youth if appropriate, each youth who reports to the infirmary with an injury, regarding the cause of the injury. If, in the course of the youth's infirmary visit, a health care provider suspects staff-on-youth abuse, that health care provider shall immediately:
a. take all appropriate steps to preserve evidence of the injury (e.g., photograph the injury and any other physical evidence);
b. report the suspected abuse to the appropriate local officials;
c. document adequately the matter in the youth's medical record; and
d. complete an incident report.

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(9) Uses of Force The State shall develop and implement comprehensive policies, procedures and practices governing uses of force, ensuring that the least amount of force necessary for the safety of staff, youth residents, and visitors is used on youth.
(10) Investigations The State shall develop and implement an adequate system for investigation by senior management of uses of force, alleged child abuse, youth-on-youth violence, and alleged sexual contacts.
(11) Staff Training in Behavior Management, De-Escalation and Crisis Intervention The facilities shall provide appropriate competency-based training to staff in behavior management, de-escalation techniques, appropriate communication with youth, and crisis intervention before staff may work in direct contact with youth.
(12) Behavior Management Program The State shall develop and implement an effective behavior management program. The behavior management program shall be implemented throughout the day including during school time. The State shall develop and implement policies, procedures, and practices to ensure that mental health staff provide regular consultation regarding behavior management to custody and other staff involved in the behavior management program, and shall develop a mechanism to assess the effectiveness of interventions utilized.
(13) Staffing The State shall ensure that there are sufficient numbers of adequately trained direct care and supervisory staff to supervise youth safely, protect youth from harm, and allow youth reasonable access to medical and mental health services, and adequate time spent in out-of-cell activities.
(14) Isolation The State shall develop and implement policies, procedures and practices to ensure that isolation, lockdown, seclusion and other similar restrictions are used only when appropriate and in an appropriate manner, and to document fully the use of isolation. The State shall immediately cease requiring youth to strip and remain naked while in isolation.
(15) Due Process The State shall ensure that youths confined for more than 24 hours receive an appropriate due process hearing by an impartial supervisory staff member to determine whether cause exists for continued disciplinary confinement.
(16) Grievances The State shall develop and implement policies, procedures, and practices to ensure that the facilities have an adequate grievance system.
(17) Admissions Intake and Orientation The State shall develop and implement policies, procedures and practices to establish a consistent, orderly admissions intake system, conducive to gathering necessary information about youth, disseminating information to staff providing services and care for youth, and maintaining their safety. Each youth entering the facility shall receive an effective orientation that shall include simple directions for reporting abuse, and assure youth of their right to be protected from harm and from retaliation

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for reporting allegations of abuse. Orientation shall also clearly set forth the rules youth must follow at the facility, explain how to access medical and mental health care and the grievance system, and provide other information pertinent to the youth's participation in facility programs.
(18) Employment Practices The State shall ensure that only individuals fit to work with youth residents are employed at the institutions. The State shall utilize reasonable measures to determine applicants' fitness to work in a juvenile justice facility prior to hiring employees for positions at the facilities. Within 120 days of the Effective Date of this Agreement, the State shall conduct a criminal record check for all current employees at the facilities, taking appropriate actions where new information is obtained. Every two years thereafter, the State shall update record checks for all employees who come into contact with youth.
(19) Classification The State shall develop and implement a classification system that places youth appropriately and safely within the facility, and provides for reclassification in appropriate circumstances.
B. SUICIDE PREVENTION
(20) Development and Implementation of Policy The State shall develop and implement adequate policies, procedures, and practices relating to suicide prevention.
(21) Suicide Risk Assessments The State shall develop and implement policies, procedures, and practices to ensure that qualified mental health professionals conduct timely suicide risk assessments, using reliable assessment instruments, for a) all youth exhibiting behavior which may indicate suicidal ideation, and b) when determining whether to change the level of suicide precautions.
(22) Mental Health Response to Suicidal Youth The State shall develop and implement policies, procedures, and practices to ensure that youth who demonstrate suicidal ideation or attempt self-harm receive timely and appropriate mental health care by qualified mental health professionals. This shall include helping youth develop skills to reduce their suicidal ideations or behaviors, and ensuring that all youth discharged from suicide precautions receive adequate follow-up treatment within the facilities.
(23)Supervision of Youth at Risk of Self-Harm The State shall ensure that newly-arrived youth, youth in isolation or seclusion, and other youth at heightened risk of self-harm are sufficiently supervised to maintain their safety.
(24) Housing for Youth at Risk of Self-Harm The State shall ensure that all housing for youth at heightened risk of self-harm, including holding cells, isolation cells, seclusion cells, and housing for youth on suicide precautions, is free of hazards that would allow youth to hang themselves or commit other acts of self-harm.
(25)Restrictions for Suicidal Youth The State shall ensure that youth on suicide

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precautions are not restricted in their access to programs and services more than safety and security needs dictate.
(26)Documentation of Suicide Precautions The State shall develop and implement policies, procedures, and practices to ensure that the following information is thoroughly and correctly documented, and provided to all staff who need to know such information:
a. the times youth are placed on and removed from precautions;
b. the levels of precautions on which youth are maintained;
c. the housing location of youth on precautions;
d. the conditions of the precautions; and
e. the times and circumstances of all observations by staff monitoring the youth.
(27)Access to Emergency Equipment The State shall ensure that direct care staff have immediate access to appropriate equipment to intervene in the event of an attempted suicide.
(28)Suicide and Suicide Attempt Review The State shall ensure that appropriate staff review all completed suicides and serious suicide attempts for policy and training implications.
C. MEDICAL AND DENTAL CARE
(29)Appropriate Care The State shall provide youth adequate, appropriate, and timely medical and dental care to meet the individualized needs of youth, including treatment of acute and chronic medical conditions. The State shall develop and implement adequate medical and dental policies, procedures and protocols. The State shall ensure that there are sufficient numbers of qualified medical professionals to meet these needs.
(30 Coordination of Medical, Dental, and Mental Health Care The State shall hire a qualified health care services coordinator who shall coordinate the medical, dental, and mental health care of each youth in the facilities. The qualified health care services coordinator shall coordinate care provided by lower level practitioners, and participate in quality assurance and infection control programs.
(31) Medical Facilities The State shall ensure that the facilities are equipped with adequate medical and dental clinics and that medical equipment that could be used as weapons is not accessible to youth. Each clinic shall provide for an appropriately confidential environment in which to conduct medical and mental health assessments.
(32) Health Assessments The State shall ensure that youth receive adequate

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health assessments upon admission or re-admission to the facilities.
(33) Medication Administration The State shall develop and implement training for all medical staff responsible for medication administration to prevent medication discontinuity and ensure that generally accepted professional standards are followed.
(34) Medical Referrals The State shall develop and implement policies, practices, and procedures to ensure that medical decisions to refer youth for specialty consultations or dental treatment are not overruled by non-medical personnel.
(35) Medical and Mental Health Records Retrieval The State shall develop and implement policies, procedures and practices to ensure that, consistent with State and Federal law, at a minimum, the juvenile courts in the State, all juvenile detention facilities, and all placement settings from which youth are committed, timely forward all pertinent youth records regarding medical and mental health care.
(36) Medical and Mental Health Record System The State shall develop and implement policies, procedures and practices to ensure that medical and mental health care staff have access to documents that are relevant to the care and treatment of the youth.
V. COMPLIANCE AND QUALITY ASSURANCE
(37) Document Development and Revision The State shall revise and/or develop policies, procedures, protocols, training curricula, and practices to ensure that they are consistent with, incorporate, address, and implement all provisions of this Agreement. The State shall revise and/or develop as necessary other written documents such as screening tools, logs, handbooks, manuals, and forms, to effectuate the provisions of this Agreement.
(38) Document Review Within 30 days after the filing of this Agreement with the Court, the State shall submit a master plan to DOJ that establishes a time line of up to one year to revise and/or develop written policies, procedures, protocols, training materials, and screening and assessment tools to effectuate the provisions of this Agreement. The master plan and the policies, procedures, protocols, training materials, and screening and assessment tools shall be submitted to the DOJ for review and approval consistent with this paragraph. The DOJ shall provide prompt guidance to the State, including specific explanations as to how the provisions, policies, or procedures, if any, are inconsistent with the terms of this Agreement, and shall suggest revisions. In the event that the DOJ asserts that policies, procedures, and other written documents are not in compliance with the terms of this Agreement, the parties will agree to a schedule for the parties' experts to communicate. The State shall revise policies as necessary to conform with the terms of this Agreement. If, after the policies, procedures, and practices affected by this Agreement are implemented, either of the parties determines that a policy, procedure, or practice, as implemented, fails to effectuate the terms of this Agreement, the

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parties shall consult and the policy, procedure, or practice shall be revised as necessary to conform to the terms of this Agreement. If the parties are unable to agree on revisions to the policies, etc., the parties shall submit the issue to the Monitor. If either party is unsatisfied with the Monitor's resolution, then either party may invoke mediation. If neither party requests mediation, or at the conclusion of mediation, the dispute may be submitted to the Court.
(39) Quality Assurance Programs The State shall develop and implement Quality Assurance programs consistent with generally accepted professional practices for each discipline addressed in this Agreement.
(40) Corrective Action Plans For each discipline addressed in this Agreement, the State shall develop and implement policies and procedures to address problems that are uncovered during the course of quality assurance activities. The State shall develop and implement corrective action plans to address these problems in such a manner as to prevent them from occurring again in the future.
(41) Technical Assistance DOJ will provide the State with technical assistance in the development of policies and procedures required to effectuate the terms of this Agreement. DOJ will assist the State in identifying additional financial resources to supplement those resources currently allocated to the facilities.
VI. MONITORING AND ENFORCEMENT
(42) Monitor Selection The parties have jointly selected Joyce Burrell to serve as the Monitor. Should the position become vacant and the parties cannot agree on a replacement, the parties shall recommend candidates to the Court, and the Court will select the Monitor. Neither party, nor any employee or agent of either party, shall have any supervisory authority over the Monitor's activities, reports, findings, or recommendations. The cost for the Monitor's fees and expenses shall be borne by the State. The selection of the Monitor shall be conducted solely pursuant to the procedures set forth in this Agreement, and will not be governed by any formal or legal procurement requirements. The Monitor may be terminated only for good cause, unrelated to the Monitor's findings or recommendations, and only with prior notice to and approval of both parties or by Court order.
(43) Monitor Qualifications The Monitor shall have experience and education or training in the field of juvenile justice. The Monitor may also have education, training, or experience in general or special education, adolescent health and mental health needs (particularly the needs of institutionalized adolescents), and institutional abuse and incident investigations.
(44) Monitor Access The Monitor shall have full and complete access to the facilities, all facility and Division records, staff, and residents. The State shall direct all employees to cooperate fully with the Monitor. All non-public information obtained by the Monitor shall be maintained in a confidential manner.

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(45) Monitor Ex Parte Communications The Monitor shall be permitted to initiate and receive ex parte communications with all parties.
(46) Limitations on Public Disclosures by Monitor Except as required or authorized by the terms of this Agreement or the parties acting together, the Monitor shall not: make any public statements (at a conference or otherwise) or issue findings with regard to any act or omission of the State or its agents, representatives or employees, or disclose non-public information provided to the Monitor pursuant to this Agreement. Any press statement made by the Monitor regarding their employment must first be approved by the parties. The Monitor shall not testify in any other litigation or proceeding with regard to any act or omission of the State, Division or any of their agents, representatives, or employees related to this Agreement, nor testify regarding any matter or subject that he or she may have learned as a result of his or her performance under this Agreement. Reports issued by the Monitor shall not be admissible against the State in any proceeding other than a proceeding related to the enforcement of the State's agreements with DOJ. Unless such conflict is waived by the parties, the Monitor shall not accept employment or provide consulting services that would present a conflict of interest with the Monitor's responsibilities under this Agreement, including being retained (on a paid or unpaid basis) by any current or future litigant or claimant, or such litigant's or claimant's attorney, in connection with a claim or suit against the State or its departments, officers, agents or employees. The Monitor is not a state or local agency or an agent thereof, and accordingly the records maintained by the Monitor shall not be deemed public records subject to public inspection. Neither the Monitor nor any person or entity hired or otherwise retained by the Monitor to assist in furthering any provision of this Agreement shall be liable for any claim, lawsuit or demand arising out of the Monitor's performance pursuant to this Agreement. This paragraph does not apply to any proceeding before a court related to performance of contracts or subcontracts for monitoring this Agreement.
(47)Monitor Reports The Monitor shall file with the Court and provide the parties with reports describing the steps taken by the State to implement this Agreement and evaluate the extent to which the State has complied with each substantive provision of the Agreement. Such reports shall be issued every four months, unless the parties agree otherwise. The reports shall be provided to the parties in draft form for comment at least two weeks prior to their issuance. These reports shall be written with due regard for the privacy interests of individual youth and staff and the interest of the State in protecting against disclosure of non-public information.
(48) Monitor Budget The Monitor shall have a budget sufficient to allow the Monitor to carry out the responsibilities described in this Agreement. The Monitor may consult experts or consultants retained by either party. All parties shall receive copies of all draft reports from experts to the Monitor prior to the issuance of any Monitor's report, and shall have the option of being present at briefings from such experts to the Monitor and to the State. The Monitor may initiate and receive ex parte communications with the parties and with the parties' consultants.

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US v. Mississippi Consent Decree

Page 12 of 16

VII. REPORTING REQUIREMENTS AND RIGHT OF ACCESS
(49) DOJ Access The DOJ shall have full and complete access to the youth at the facilities. The DOJ shall have full and complete access to the facilities, youth records, staff records, and staff of the facilities regarding the topics addressed in this Agreement. The DOJ shall have the right to conduct unannounced visits to the facilities. The DOJ shall have the right to conduct interviews with staff, and confidential interviews with residents and former residents. State attorneys may be present at interviews of staff and tours of facilities. All non-public information obtained by the DOJ shall be maintained in a confidential manner.
(50) State Response to DOJ Questions Limited to ten succinct questions without subparts within a six month period, within 30 days of receipt of written questions from the DOJ concerning the State's compliance with this Agreement, the State shall provide the DOJ with written answers and access to any requested documents regarding the State's compliance with the requirements of this Agreement. Any dispute regarding the scope or burden of the requests shall be resolved by the Monitor.
(51) State Documentation of Compliance The State shall maintain sufficient records to document its compliance with all of the requirements of this Agreement. The State shall also maintain (so long as this Agreement remains in effect) any and all records required by or developed under this Agreement.
(52) State Compliance Reports Fourteen calendar days before each report from the Monitor is due, the State shall provide the Monitor and the United States with a status report regarding its compliance with this Agreement.
(53) Privileges This Agreement shall not be deemed to waive the attorney/client, attorney work product, deliberative process, or executive privileges. The State shall not assert physician/patient or psychotherapist/patient privileges with respect to the monitoring of this agreement and the Memorandum of Agreement by DOJ and the Monitor.
VIII. IMPLEMENTATION AND TERMINATION
(54) Information to Employees The State shall ensure that all current and future relevant State employees understand the terms of this Agreement (to the extent necessary to carry out their job duties and responsibilities) and implement the terms of this Agreement.
(55) Implementation The State shall implement all reforms necessary to effectuate this Agreement. The implementation will begin immediately upon the filing of this Agreement. The parties agree that the systemic and comprehensive nature of this Agreement will require implementation and refinement of policies and programs over a number of years. In addition, the parties agree that the State shall make continuous progress during the first three years of this Agreement to provide adequate juvenile correctional officers, counselor aides, and security officers. The parties also agree that the State shall

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US v. Mississippi Consent Decree

Page 13 of 16

make continuous progress during the first eighteen months of this Agreement to provide adequate teachers, nurses, and nurse practitioners. As a separate matter, minor, inconsequential, sporadic, unintentional or isolated harmless instances of noncompliance with the Agreement shall not be a basis for enforcement, provided they do not affect a substantial interest of the youth.
(56) Integration This Agreement shall constitute the entire integrated Agreement of the parties with respect to the United States' claims concerning protection from harm and medical and dental care. The United States and the State have entered into a Memorandum of Agreement that addresses the United States' claims concerning mental health, rehabilitation, education, and special education. With the exception of DOJ's findings letter referenced in ¶D hereof, the Memorandum of Agreement, and any DOJ technical assistance recommendations, no prior or contemporaneous communications, oral or written, will be relevant or admissible for purposes of determining the meaning of any provisions herein in this litigation or in any other proceeding.
(57) Enforcement If DOJ believes that the State has failed to substantially comply with any obligation under this Agreement, DOJ will, prior to seeking judicial action to enforce the terms of this Agreement, give written notice of the failure to the State. The parties shall conduct good-faith discussions to resolve the dispute. If the parties are unable to reach agreement within 15 days of the DOJ's written notice, the parties shall submit the dispute to mediation. The parties shall split the cost of the mediator. In the first instance, the mediator shall be Judge Reuben Vincent Anderson. If Judge Anderson is not available, the mediator shall be Robin Rosenberg. If neither of these mediators is available, the Court shall select a mediator. Thereafter, the order in which mediators are contacted shall alternate between mediations. The parties shall attempt in good faith to mediate the dispute for a minimum of 30 days prior to initiating any court action. DOJ commits to work in good faith with the State to avoid enforcement actions. However, in case of an emergency posing an immediate threat to the health or safety of youths, the United States may omit the notice and cure requirements herein (including the provision regarding mediation), before seeking judicial action.
(58) Agreement Coordinator The State shall appoint an Agreement Coordinator to coordinate and oversee compliance with this Agreement.
(59)Termination This Agreement shall terminate four years from the date it is ordered by the Court. The Agreement may also end earlier than four years from the date it is ordered by the Court if the State has substantially complied with each of the provisions of the Agreement and has maintained substantial compliance for at least two years. The burden shall be on the State to demonstrate this level of compliance. There are three substantive sections of this agreement - protection from harm, suicide prevention, and medical and dental care. A section of the Agreement may be terminated if the State sustains its burden with respect to that section of the Agreement. Noncompliance with mere technicalities, or temporary failure to comply during a period of otherwise sustained compliance will not constitute failure to maintain substantial compliance. At the same time, temporary compliance during a period of sustained noncompliance shall not constitute substantial compliance.

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US v. Mississippi Consent Decree

Page 14 of 16

(60)Defense of Agreement The parties agree to defend the provisions of this Agreement. The parties shall notify each other of any court challenge to this Agreement. In the event any provision of this Agreement is challenged in any local or state court, removal to a federal court shall be sought.
(61) Successors This Agreement shall be binding on all successors, assignees, employees, agents and all those working for or on behalf of the State.
(62)No Waiver for Failure to Enforce Failure by either party to enforce this entire Agreement or any provision thereof with respect to any deadline or any other provision herein shall not be construed as a waiver of its right to enforce other deadlines or provisions of this Agreement.
(63)Notice "Notice" under this Agreement shall be provided by courier or overnight delivery and shall be provided to the Governor of the State of Mississippi and to the Attorney General of the State of Mississippi.
(64)Unforeseen Delay If any unforeseen circumstance occurs which causes a failure to timely carry out any requirements of this Agreement, the State shall notify the DOJ in writing within 20 calendar days of the time that the State becomes aware of the unforeseen circumstance and its impact on the State's ability to perform under the Agreement. The notice shall describe the cause of the failure to perform and the measures taken to prevent or minimize the failure. The State shall implement all reasonable measures to avoid or minimize any such failure.
(65)Non-Retaliation The State agrees that it shall not retaliate against any person because that person has filed or may file a complaint, provided information or assistance, or participated in any other manner in an investigation or proceeding relating to this Agreement.
(66)Subheadings All subheadings in this Agreement are written for convenience of locating individual provisions. If questions arise as to the meanings of individual provisions, the parties shall follow the text of each provision.
(67)Severability In the event any provision of this Agreement is declared invalid for any reason by a court of competent jurisdiction, said finding shall not affect the remaining provisions of this Agreement.
(68)Attorney's Fees and Expenses Each party shall bear the cost of their fees and expenses incurred in connection with this cause.

FOR THE UNITED STATES:
/s/Dunn O. Lampton DUNN O. LAMPTON

/s/R. Alexander Acosta R. ALEXANDER ACOSTA

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United States Attorney Southern District of Mississippi

Assistant Attorney General Civil Rights Division
/s/Bradley J. Schlozman BRADLEY J. SCHLOZMAN Deputy Assistant Attorney General Civil Rights Division
/s/Shanetta Y. Cutlar SHANETTA Y. CUTLAR Chief Special Litigation Section
/s/Tammi R. Simpson JUDY PRESTON Deputy Chief TAMMI R. SIMPSON JEFFREY J. RESETARITS LAURA L. COON MATTHEW J. DONNELLY Trial Attorneys U.S. Department of Justice Civil Rights Division Special Litigation Section 950 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20530

FOR THE STATE:
/s/Haley Barbour HALEY BARBOUR Governor State of Mississippi
/s/Donald Taylor DONALD TAYLOR Executive Director Department of Human Services
/s/Kathy Pittman KATHY PITTMAN

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US v. Mississippi Consent Decree
Director Division of Youth Services /s/Jim Hood JIM HOOD Attorney General State of Mississippi
SO ORDERED this _______ day of ___________, 2005.
THE HONORABLE HENRY J. WINGATE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT JUDGE
SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF MISSISSIPPI

Page 16 of 16

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• Case 3:03-cv-01354-HTW-JCS

Document 83

•Filed 01/12/2005

Page 1 of 9
F (LlCitoMISSISSIPPI

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
" FOR THE SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF MlSSISSI JACKSON DIVISION

JAN 12 2005
J. T. NOBUN. ClERK DEPUTY

THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

PLAINTIFF

vs.

CIVIL ACTION NO. 3:03cv1354WSu

THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI, et aI.

DEFENDANTS

consolidated with

K.L.W., by and through his next friend, ROSETTA WILLIAMS, on his own behalf and on behalf of those similarly situated

PLAINTIFFS

vs.

RICHARD JAMES, in bis omclal capacity as Acting Administrator of Columbia Training School, et al.

DEFENDANTS

SETTLEMENT AGREEMENT IN K.L W. V. JAMES WHEREAS on April 13, 2004, the Plaintiffs filed a class action lawsuit challenging the attorney visitation policy and legal assistance program at Columbia Training School as unconstitutional; WHEREAS the Plaintiffs and the Defendants have engaged in good faith negotiations and agree that it is in their best interests to resolve this litigation; and WHEREAS the Court has already entered an order dismissing the case and requiring the parties to consummate the agreement reached in the chambers of United States Magistrate Judge James Sumner on November 24, 2004; NOW THEREFORE the parties, by and through their respective counsel. hereby stipulate and agree to the following provisions to resolve this litigation:

-1-

• Case 3:03-cv-01354-HTW-JCS

Document 83

•Filed 01/12/2005

Page 2 of 9

(1) The Defendants will adopt and implement the policy attached to this Settlement Agreement as Exhibit 1. The terms of that policy are incorporated in this Agreement.
(2) In the interest of settlement, the Plaintiffs agree to waive all attorney fees associated with the litigation of this action.
(3) Upon the execution of this Settlement Agreement, Plaintiffs agree to withdraw their Motion to Vacate Order of Dismissal (filed Dec. 16, 2004); Motion for an Extension of Time to Submit Petition for Attorney Fees (filed Dec. 16, 2004); and Objections to Involuntary Dismissal by Magistrate Judge (filed Dec. 21, 2004).
(4) Plaintiffs and the Defendants agree to file this Settlement Agreement with the United States District Court.

.ft.. Agreed to this the I;;J day of January, 2005, by:

FOR THE DEFENDANTS:

FOR THE PLAINTIFFS:

~fIIh HAROLD E. P

A.III

Special Assistant Attorney General

State of Mississippi

Carroll Gartin Justice Building

Post Office Box 220

Jackson, MissiSSippi 39205-0220

\':' ~ "'/C- ~~ - \.~ f '~~~~ .~

DANIELLEJ. IiPow

)

SHEILA A. BEDI

~:-'

Southern Poverty Law Center

Post Office Box 2087

Montgomery, Alabama 36102

DAVID B. MILLER MiSSissippi Center fo Justice 736 North Congress Street Post Office Box 1023 Jackson, Mississippi 39215-1023
-2-

• . Jan. C11a.se2030:5031-1c:v29-0AM1354-HTW-JCS

Document 83

•Filed 01/12/2005No. 03P6a6ge P3. o3f 9

or MISSISSIPPI DEPARTMENT IIlJMAN SERVICES D~ONOFYOUTBSERVICES

PoHey
Num~r

Seedoa

SUBJECT: ATtORNEY ACCESS

DATE:

POLICY
All sbvlc:ntshousedatthe Mississippi Youth Conectioaal. Complex(MYCC), also IawVlIl as Oakley Training School, and Columbia Training Sdl.ool (CTS) have the right to seek I~ usistaDee aad tohaveIlIICeIlS(Il'ed ronfidentjal contactbytclcphonc, inwriting. orinpenonWith their legal reprcscntativc. MYCC 8lId CTS 8l'C collcc:tively Icfmed to herein as institution.
PROCEDURF.S
Orientation
A Jist oflegal resources will be made available to the student during orientation. Each sbldcnt sbalI be informed oftheir right to request legal assistaDce and to meet with an attorney. Thc:sc rights will be explained orally IIIId in writing.
ColllDl1Ulieatioa with Attorneys
1. General
Con1act with an anomeymaybe initiated by !he youth in writing on the form provided in the student handbook. (See the fOIm at Exhibit 1 to this Policy.) The colIDSeHng staff will be
available to assist students who need help in comp1eting thc form. The farm will be mailed to the designated attoIIIey within twenty-four hours ofits completion.
An agent, employee, or other representative ofan attorney may mcct with a child when the agent, employee, or represeoQrive is accompanied by the attomcy.
Prior to being approved to enter the grounds of the institution, however, the following
criteria must be met by !he visiting attorney:
i) The visiting attorney must submit evidcn<:e that he or she is liccoscd to pnu;ti<:e law in the State of Mississippi, including but not limited to a copy of a current
Mfervoiimsdseintshsceie~fr.opmStathtpeeBMiaricSa~ro-,iceSCrttioaftuiecratB,teaorro.ofthgoerodacscteapntdaibnlge
ii) Anattomcymustrrovidewrittennoticcatlcastforty-eight (48) hours inadvance oftile visit, lIS well as anyone ofthe following three items:
a) a pleading evidencing thc attorney's appcarancc on the child's behalf in any state or federal court;

t)(. I

• . Jan.C1a1.se2300:5031-1c:2v9-A0M1354-HTW-JCS

Document 83

•Filed 01/12/2005No. 0P36a6ge 4P. of49

MISSISSIPPI DEPARTMENT OF HUMAN SERVICES
D~ONOFYOUTHSERVlC~

Polky Number

SUBJECf: A'ITORNEY ACCESS

DATE:

b) a consent form sigued by1he child's legal guardian (See Exhibit 2 to this Poli<;y); or

c) a declaration by the attomcy that: (i) the legal
guardian has been mtificd of the child's request and has not communicated any objections, and (n) the child's youthcourtattorney, guardian ad litem, or youth court judge has been informed of the child's request for legal assistance and does not . objc:« to the visit. A declaration submitted pursuant to this subsc:ction must be sworn under
pena!tyofpctjuryandmustincludethenameoftbe party autboJ:izing access, contact infonnation, the date 1bc authorization WIlli given, aPdthe natureof the consent given.

iii) If the legal guardian docs not provide a written authorization for the attomey's meeting with the child but the legal guardian accompanies the attorney in person to the institution, the attornoy will be allowed to enter the institution to meet with the cbild.

iv) When the attorney is not able to reach the legal guardian,

the attorney will seek authorization from the youth court

guardian ad litem (GAL), an attorney who represented

the ehiId in youth court, or the youth court having

jurisdiction over the child. Consent by any of the

foregoing three parties (GAL., the youth court IIttOrney.

or youth court) need not be in writing. Ifconsent is not

provided in writing, the attorney must execute a

declaration identifying the name ofthe party authorizing

access, contact information, the date the authorization was

au:'fJ. given, and the nature ofthe consent given. Iftbe guardian

ad litem or the youth court

objects to the visiting

attorney's compliance with a . 's request fora m=ting

between the attorney and the child, the visiting attorney

_y not comply with the request until he or she enters an

appearance on the child'5 boDalfin state or fedml court.

v) If the legal guardian objects to the visi~ attorney's oompliancc: with a child's request for a muting bctwccn the attorney and the child, the visiiing attorney may not comply with the request until he or she enters an appearance on the child's behalf in state or fedaral court.

• Jan. C11a. se20305:0311-c:2v9-A0M1354-HTW-JCS

Document 83

• Filed 01/12/200N5o. 03P66ageP5. o5f 9

MISSISSIPPI DEPARTMENT OF HUMAN SERVICES Policy

DIVISION OF YOUTH SERVICES

Number

SUBJECf: ATtORNEY ACCESS

DATE:

Section

2. Visits
A log shall be maintained ofall visits by attomeys. Visits may be visually observed by the institution, but convenations between students and counsel shall not be moniton:d.
3. Scheduling Visits
Visits byattomeysmustbe schedulcd throughthe iDsIitutionat least furty-eight (48)bours in advarn:e. Students may refuse to see any attorney.
The attorney must write to a designated representative ofthe institution to certify that a particular child has requested a legal visit The attomey's letter will include the child's name, the legal guardian's name and contact informatiOll, the attorney's name and contact information, and a proposed date and time for a meeting between the attorney and child. The letter will include documentation that the visiting attorney meets the criteria specified above in Section I. Except in emergency circumstances, the attorney must insure that written notification of the proposed visit, and supporting documentation, is received by the designated institution representative at least forty-cight (48) hours in advance ofthe visit.
After the initial visit to the institution, the attomey must schedule subsequent visits with the childby providing the institution's designated ICpmlCll!ati.ve with notice, in writing, at 1east forty-<ligbt(48) hours in advance ofan intended visit and must present a picture identification upon arrival at the insIitution but will not be n:quiral to ICSUbmit the other supporting documentation required by this Section.
4. Time of VISits
Visits by attorneys must normally take place Monday through Friday, excluding bolidays, between the boursof5:00p.m. and 8:00p.m. or Saturday and SurulaybetMen the hoUl'Sof9:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m. Upon arrival at the institution, the attorney must present a picture identification, bar credentisl, and doC1unentation that the attorney meets the criteria specified above in Section 1.
Thc School Administrator may approve spccisl or other visits by an attomey not in conformity with this Section, when emergency circumstances warrant such visits.
5. I.imitations on Visits
Any impropet acts or unethicsl behavior with a student during a visit may result in an attorney being denied future requests to visit a child. No more than one student may be seen by an attnmey at any one time. Generally, no l1lOre than two lcgsl visitors may see a student on any one day. However, the number oflega! visitors at one time may be limited based on available space and/or security constraints.

• Case 3:03-cv-01354-HTW-JCS

Document 83

•Filed 01/12/200N5o. 03P66ageP6. o6f 9

MISSISSIPPI DEPARTMENT OF IIUMAN SERVICES DIVISION OF YOUTH SERVICES

PoHey N1UDber

SUBJEcr: AITORNEY ACCESS
.

DATE:

Further limitation may be imposed by the School Administrator as circumstances warrant
Where foreseeable circumstancesrequireadditionallimitatiODS on attomeyvisitation, the facility, where feasible, will infurm the visiting attorney ofthose limitationsatleasttwenty-four (24) hours in adVllllCe ofthe visit.

6. Phone Calb

Students will be allowed to phone their anomey ~ condiI:ioDS established to protect the confidentialityofcommunicationsto andfrom the attomey. However, cal1s8l'8usuallyfinUted to avoid IInna:essary' intrusion upon the institution staff and/or due to security coocems. However. if a student indicates im.portaut infurmation needs the prompt attention ofbia or her attorney, further calls may be p1aced.

All calls to attomeys will be collect phone calls.

7. WritteD CommunicatioD

A student's written message will be mailed or distributed to the attorney. Any student who does not have postage will be provided no mOle than two (2) postage stamps or free mai!ings per
week by the institution for conespondence with an attorney or otherwise. Written messar-s will
be unopened and uneensored. Further, mail from the court or other legal authority to a student
will not be opened.

GOVERNING RULES AND REGULATIONS

Attorneys ale subjects to all applicable tu1es and regulations ofthe institution.

EXCEPTIONS

No1hing contained in this Policy shall apply to attorneys representing the State, the Mississippi Department of Human Services, or the institution.

APPLICABILITY

All other applicable policies and/or proced:ures. not in conflict with this Policy. shall continue to govern the subject matter described herein.

• . Jan. 1C1.as2e0035:0131-:c2v9-A0M1354-HTW-JCS

Document 83

•Filed 01/12/200N5o. 03P66ageP7. o7f 9

ExIu"bit 1:

REQUEST FOR LEGAL ASSISTANCE

1, talk to (Please select one):
o
o

•would like to talk to a lawyer. I would like to
Mississippi Center for Justice Southern Poverty Law Center PostOffiecBox 1023 Jackson, MHsissippi 39215-1023

(Other attorney and contact information) Please give us the IUIIIIe and address ofyour legal guardian(s) 110 that the aitorncy can arrange to visit you:
Name:
Relation:
Address:
Telephone:

1 The Slate will add names ofother applicable legal service entities.

• • Jan,C11a,se2030:5031-1c:3v0-A0M1354-HTW-JCS

Document 83

•Filed 01/12/2005No, 03P6a6 ge P8. o8f 9

Exhibit 2:
LEGAL VISIT CONSENT FORM

1. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _->. am the legal guardianof_ _ __

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _---'. a child CIIITCIltly confined at the Columbia Training School. My

child has requested legal assistance from attomcy/s:..-_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __

Attorney/s

my haslhave permission to conduct

confidential legal visits with my child at the Colmnbia Training School. I understand that the State

of Mississippi will not monitor conversatiOllS between my child and legal counsel. I further

understand that attorney/s

will not charge fot any legal advice

or services they provide my child.

I can be reached at the following telephone numbel(s) to confirm this l11Ithori2lI1ion:

Daytime

Evening

Date: Signature:

• Case 3:03-cv-01354-HTW-JCS

Document 83

•Filed 01/12/2005

Page 9 of 9

CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE

This is to certify that I, David B. Miller, counsel of record for Plaintiffs, have this date caused to be served via United States mail, first class postage prepaid, a true and correct copy of the foregoing upon the following:
Harold E. Pizzetta, ill, Esq. Special Assistant Attorney General Post Office Box 220 Jackson, Ms 39201
Mitzi Dease Paige, Esq. Assistant United States Attorney 180 E. Capitol St., Ste. 500 Jackson, MS 39201
Jim Eichner, Esq. Civil Rights Division Special Litigation Section 950 Pennsylvania Ave. Washington, D.C. 20530
This the 12th day of January, 2004.

DAVID B. MILLER

 
 Case 3:03-cv-01354-HTW-JCS Document 135 Filed 02/26/08 Page 1 of 5

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF MISSISSIPPI JACKSON DIVISION

THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,

)

)

Plaintiff,

)

)

v.

)

)

THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI, et al., )

)

Defendants.

)

)

)

CIVIL ACTION NO.: 3:03-cv-1354-HTW-JCS

AMENDMENT TO CONSENT DECREE On May 31, 2005, this Court approved and entered as its Order a settlement agreement (“Agreement” or “Consent Decree”) [Dkt. 119, 120] requiring the State of Mississippi, et al. (“Defendants” or the “State”) to implement certain measures to address unconstitutional conditions at the Oakley Training School (“Oakley”) and the Columbia Training School (“Columbia”) (collectively “facilities”). Having considered the Parties Joint Motion to Amend Consent Decree, it is ORDERED that the Consent Decree is amended as follows: I. EXTENSION OF CONSENT DECREE The termination date of “four years from the date it is ordered by the Court,” i.e., May 31, 2009, in Paragraph 59 of the Consent Decree is changed to May 31, 2010.

Case 3:03-cv-01354-HTW-JCS Document 135 Filed 02/26/08 Page 2 of 5
II. MONITOR FOR THE PROTECTION FROM HARM SECTION OF THE CONSENT DECREE Pursuant to paragraph 42 of the consent decree, Leonard
Dixon is appointed as the Court Monitor for the Agreement as it pertains to the protection from harm provisions. Specifically, Mr. Dixon will monitor the protection from harm section requirements of the Consent Decree, ¶¶ 1-19, 37, 39, 40. The cost for the Monitor’s fees and expenses shall be borne by the State.
III. MONITOR FOR THE SUICIDE PREVENTION SECTION OF THE CONSENT DECREE Pursuant to paragraph 42 of the consent decree, Lindsay
Hayes is appointed as the Court Monitor for the Agreement as it pertains to the suicide prevention provisions. Specifically, Mr. Hayes will monitor the suicide prevention section requirements of the Consent Decree, ¶¶ 20-28, 37, 39, 40. The cost for the Monitor’s fees and expenses shall be borne by the State.
IV. MONITORS’ ACTION PLANS Within 30 days of the Court’s approval of appointment of Mr.
Dixon and Mr. Hayes as the Monitors for the protection from harm and suicide prevention provisions of the Consent Decree, Mr. Dixon and Mr. Hayes shall complete tours of Oakley and Columbia Training Schools. The Monitors shall have full and complete access to the facilities, all facility and Division records,
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Case 3:03-cv-01354-HTW-JCS Document 135 Filed 02/26/08 Page 3 of 5
staff and residents. The Monitors shall be permitted to initiate and receive ex parte communications with all Parties.
Within 15 days of the conclusion of the Monitors’ tours at Oakley and Columbia, but no later than 45 days after the Court’s approval of the appointment of Mr. Dixon and Mr. Hayes, each Monitor shall submit to the Parties a detailed action plan in his respective area of coverage.
Each action plan shall, with reference to the pertinent paragraphs of the Agreement: (a) identify any current deficiencies in the State’s compliance with the requirements of each paragraph; (b) outline specific, detailed actions that will be undertaken by the State to correct any existing deficiencies; (c) specify the name and title of the person responsible for coordinating each action and complying with the due date; and (d) specify the due date at which each specified action must be completed.
The Parties shall make any comments within 10 days of submission of each action plan by the Monitors. The Monitors shall revise the action plans based on the comments of the Parties.
No later than 60 days from the date of the Court’s appointment of Mr. Dixon and Mr. Hayes, the Parties shall jointly request that the Court enter an order for each action plan as a modification to the Consent Decree. If the Parties cannot reach
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Case 3:03-cv-01354-HTW-JCS Document 135 Filed 02/26/08 Page 4 of 5
agreement on an action plan, each party shall submit a proposed order and the Court shall determine which action plan shall be entered as an order of the Court.
The Monitors may submit to the Parties proposed amendments to the action plans in the event of unforeseen or changed circumstances necessitating such amendments. If in agreement, the Parties shall jointly request that the Court enter an order for an amendment to an action plan proposed by the monitor. If the Parties cannot reach agreement on an amendment, including whether the proposed amendment is necessary due to unforeseen or changed circumstances, each party shall submit a proposed order and the Court shall determine which action plan shall be entered as an order of the Court. V. GOOD-FAITH DISCUSSION REQUIREMENT
Paragraph 57 of the Consent Decree is replaced with: (57) Enforcement If DOJ believes that the State has failed to substantially comply with any obligation under this Agreement, DOJ will, prior to seeking judicial action to enforce the terms of this Agreement, give written notice of the failure to the State. The parties shall conduct goodfaith discussions to resolve the dispute. If the parties are unable to reach agreement within 15 days of the DOJ’s written notice, DOJ may seek judicial action. DOJ commits to work in good faith with the State to avoid enforcement actions. In case of an emergency posing an immediate threat to the health or safety of youths, however, the United States may omit the notice and cure requirements herein, before seeking judicial action.
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Case 3:03-cv-01354-HTW-JCS Document 135 Filed 02/26/08 Page 5 of 5
VI. THE PRISON LITIGATION REFORM ACT The United States and Defendants stipulate that this
Amendment complies in all respects with the provisions of the Prison Litigation Reform Act, 18 U.S.C. § 3626(a). Pursuant to the stipulation and the facts set forth in the Parties’ Joint Motion to Amend Consent Decree, the Court finds that Defendants have violated the federal rights of youth. Further, the Court finds that the prospective relief in this Amendment to the Consent Decree is narrowly drawn, extends no further than necessary to correct the violations of federal rights set forth in the Complaint, is the least intrusive means necessary to correct these violations, and will not have an adverse impact on public safety or the operation of a criminal justice system. Accordingly, this Amendment complies in all respects with the provisions of 18 U.S.C. § 3626(a).
All provisions of the Consent Decree that do not conflict with this Amendment shall remain in full force and effect.
SO ORDERED this 26th day of February, 2008. s/ HENRY T. WINGATE CHIEF UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT JUDGE SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF MISSISSIPPI
Civil Action No. 3:03-cv-1354 HTW-JCS Amended Consent Decree
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 Case 3:03-cv-01354-HTW-JCS Document 160 Filed 09/16/10 Page 1 of 4

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF MISSISSIPPI
JACKSON DIVISION

The United States of America )

Plaintiff,

)

) Civil Action No.

v.

) 3:03-cv-1354-HTW-FKB

)

The State of Mississippi, et al. )

Defendants.

)

__________________________)

PARTIES JOINT MOTION TO ENTER COMPLIANCE ACTION PLAN AS A MODIFICATION TO THE AGREEMENT

On June 21, 2010, the Court ordered that the May 31, 2005, Consent Decree (“Agreement”) (Dkt. # 119) be amended to dismiss certain provisions and modify others. (Dkt. # 158). Section II of the Court’s order modifies Paragraph 38 to require the State to develop a comprehensive action plan for the substantive remedial areas of the Agreement: protection from harm, suicide prevention, mental health and rehabilitative services, and Paragraphs 39-40 regarding quality assurance and corrective action plans. The State was directed to revise or modify the existing Action Plan for protection from harm and suicide prevention and integrate the plans into the comprehensive action plan in consultation with the monitor. The State would then submit that comprehensive action plan to the United States and monitor and revise it based on the comments from the United States and Monitor. The Parties were directed to jointly file, no later than 90 days from the Court’s June 21, 2010 Order, a request to the Court to enter the comprehensive action plan as a modification to the Agreement.

With the assistance of Dr. Dedel (the Monitor), the Parties have collaborated to create the compliance action plan. The United States and the Monitor have provided comments to the State and the State has revised the plan appropriately. Accordingly, the Parties now jointly submit to the Court, within the 90 day deadline time period, their request to the Court to enter the attached Compliance Action Plan (Attachment 1) as a modification to the Agreement.

Case 3:03-cv-01354-HTW-JCS Document 160 Filed 09/16/10 Page 2 of 4

The Parties also wish to inform the Court that Dr. Dedel is scheduled to tour the Oakley Training School in Raymond, Mississippi on November 15-19, 2010 and December 13-17, 2010.

Respectfully submitted this 16th day of September, 2010.

For the United States:

DONALD R. BURKHALTER United States Attorney Southern District of Mississippi

THOMAS E. PEREZ Assistant Attorney General Civil Rights Division

MITZI DEASE PAIGE Assistant U.S. Attorney 188 East Capitol Street One Jackson Place, Suite 500 Jackson, MS 39201 Phone (601) 973-2840 Facsimile (601) 965-4409 MS Bar Number 6014

SAMUEL R. BAGENSTOS Principal Deputy Assistant
Attorney General Civil Rights Division
JUDITH C. PRESTON Acting Chief Special Litigation Section

JULIE K. ABBATE Deputy Chief Special Litigation Section

s/Silvia J. Dominguez SILVIA J. DOMINGUEZ Trial Attorney U.S. Department of Justice Civil Rights Division Special Litigation Section 950 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20530 Phone (202) 616-8547 Facsimile (202) 514-4883 Silvia.Dominguez@usdoj.gov

2

Case 3:03-cv-01354-HTW-JCS Document 160 Filed 09/16/10 Page 3 of 4 FOR THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI, ET AL.: JIM HOOD, ATTORNEY GENERAL BY: s/Shawn S. Shurden
SHAWN S. SHURDEN MS BAR NO. 99678 Special Assistant Attorney General Office of the Attorney General Post Office Box 220 Jackson, MS 39205 Phone (601) 359-3825 Facsimile (601) 359-2003 sshur@ago.state.ms.us
3

Case 3:03-cv-01354-HTW-JCS Document 160 Filed 09/16/10 Page 4 of 4
Certificate of Service I HEREBY CERTIFY that this 16th day of September, 2010, I electronically filed the foregoing with the Clerk of the Court using the CM/ECF system, which will simultaneously service notice of such filing to counsel of record to their registered electronic mail addresses.
s/Silvia J. Dominguez SILVIA J. DOMINGUEZ Trial Attorney U.S. Department of Justice Civil Rights Division Special Litigation Section 950 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20530 Phone (202) 616-8547 Facsimile (202) 353-3522 Silvia.Dominguez@usdoj.gov Attorney for Plaintiff
4

 
 Case 3:03-cv-01354-HTW-JCS Document 160-1 Filed 09/16/10 Page 1 of 17
State of Mississippi Action Plan
IV.A. (1) Protection From Harm. The State shall, at all times, provide youth in the facilities with reasonably safe living conditions. This provision is a global measure and is not amenable to the kind of problem analysis conducted to develop this Action Plan. It subsumes other provisions in this Agreement pertaining to:
• staff training (A. 11); • behavior management (A. 12); • staffing levels (A. 13); • admissions and orientation (A. 17); • classification (A. 19); • supervision of youth at risk of self‐harm (B. 23); and • notice to youth of rules, consequences and incentives (D.ii).
IV.A. (2) Protection From Abuse. The State shall ensure that youth are protected from violence and other physical or sexual abuse by staff and other youth. This provision is a global measure and is not amenable to the kind of problem analysis conducted to develop this Action Plan. It subsumes other provisions in this Agreement pertaining to:
• incident abusive practices (A.3); • undue restraints (A.6); • incident reporting (A.7); • health care inquiries regarding injury (A.8); • uses of force (A.9); • investigations (A.10); • isolation (A.14); • due process (A.15); • grievances (A.16); • employment practices (A.18); and • disciplinary accommodations for youth with disabilities (D.iii).
1.

Case 3:03-cv-01354-HTW-JCS Document 160-1 Filed 09/16/10 Page 2 of 17
IV.A. (3) Protection From Abusive Institutional Practices. The State shall ensure that abusive institutional practices such as hog‐typing, pole shackling, “sitting in a chair,” “guard duty,” making youth eat vomit, making youth run with tires around their bodies, or run with mattresses, cease immediately. Barriers to Compliance None. The State believes it is in substantial compliance with this provision. The Monitor will undertake her own review in November, 2010 and the Action Plan will be revised if additional steps toward compliance are needed.
[Note: Provisions IV.A. (4) and (5) are no longer applicable as both the Ironwood Unit and the Columbia Training School have been closed.]
IV.A. (6) Protection from Undue Restraints. The State shall ensure that youth are not subjected to unreasonable restraints and restraints are never used to punish youth. The State shall develop and implement policies, procedures and practices to ensure that only safe methods of restraint are used at the facilities, and only in those circumstances necessary for safety and security. Barriers to Compliance None. The State believes it is in substantial compliance with this provision. The Monitor will undertake her own review in November, 2010 and the Action Plan will be revised if additional steps toward compliance are needed.
2.

Case 3:03-cv-01354-HTW-JCS Document 160-1 Filed 09/16/10 Page 3 of 17

IV.A.(7) Reporting on Staff Misconduct and Other Serious Incidents. The State shall develop and implement appropriate policies, procedures and practices to ensure that all incidents of staff‐ on‐youth and youth‐on‐youth violence, inappropriate staff relationships with youth, and abusive institutional practices are reported to the appropriate individuals, and that such reporting may be done through confidential means, without fear of retaliation. The State shall ensure that all incidents are adequately documented and appropriately, and with sufficient detail, including the facts of the incident, any injury that occurred as a result of the incident, in a way that permits review.
Barriers to Compliance

The detail contained in Incident Reports (IRs) is currently not sufficient to ascertain the following important information:
• The number of staff present at the time of the incident and their position; • Staff’s use of verbal de‐escalation strategies, prior to resorting to physical restraint; and • Staff’s progression to more restrictive levels of physical restraint, and why increasing
levels of restraint were necessary. These shortcomings are particularly evident when the written IR is compared to the videotaped footage of the incident.

In part, the format of the IR form itself contributes to this problem. The form does not clearly specify the information to be included in staff’s narratives. Further, the current practice for responding staff to complete the entire IR form is unnecessary and also can provide conflicting information with regard to the type of incident and other information used for incident tracking.

Some of the JCWs do not have the skills needed to write high‐quality incident reports; others are simply apathetic. Staff receive training in IR writing during Orientation, but the training may not adequately reflect real‐world situations and some trainers may not be skilled at communicating this type of information. They do not receive any refresher training in IR writing.

Similarly, some of the shift supervisors, who are responsible for reviewing all IRs and ensuring their completeness, do not have the skills to review IRs and determine their sufficiency, or are hesitant to hold staff accountable for their mistakes. Shift Supervisors do not receive any special training to hone these skills, and until very recently (July 2010), supervision of these staff was ineffective.

Action Step

Due Date

1. Revise IR form to clarify the types of information staff should supply in the narrative.

August 1, 2010

2. Implement a simplified Staff Statement form (e.g., consisting only of prompts/lines for recording narrative statement) to eliminate the duplication of effort in recording other information pertinent to the incident. Ensure all responding staff complete a Staff Statement and attach them to the Incident Report.

October 1, 2010

3. Develop annual refresher training curriculum in IR writing.

November 1, 2010

3.

Case 3:03-cv-01354-HTW-JCS Document 160-1 Filed 09/16/10 Page 4 of 17

4. Assess skill of available trainers and select those with greatest ability to cater to the needs of staff to teach the IR course.
5. Provide refresher training to all staff on an annual basis.
6. Develop and implement on‐the‐job methods for developing IR writing skills among staff (e.g., group exercise during shift briefing utilizing videotaped incident, etc.)
7. Provide training in Progressive Discipline and Performance Appraisal Reviews (PAR) to Security Administrator, Director V, and JCW Shift Supervisors by MDHS Human Resources and DYS administration. [same as #13]
8. Once adequately trained, empower Shift Supervisors to use progressive discipline to hold JCWs accountable for poor performance. [same as #14]
9. Work with selected Shift Supervisors individually to develop skills in assessing IRs for quality. [same as #15]
10. Once adequately trained, empower Director V to use progressive discipline to hold Shift Supervisors accountable for poor performance. [same as #16]

November 1, 2010 January 1, 2011 January 1, 2011 January 1, 2011
January 1, 2011 December 1, 2010 March 1, 2011

IV. A. (8) Health Care Inquiries Regarding Injury. A nurse or other health care provider shall question, outside the hearing of other staff or youth if appropriate, each youth who reports to the infirmary with an injury. If in the course of the youth’s infirmary visits, a health care provider suspects staff‐on‐youth abuse, that health care provider shall immediately: a) take all appropriate steps to preserve evidence of the injury (e.g., photograph the injury and any other physical evidence); b) report the suspected abuse to the appropriate local officials; c) document adequately the matter in the youth’s medical chart; and d) complete an incident report.
Barriers to Compliance
None. The State believes it is in substantial compliance with this provision. The Monitor will undertake her own review in November, 2010 and the Action Plan will be revised if additional steps toward compliance are needed.

4.

Case 3:03-cv-01354-HTW-JCS Document 160-1 Filed 09/16/10 Page 5 of 17

IV.A. (9) Use of Force. The State shall develop and implement comprehensive policies, procedures and practices governing the use of force, ensuring the least amount of force necessary to protect the safety of staff, youth and visitors in used on youth.
Barriers to Compliance

Problems in this area are related to documentation rather than practice. A consultant to the State, David Roush, indicated that (assuming the facility’s data are valid) the frequency of the use of force is comparable to the national average calculated by the Performance Based Standards (PbS) project. As discussed in IV.A. (7), above, staff do not describe the full continuum of verbal de‐escalation and physical restraint that they employ, so it is difficult to discern whether the “least amount of force necessary” was used. When viewed on videotape, staff appear to limit the use of force appropriately and to attempt non‐physical intervention prior to using physical restraint; however, these details are not fully discussed in the IRs. Some staff do not have the skills to adequately document their uses of force, while others are simply apathetic. Some Shift Supervisors, who are responsible for reviewing and approving the IRs, either do not have the necessary skill to assess the adequacy of the use of force description, or are hesitant to hold staff accountable.

Action Step

Due Date

11. Identify staff in need of additional use of force training.

October 1, 2010

12. Complete staff training. (See IV.A. (7) for more detail).

January 1, 2010

13. Provide training in Progressive Discipline and Performance Appraisal Reviews (PAR) to Security Administrator, Director V, and JCW Shift Supervisors by MDHS Human Resources and DYS administration. [same as #7]

January 1, 2011

14. Once adequately trained, empower Shift Supervisors to use progressive discipline to hold JCWs accountable for poor performance. [same as #8]

January 1, 2011

15. Work with selected Shift Supervisors individually to develop skills December 1, 2010 in assessing IRs for quality. [same as #9]

16. Once adequately trained, empower Director V to use progressive discipline to hold Shift Supervisors accountable for poor performance. [same as #10]

March 1, 2011

5.

Case 3:03-cv-01354-HTW-JCS Document 160-1 Filed 09/16/10 Page 6 of 17
IV.A. (10) Investigations. The State shall develop and implement an adequate system for investigation by senior management to address incidents of force, alleged child abuse, youth‐ on‐youth violence, and alleged sexual conduct. Barriers to Compliance None. The State believes it is in substantial compliance with this provision. The Monitor will undertake her own review in November, 2010 and the Action Plan will be revised if additional steps toward compliance are needed.

IV.A. (11) Staff Training in Behavior Management, De‐Escalation and Crisis Intervention. The facility shall provide appropriate competency‐based training to staff in behavior management, de‐escalation techniques, appropriate communication with youth, and crisis intervention before staff may work in direct contact with youth.
Barriers to Compliance

All staff receive training in the required topics during their Orientation training but do not receive any annual refresher training.

Action Step

Due Date

17. Develop annual refresher training curriculum in behavior management, de‐escalation and crisis intervention.

November 1, 2010

18. Complete refresher training to all staff on an annual basis. [links March 1, 2011 with #23]

6.

Case 3:03-cv-01354-HTW-JCS Document 160-1 Filed 09/16/10 Page 7 of 17

IV.A. (12) Behavior Management Program. The State shall develop and implement an effective behavior management program. The behavior management program shall be implemented throughout the day including during school time. The State shall develop and implement policies, procedures and practices to ensure that mental health staff provide regular consultation regarding behavior management to custody and other staff involved in the behavior management program, and shall develop a mechanism to assess the effectiveness of the interventions utilized.
Barriers to Compliance

Although the facility has developed an incentive program wherein youth are able to earn points when they exhibit appropriate behavior, the program is currently limited in the frequency and variety of incentives that are available to youth. Other than the opportunity to purchase items from the commissary one time per week, the incentive program does not provide any additional incentives that can be earned or purchased. Although the youth’s performance in the program is discussed at Treatment Team meetings (which provides an opportunity for the mental health consultation required by this provision), the program design is not sufficiently robust to provide the frequency or array of reinforces to create lasting behavior change.

Staff writes IRs for minor misbehavior that could be most effectively handled through the Incentive Program. Not only is the practice of “writing a student up” potentially threatening and likely to escalate the situation, it also is at odds with the incentive program that was designed to address these very types of behavior.

Further, although staff receive training in behavior management and appropriate interactions with youth during Orientation training, these lessons are not well translated into practice for some staff. Some staff do not believe that the incentive program will be effective, or have otherwise failed to buy‐in to the rehabilitative model.

Action Step

Due Date

19. Develop a campus wide level system that addresses the youth’s need for structure, monitoring/surveillance, and individual behavior modification while providing opportunities for increasing privileges and self‐management based on the youth’s achieving and maintaining behavior change goals as determined by the treatment team.

November 1, 2010

20. Develop criteria for level change based on sustained progress toward behavior change goals as measured by objective indicators and/or documentation of significant incidents requiring behavior management isolation, due process isolation, another disciplinary action, or environmental intervention.

December 1, 2010

21. Develop policies, procedures, protocols, forms, and quality assurance indicators for the campus wide level system.

December 1, 2010

22. Modify existing policies affected by the implementation of a January 1, 2010

7.

Case 3:03-cv-01354-HTW-JCS Document 160-1 Filed 09/16/10 Page 8 of 17

campus wide level system. [also step #42]

23. Complete training for all staff and implement campus wide

March 1, 2011

level system with monitoring of all indicators. [links with #18]

24. Implement campus wide level system.

March 1, 2011

25. Continue to expand range of material rewards with youth

August 1, 2010

input to enrich the behavior incentive system, and revised with

student input periodically.

26. Expand range of activity rewards with youth input to enrich the October 1, 2010 behavior incentive system.

27. Link existing behavior incentive system and proposed level system; differentiating rewards and privileges, clarifying disciplinary actions (e.g., response costs and level changes). [also step #43]

January 1, 2010

28. Update the current student handbook to represent the current October 1, 2010 behavior incentive system.

29. Update the student handbook to reflect the integration of the March 1, 2011 campus wide level system and the enriched behavior incentive system. Orient students on changes.

30. Conduct a review of student evaluations of staff to identify possible training needs for all aspects of behavior management.

May 1, 2011

31. Conduct a review of grievances to identify possible training needs for all aspects of behavior management.

May 1, 2011

32. Monitor compliance with the campus wide level system and behavior incentive system and strengthen performance through coaching and on the spot corrections in unit management and transport.

March 1, 2011

8.

Case 3:03-cv-01354-HTW-JCS Document 160-1 Filed 09/16/10 Page 9 of 17

IV.A. (13) Staffing. The State shall ensure that there are sufficient numbers of adequately trained direct care and supervisory staff to supervise youth safely, protect youth from harm, and allow youth reasonable access to medical and mental health services, and adequate time spent in out‐of‐cell activities.
Barriers to Compliance
Although the facility has relatively few vacant JCW positions, the number of staff who call‐ins to from their assigned shifts creates a challenge to meeting the requirements of this provision. Staff reportedly call in because they want weekend days off, or because they have a family activity or other engagement that conflicts with their work schedule. Some staff abuse the sick leave policy or provide other reasons for their failure to report to work that do not appear to be legitimate. Historically, staff have not been held accountable for their attendance problems.

Action Step

Due Date

33. Develop and implement rotating schedule to ensure that staff have at least one weekend day off each week

August 1, 2010

34. Even out shift schedules for each day of the week to help eliminate September 1,

ratio problems on weekend days.

2010

35. Develop and implement an Exchange Shift form so that staff may seek coverage for days they want to take off in advance, without having to resort to a same‐day call in.

August 1, 2010

36. Revise and implement Staff Attendance and Tardiness policy to be more in line with those of other public safety organizations (i.e., more closely inspect the reasons underlying staff call‐ins).

January 1, 2011

IV.A. (14) Isolation. The State shall develop and implement policies, procedures, and practices to ensure that isolation, lockdown, seclusion and other similar restrictions are used only when appropriate, in an appropriate manner and to document fully the use of isolation. The State shall immediately cease requiring youth to strip and remain naked while in isolation. Barriers to Compliance
One barrier to the State’s ability to demonstrate compliance with this provision is the inadequacy of the data used to track practices related to isolation. For example:
• Data pulled from the IRs on “Behavior Management Isolation” may include a range of actions that do not actually include isolation (e.g., separating two youth by placing them in chairs on opposite sides of the day room; giving the youth a time‐out in his room when the door remains open). This practice artificially inflates the number of BMI episodes and prevents an accurate accounting of its use.
9.

Case 3:03-cv-01354-HTW-JCS Document 160-1 Filed 09/16/10 Page 10 of 17

• The distinction between BMI and Pre‐Hearing Confinement (PHC) is not always clear, and thus data collection practices are not consistent. Greater clarity in policy and data collection is needed for the State to be able to demonstrate that PHC is used when the youth is a) out of control or b) accused of a very serious rule violation (e.g., assault with injury; escape; etc.); AND c) pending a disciplinary hearing. In the past, situations like these may have been labeled BMI, which would both inflate the BMI statistics and deflate the PHC statistics.

Further, while youth in isolation receive recreation and education each day, the policy does not currently include any specific requirements for the delivery of mental health services while the youth is in isolation. While isolation can effectively suppress unwanted behaviors in the short term, absent constructive interaction with mental health staff about the incident, youth in isolation are unlikely to change their behavior over the long term.

Past history suggested that youth on the mental health caseload are disproportionately represented among youth in isolation. The facility does not regularly track this data and thus the extent to which this is true cannot be monitored.

Action Step

Due Date

37. Clearly delineate the situations in which the Behavior Management Isolation (BMI) label is to be applied to ensure that an accurate record of the frequency of BMI usage is produced. [if the true frequency of BMI appears excessive (i.e., it is used in response to non‐serious infractions), additional action steps will be developed.]

February 1, 2011

38. Clearly delineate the situations under which isolation is to be labeled Pre‐Hearing Confinement (PHC), rather than BMI, so that accurate data regarding its use can be produced. [if the true use of PHC appears in conflict with policy, additional action steps will be developed.]

February 1, 2011

39. Implement contact standards for mental health professionals with September 1,

youth who are in any type of isolation.

2010

40. Develop a mechanism and begin to track the proportion of BMI, PHC and DPI that involve youth on the mental health caseload to determine the extent to which they may be over‐represented. [if they are, additional action steps will be developed]

February 1, 2011

10.

Case 3:03-cv-01354-HTW-JCS Document 160-1 Filed 09/16/10 Page 11 of 17
IV.A. (15) Due Process. The State shall ensure that youth confined for more than 24 hours receive an appropriate due process hearing by an impartial supervisory staff member to determine whether cause exists for continued disciplinary confinement. Barriers to Compliance None. The State believes it is in substantial compliance with this provision. The Monitor will undertake her own review in November, 2010 and the Action Plan will be revised if additional steps toward compliance are needed.
IV.A. (16) Grievances. The State shall develop and implement policies, procedures and practices to ensure that the facility has an adequate grievance system. Barriers to Compliance None. The State believes it is in substantial compliance with this provision. The Monitor will undertake her own review in November, 2010 and the Action Plan will be revised if additional steps toward compliance are needed.
11.

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IV.A. (17) Admissions Intake and Orientation. The State shall develop and implement policies, procedures and practices to establish a consistent and orderly admissions intake system conductive to gathering necessary information about youth, dissemination of information to staff providing services and care for youth and maintaining their safety. Each youth entering the institution shall receive an effective orientation that shall include simple directions for reporting abuse, and assure youth of their right to be protected from harm and from retaliation for reporting allegations of abuse. The orientation shall also clearly set forth the rules youth must follow at the institution, explain how to access medical and mental health care and the grievance system and provide other information pertinent to the youth’s participation in institutional programs. Barriers to Compliance None. The State believes it is in substantial compliance with this provision. The Monitor will undertake her own review in November, 2010 and the Action Plan will be revised if additional steps toward compliance are needed.
IV.A. (18) Employment Practices. The State shall ensure that only individuals fit to work with youth residents are employed at the institution. The State shall utilize reasonable measures to determine applicants’ fitness to work in a juvenile justice institution prior to hiring employees for positions at the facility. Within 120 days of the Effective Date of this Agreement, the State shall conduct a criminal record check of all current employees at the facility, taking appropriate action when new information is obtained. Every two years thereafter, the State shall update records checks for all employees who come into contact with youth. Barriers to Compliance None. The State believes it is in substantial compliance with this provision. The Monitor will undertake her own review in November, 2010 and the Action Plan will be revised if additional steps toward compliance are needed.
12.

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IV.A. (19) Classification. The State shall develop and implement a classification system that places youth appropriately and safely within the institution and provides for reclassification in appropriate circumstances.
Barriers to Compliance

The current Rank & Placement policy does not reflect the current structure of the facility (e.g., “rank” is a throwback to the boot camp program; the minimum security unit in the facility is now closed, leaving only medium security units).

Further, the Rank & Placement process for reclassifying youth does not mesh well with the Behavior Incentive program.

Youth who exhibit highly assaultive behavior while in custody may be classified into the Behavior Management Unit (BMU). On occasion, a youth is admitted to the facility who has a demonstrated propensity for very serious violence, and for whom an immediate placement in the BMU may be appropriate. Policy does not currently provide for such admissions.

Action Step

Due Date

41. Revise, rename and implement the Rank & Placement policy (to Classification policy) to reflect the facility’s current configuration and mission.

January 1, 2011

42. Modify existing policies affected by the implementation of a campus wide Classification system. [also step #22]

January 1, 2010

43. Link exiting behavior incentive system and proposed level system; differentiating rewards and privileges, clarifying disciplinary actions (e.g., response costs and level changes). [also step #27]

January 1, 2010

44. Revise the BMU policy to provide for an administrative override to admit a youth upon intake. This option should be used very rarely and only in response to youth with an extreme propensity for violence.

January 1, 2010

13.

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IV.B. (23) Supervision of Youth at Risk of Self‐Harm. The State shall ensure that newly‐arrived youth, youth in isolation or seclusion and other youth at heightened risk of self‐harm are sufficiently supervised to maintain their safety.
Barriers to Compliance

Some of the staff tasked with supervising youth during the overnight hours have not complied with policy. Occasionally, staff on 3rd shift have been observed sleeping while on duty. Some staff have attempted to implement the required supervision practices, but have not made the observations at the required intervals. Although problems are not pervasive, given the serious nature of the behaviors this provision is designed to prevent, continued vigilance is necessary.

Action Step

Due Date

45. Increase the number of individuals who have access to the server where videotaped footage is stored to increase the frequency of videotape review.

October 1, 2010

46. Review videotaped footage of overnight shifts and other periods of August 1, 2010 time when youth were on suicide precautions to ensure that staff are conducting safety checks as required.

47. Increase the number of Shift Supervisors on 3rd Shift to ensure that August 1, 2010 2 supervisors are on duty every night of the week.

48. Increase the frequency with which Shift Supervisors make rounds during 3rd Shift to ensure that all staff are alert and conducting
checks as required.

August 1, 2010

49. Continue to implement progressive discipline as needed in response to staff non‐compliance with policies related to supervising youth.

August 1, 2010

14.

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IV.D. (i) Transition Planning. The State shall ensure that staff create transition plans for youth leaving the facility. Plans shall include providing the youth and his or her parents or guardian with information regarding mental health resources available in the youth’s home community; making referrals to such services when appropriate; making initial appointments with community service providers; and supplying appropriate psychiatric medications upon release from the facility. Beyond these requirements, nothing in this MOA shall make the Defendants responsible for providing mental health services to youth no longer residing in the facility.
Barriers to Compliance

The Transition Policy is insufficient in that it does not clearly delineate the individuals responsible for the various tasks involved in preparing a youth for release from the facility. Further, the role of the Transition Coordinator is not well articulated.

Currently, all of the major departments (Mental Health, Medical and Education) are required to submit transition plans in their disciplines for each youth, two weeks prior to his or her departure from the facility. This two‐week timeline is impractical given that service provision has often not yet concluded for youth at this time (e.g., they are still taking courses in school; the psychiatrist is still monitoring medications). Further, the current process is for the Transition Plan to be developed as the youth’s final Service Plan during a Treatment Team meeting. Scheduling the Treatment Team meetings so that the psychiatrists may attend is very difficult given the psychiatrists’ conflicting priorities of transition planning, seeing their current patients, and participating in Treatment Team meetings. Psychiatrists may not have enough hours allocated to them to meet all of these requirements.

The Transition Coordinator is currently responsible for creating the Transition Plan and often takes on the task of calling to schedule appointments or to make other community contacts on behalf of youth preparing to leave Oakley. As a result, the workload may be excessive for a single person.

Action Step

Due Date

50. Revise the Transition policy to clarify the process and to clearly delineate the responsibilities of each person involved in transition planning. Clarify the role of the Transition Coordinator.

November 1, 2010

51. Decentralize the transition planning process, allowing each department to develop and submit its own plan to the Transition Coordinator just prior to the youth’s release from the facility.

December 1, 2010

52. Develop criteria and conduct audits to verify that Institution counselors contacted community counselors and complete transition packages have been distributed and received by community counselors.

March 1, 2011

53. Assess whether the psychiatrists have sufficient time available in initial and final transition planning during multidisciplinary treatment team meetings. Revise psychiatrists’ priorities or add time to psychiatrists’ contracts, if needed.

October 1, 2010

15.

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IV.D. (iii) Disciplinary Process and Accommodations for Youth with Disabilities. The State shall develop and implement policies and procedures to make reasonable accommodations in its disciplinary processes for youth with mental disabilities. Whenever a youth with a mental disability is engaged in the disciplinary process, a qualified mental health professional shall be consulted to ensure that the accommodation is reasonable for that youth.
Barriers to Compliance

As discussed in the provision related to Isolation (IV.A.(14)), the types of isolation used in the disciplinary process are not well distinguished. As a result, the point at which accommodations must be made for youth with mental illnesses is currently unclear (e.g., consultation may not take place for a youth on PHC if staff inappropriately categorized him or her as being on BMI).

While QMHPs are contacted for youth engaged in disciplinary hearings, formal guidelines for the substance of these consultations have not been established. Given that the QMHP is consulted by phone on the weekends, the quality of the QMHPs assessment of the appropriateness of isolation for a given youth depends on their verbal exchange with the direct care staff on‐site.

Action Step

Due Date

54. Clarify the points in the disciplinary process at which mental health February 1, 2010 consultation is required.

55. Develop guidelines for the substance of these assessments, particularly when the QMHP is providing consultation by phone.

February 1, 2010

16.

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V (39) Quality Assurance Programs. The State shall develop and implement Quality Assurance programs consistent with generally accepted professional practices for each discipline addressed in the Consent Decree.
Barriers to Compliance

The Quality Assurance process has yet to be applied to the provisions related to protection from harm. While a checklist has been devised, it does not include auditing tools for specific documents. Further, some of the mental health QA standards are still under development.

Action Step

Due Date

56. Develop audit tools for individual documents/IRs/records/etc. so that global conclusions can be clearly supported by underlying data.

March 1, 2011

57. Finalize remaining mental health standards and audit tools.

April 1, 2011

58. Conduct internal audits of facility operations at least semi‐ annually. Discuss findings in a written report that is submitted to the Facility Superintendent, DYS and MDHS administrators.

May 1, 2011

59. Identify and contract with outside entities who are qualified and August 1, 2011 trained to conduct external audits at least annually. Conduct initial audit.

V (40) Corrective Action Plans. For each discipline addressed in the Consent Decree, the State shall develop and implement policies and procedures to address problems that are uncovered during the course of quality assurance activities. The State shall develop and implement corrective action plans to address these problems in such a manner as to prevent them from occurring again in the future.
Barriers to Compliance

Because quality assurance audits have not been completed in several key areas, formal corrective action plans have yet to be completed.

Action Step

Due Date

60. Develop format, template, procedures, etc. to address deficits noted by QA audits (both internal and external).

April 1, 2011

61. Complete CAP within a timely manner following both internal and June 1, 2011 external audits.

62. Assess and document progress in meeting the requirements of the July 1, 2011 CAP on a regular basis (e.g., monthly).

17.

 
 Case 3:03-cv-01354-HTW-JCS Document 173 Filed 09/27/13 Page 1 of 6

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF MISSISSIPPI
JACKSON DIVISION
THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

PLAINTIFF

vs.

CIVIL ACTION NO.: 3:03CV1354HTW

THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI, ET AL.

DEFENDANTS

AGREED ORDER TERMINATING SPECIFIC PROVISIONS OF THE AMENDED CONSENT DECREE
In 2005, this Court approved and entered as its Order a consent decree (“Agreement”)(Dkt. #119, 120, May 31, 2005) requiring the State of Mississippi, et al. (the “State”) to implement certain measures to address unconstitutional conditions at the Oakley Training School (“Oakley”) and the Columbia Training School (“Columbia”).1 On February 26, 2008, this Court approved and entered an amendment to the Agreement that included, inter alia, an extension of the termination date of the Agreement to May 31, 2010 and the appointment of three monitors to oversee the Agreement. (Dkt.#135.) On April 30, 2008, this Court approved and entered as an order the Action Plan for suicide prevention. (Dkt. #141.) On July 10, 2008, this Court approved and entered as an order the Action Plan for protection from harm. (Dkt. #144.) On June 21, 2010, this Court entered an Order to Amend Consent Decree. (Dkt. #158.) The Amended Consent Decree essentially addressed the following:
a) dismissal of Paragraphs 20-22, 24-28, and 29-36; b) the addition of three (3) paragraphs to a new subsection IV.D.
concerning mental health care and rehabilitative services;

1Columbia Training School was closed in June 2008, and female youths are currently housed at Oakley.

Case 3:03-cv-01354-HTW-JCS Document 173 Filed 09/27/13 Page 2 of 6
c) the amendment of Paragraph 38 to require the State to develop a comprehensive action plan for the substantive remedial areas of the Agreement - protection from harm, suicide prevention, and mental health care and rehabilitative services; and Paragraphs 39-40 regarding quality assurance corrective action plans;
d) the appointment of Kelly Dedel, Ph.D. to monitor the remaining provisions of the Agreement; and
e) the modification of Paragraph 59, the termination provision.
Paragraph 59 of the Amended Consent Decree provides:
(59) Termination: This Agreement shall terminate when the State is in substantial compliance with each provision of this Agreement and has maintained such substantial compliance for a period of six (6) months. However, nothing herein shall be deemed to waive any rights or protections under the Prison Litigation Reform Act, 18 U.S.C. §3626.
a. The parties shall request a status conference with the court every six (6) months to apprise the court of the status of the State’s efforts at compliance with this Agreement until termination of this Agreement.
b. The burden shall be on the State to demonstrate this level of compliance.
c. There are four (4) substantive sections of this Agreement - protection from harm, suicide prevention, medical and dental care, and mental health care and rehabilitative services. A section of the Agreement may be terminated if the State sustains its burden with respect to that section of the Agreement.
d. Noncompliance with mere technicalities, or temporary failure to comply during a period of otherwise sustained compliance will not constitute failure to maintain substantial compliance. At the same time, temporary compliance during a period of sustained noncompliance shall not constitute substantial compliance.
At this time, all parties, as well as, the court appointed monitor are in agreement that the State
has met its burden of substantial compliance for a sustained period of six (6) months with regards to

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Subsections IV.A through IV.D and that the following provisions are ripe for dismissal in accordance
with Paragraph 59:
SUBSECTION IV.A. PROTECTION FROM HARM
(1) Protection from Harm: The State shall, at all times, provide youth in the facilities with reasonably safe living conditions.
(2) Protection from Abuse: The State shall ensure that youth are protected from violence and other physical or sexual abuse by staff and other youth.
(3) Protection from Abusive Institutional Practices: The State shall ensure that abusive institutional practices such as hog-tying, pole shackling, “sitting in a chair,” “guard duty,” making youth eat vomit, making youth run with tires around their bodies, or run with mattresses, cease immediately.
(6) Protection from Undue Restraints: The State shall ensure that youth are not subjected to unreasonable restraints and that restraints are never used to punish youth. The State shall develop and implement policies, procedures and practices to ensure that only safe methods of restraint are used at the facilities, and only in those circumstances necessary for safety and security.
(7) Reporting of Staff Misconduct and Other Serious Incidents: The State shall develop and implement appropriate policies, procedures, and practices to ensure that all incidents of staff-on-youth and youth-on-youth violence, inappropriate staff relationships with youth, and abusive institutional practices are reported to appropriate individuals, and that such reporting may be done through confidential means, without fear of retaliation. The State shall ensure that all incidents are adequately documented and reported appropriately and with sufficient detail, including the facts of the incident, any injury that occurred as a result of the incident, and in a way that permits review.
(8) Health Care Inquiries Regarding Injury: A nurse or other health care provider shall question, outside the hearing of other staff or youth if appropriate, each youth who reports to the infirmary with an injury, regarding the cause of the injury. If, in the course of the youth’s infirmary visit, a health care provider suspects staff-on-youth abuse, that health care provider shall immediately:
a. take all appropriate steps to preserve evidence of the injury (e.g., photograph the injury and any other physical evidence);
b. report the suspected abuse to the appropriate local officials;

Case 3:03-cv-01354-HTW-JCS Document 173 Filed 09/27/13 Page 4 of 6
c. document adequately the matter in the youth’s medical record; and
d. complete an incident report.
(9) Uses of Force: The State shall develop and implement comprehensive policies, procedures and practices governing uses of force, ensuring that the least amount of force necessary for the safety of staff, youth residents, and visitors is used on youth.
(10) Investigations: The State shall develop and implement an adequate system for investigation by senior management of uses of force, alleged child abuse, youth-on-youth violence, and alleged sexual contacts.
(11) Staff Training in Behavior Management, De-Escalation and Crisis Intervention: The facilities shall provide appropriate competency-based training to staff in behavior management, de-escalation techniques, appropriate communication with youth, and crisis intervention before staff may work in direct contact with youth.
(12) Behavior Management Program: The State shall develop and implement an effective behavior management program. The behavior management program shall be implemented throughout the day including during school time. The State shall develop and implement policies, procedures, and practices to ensure that mental health staff provide regular consultation regarding behavior management to custody and other staff involved in the behavior management program, and shall develop a mechanism to assess the effectiveness of interventions utilized.
(13) Staffing: The State shall ensure that there are sufficient numbers of adequately trained direct care and supervisory staff to supervise youth safely, protect youth from harm, and allow youth reasonable access to medical and mental health services, and adequate time spent in out-of-cell activities.
(14) Isolation: The Sate shall develop and implement policies, procedures and practices to ensure that isolation, lockdown, seclusion and other similar restrictions are used only when appropriate and in an appropriate manner, and to document fully the use of isolation. The State shall immediately cease requiring youth to strip and remain naked while in isolation.
(15) Due Process: The State shall ensure that youths confined for more than 24 hours receive an appropriate due process hearing by an impartial supervisory staff member to determine whether cause exists for continued disciplinary confinement.

Case 3:03-cv-01354-HTW-JCS Document 173 Filed 09/27/13 Page 5 of 6
(16) Grievances: The State shall develop and implement policies, procedures, and practices to ensure that the facilities have an adequate grievance system.
(17) Admissions Intake and Orientation: The State shall develop and implement policies, procedures, and practices to establish a consistent, orderly admissions intake system, conducive to gathering necessary information about youth, disseminating information to staff providing services and care for youth, and maintaining their safety. Each youth entering the facility shall receive an effective orientation that shall include simple directions for reporting abuse, and assure youth of their right to be protected from harm and from retaliation for reporting allegations of abuse. Orientation shall also clearly set forth the rules youth must follow at the facility, explain how to access medical and mental health care and the grievance system, and provide other information pertinent to the youth’s participation in facility programs.
(18) Employment Practices: The State shall ensure that only individuals fit to work with youth residents are employed at the institutions. The State shall utilize reasonable measures to determine applicants’ fitness to work in a juvenile justice facility prior to hiring employees for positions at the facilities. Within 120 days of the Effective Date of this Agreement, the State shall conduct a criminal record check for all current employees at the facilities, taking appropriate actions where new information is obtained. Every two years thereafter, the State shall update record checks for all employees who come into contact with youth.
(19) Classification: The State shall develop and implement a classification system that places youth appropriately and safely within the facility, and provides for reclassification in appropriate circumstances.
SUBSECTION IV.B. SUICIDE PREVENTION
(23) Supervision of Youth at Risk of Self-Harm: The State shall ensure that newlyarrived youth, youth in isolation or seclusion, and other youth at heightened risk of self-harm are sufficiently supervised to maintain their safety.
SUBSECTION IV.D. MENTAL HEALTH CARE AND REHABILITATIVE SERVICES
(I.) Transition Planning: The State shall ensure that staff create transition plans for youth leaving the facilities. Plans shall include providing the youth and his or her parents or guardian with information regarding mental health resources available in the youth’s home community; making referrals to such services when appropriate; making initial appointments with community service providers; and supplying appropriate psychiatric medications upon release from the facilities. Beyond these requirements, nothing in this Agreement shall

Case 3:03-cv-01354-HTW-JCS Document 173 Filed 09/27/13 Page 6 of 6
make the Defendants responsible for providing mental health services to youth no longer residing at the facilities.
(ii.) Notice to Youth of Facility Rules and Incentives/Consequences for Compliance: The State shall explain the facility rules and the positive incentives for compliance as well as the sanctions for violating those rules to each youth during an orientation session. The State shall also explain to all youth during an orientation session the behavior management program and the positive incentives for good behavior, as well as disciplinary measures for misbehavior. The rules for all programs should be posted conspicuously in facility living units.
(iii.) Disciplinary Process and Accommodations for Youth with Disabilities: The State shall develop and implement policies and procedures to make reasonable accommodations in its disciplinary processes for youth with mental disabilities. Whenever a youth with a mental disability is engaged in the disciplinary process, a qualified mental health professional shall be consulted to ensure that the accommodation is reasonable for that youth.
IT IS THEREFORE ORDERED, ADJUDGED AND DECREED that the State has met its
burden of remaining in substantial compliance for a period of six (6) months with regards to all
remaining provisions in Subsections IV.A, IV.B and IV.D.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED, ADJUDGED AND DECREED that said provisions shall be
and are hereby dismissed. All remaining provisions of the Amended Consent Decree that do not
conflict with this Order, including but not limited to Section V (Compliance and Quality Assurance),
shall remain in full force and effect.
SO ORDERED this the 27th day of September, 2013.
s/ HENRY T. WINGATE HENRY T. WINGATE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

 
 Memorandum of Agreement Between the U.S. and the State of Mississippi

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Memorandum of Agreement Between
the United States and
the State of Mississippi

TABLE OF CONTENTS I. INTRODUCTION II. DEFINITIONS III. CARE REQUIRED BY THE CONSTITUTION AND FEDERAL STATUTES IV. SUBSTANTIVE REMEDIAL MEASURES
A. MENTAL HEALTH CARE AND REHABILITATIVE SERVICES B. SPECIAL EDUCATION V. COMPLIANCE AND QUALITY ASSURANCE VI. MONITORING AND ENFORCEMENT VII. REPORTING REQUIREMENTS AND RIGHT OF ACCESS VIII. IMPLEMENTATION AND TERMINATION

I. INTRODUCTION
(A) This Memorandum of Agreement("MOA") resolves litigation concerning the mental health, rehabilitation, education, and special education claims in United States v. Mississippi, Civ. 3:03-cv-1354WSu (S.D. Miss.). A separate settlement agreement between the parties, that the parties will seek to have the Court enter as a Consent Decree, addresses the protection from harm and medical care claims in that same case. This litigation concerns conditions of confinement at the Oakley Training School ("Oakley") in Raymond, Mississippi and the Columbia Training School ("Columbia") in Columbia, Mississippi, and was brought pursuant to the Violent Crime Control and Law

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Enforcement Act of 1994, 42 U.S.C. § 14141 ("Section 14141").
(B) In order to resolve the mental health, rehabilitation, education, and special education claims in this litigation, the parties have entered into this MOA, which, if complied with by the State within the time frames specified below, will result in the dismissal of these claims from this lawsuit.
(C) The terms of this MOA shall apply to Oakley and Columbia and to any other residential secure care facility operated by or under contract with the Division of Youth Services to which the State may transfer youth from Oakley or Columbia during the life of this MOA.
(D) The State of Mississippi enters into this MOA because it is firmly committed to providing legally adequate conditions at Oakley and Columbia, by instituting the remedial measures required by this MOA.
(E) This MOA does not constitute an admission of liability by the State.
(F) The Court has jurisdiction over this action pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1331, 28 U.S.C. § 1345, and 42 U.S.C. § 14141. Venue is proper in this district pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1391 (b).
(G) Defendants in this action are the State of Mississippi, and the Mississippi Department of Human Services, and their successors, contractors and agents. The State of Mississippi shall ensure that all State agencies take any actions necessary to comply with the provisions of this MOA.
(H) This MOA is not intended to have any preclusive effect except between the parties. Should the issue of the preclusive effect of this MOA be raised in any proceeding other than this civil action, the parties agree to certify that this MOA was intended to have no such preclusive effect.
(I) This MOA and the Consent Decree shall not be used against the State in any proceeding other than a proceeding between the United States and the State of Mississippi.
(J) Nothing in this MOA or the Consent Decree shall prevent the State from modifying or closing Oakley or Columbia, or developing alternative community placements for the youth currently in the facilities.
(K) No person or entity is intended to be a third-party beneficiary of the provisions of this MOA or the Consent Decree for purposes of any civil, criminal, or administrative action, and accordingly, no person or entity may assert any claim or right as a beneficiary or protected class under these agreements. These agreements are not intended to impair or expand the right of any person or organization to seek relief against the State, Division or its officials, employees, or agents for their conduct or the conduct of Division employees; accordingly, they do not alter legal standards governing any such claims, including those under Mississippi law.

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II. DEFINITIONS
In this MOA, the following definitions apply:
(L) "Columbia" means the Columbia Training School located at 1730 Highway 44, Columbia, Mississippi, and any facility that is built to replace or supplement Columbia.
(M) "Division" means the Division of Youth Services within the Mississippi Department of Human Services that oversees the safety, treatment, and rehabilitation of juveniles residing at Oakley and Columbia.
(N) "DOJ" means the United States Department of Justice, which represents the United States in this matter.
(O) The term "IEP" shall mean an Individual Education Plan as defined by the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), 20 U.S.C. § 1400 et seq., and the regulations promulgated thereunder.
(P) "Effective Date" means the date the MOA is filed with the Court.
(Q) "Implement" means to give practical effect and ensure that the provision is working as intended and actually fulfilled by concrete measures, including appropriate training of relevant staff.
(R) "Include" or "including" means "include, but not be limited to" or "including, but not limited to."
(S) "Oakley" means the Oakley Training School, which is also known as the Mississippi Youth Correctional Complex, and is located at 2375 Oakley Road, Raymond, Mississippi, and any facility that is built to replace or supplement Oakley.
(T) "Qualified medical professional" means a physician, nurse or other medical provider licensed in Mississippi and sufficiently trained to provide the services he or she undertakes to provide.
(U) "Qualified mental health professional" means a mental health care provider licensed in Mississippi and sufficiently trained to provide the services he or she undertakes to provide.
(V) "Quality Assurance Program" means a system of self-auditing and improvement to assess the implementation and effectiveness of all remedies instituted pursuant to this MOA, to identify deficits that may exist, and to effectuate new measures to cure deficits identified.
(W) "Rehabilitative Services" means programming and treatment provided to all youth in the facilities. For each youth, programming and treatment shall be suitable to the youth's particular needs and shall address the underlying causes for the youth's confinement in the facility.

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(X) "Restraints" means any chemical or mechanical device, including OC spray, used to control the behavior of a youth.
(Y) "Serious mental illness" means youth who, if properly diagnosed, would be diagnosed with the following disorders: psychoses, schizophrenia, bipolar with psychotic features, depression with psychotic features, severe post-traumatic stress disorder, and schizoaffective disorders.
(Z) "SIU" means the Special Intervention Units at Oakley and the Cleveland and McGehee cottages at Columbia, designed for youth with behavioral and disciplinary problems and youth who are suicidal.
(AA) "State" means the Defendants as described in paragraph G above.
(BB) "Suicide Precautions" means any level of watch, observation or measures to prevent self-harm.
(CC) "The facilities" means Oakley and Columbia, collectively, and any residential secure facilities operated by or under contract with the Division of Youth Services.
(DD) "Train," means sufficiently instruct in the skills addressed, including ongoing assessment or mastery of instructional material.
(EE) "Youth" means any juvenile or juvenilescommitted by a court to and residing at the facilities during the operation of this MOA.
III. CARE REQUIRED BY THE CONSTITUTION AND FEDERAL STATUTES
The purpose of this MOA is to protect some of the constitutional and federal statutory rights of juveniles committed to Oakley and Columbia. The terms and requirements of this MOA shall be interpreted to be consistent with the remedial measures necessary to protect these rights of the juveniles.
IV. SUBSTANTIVE REMEDIAL MEASURES
A. MENTAL HEALTH CARE AND REHABILITATIVE SERVICES
(1) Appropriate Care The State shall provide adequate mental health care and adequate rehabilitative servicesto youth in the facilities.
(2) Adequate Treatment The State shall develop and implement policies, procedures, protocols, and practices to ensure that adequate mental health and substance abuse care and treatment services (including timely emergency services) are provided by qualified mental health professionals utilizing evidence-based, generally accepted treatment approaches.
(3) Establishment of Director of Program Services The State shall designate a Director of Program Services to oversee the mental health care and rehabilitative treatment of youth at the facilities. The State shall provide the

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Director with sufficient staff and resources to perform the tasks required by this MOA, including:
a. Develop and implement policies and procedures that will ensure adequate mental health care and rehabilitative services;
b. Develop and implement an adequate training program to ensure the adequate implementation of mental health care and rehabilitative services;
c. Ensure that youth receive the care they need by developing and implementing an adequate quality assurance program;
d. Oversee the mental health care and rehabilitative services including monitoring the performance of psychologists, counselors, and psychiatrists; and
e. Monitor whether staffing and resources are sufficient to provide adequate mental health care and rehabilitative services to the facilities' youth and to ensure compliance with this MOA.
(4) Admissions Consultation and Referral The State shall transfer promptly youth with serious mental illness to appropriate settings that meet their needs. The State shall ensure that qualified mental health professionals are readily available for timely consultations regarding admissions decisions. Youth who need immediate mental health services but do not need to be transported out of the facilities shall receive such services by qualified mental health professionals.
(5) Mental Health Screening The State shall develop and implement policies, procedures, and practices to ensure that all youth admitted to the facilities are comprehensively screened by qualified mental health professionals in a timely manner utilizing reliable and valid measures. When no such professional is onsite to conduct the screening, it shall be conducted by another staff member who has received specific training in conducting such assessments. In such a case, the staff member shall, as soon as is practicable, then contact the mental health professional and confer.
(6) Immediate Referral to a Qualified Mental Health Professional If the mental health screen identifies an issue that places the youth's safety at immediate risk, the youth shall be immediately referred to a qualified mental health treatment professional for assessment, treatment, and any other appropriate action, such as transfer to another, more appropriate setting.
(7) Mental Health Assessment The State shall ensure that youth whose mental health screens indicate the possible need for mental health services receive timely, comprehensive and appropriate assessments by qualified mental health professionals. Assessments shall be updated as new diagnostic and treatment information becomes available.

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(8) Referral to a Qualified Mental Health Provider The State shall develop and implement policies and procedures for referral of youth to a qualified mental health provider for a timely mental health evaluation.
(9) Referral to a Psychiatrist The State shall develop and implement policies and procedures for referral of youth to a psychiatrist for a timely mental health evaluation.
(10) Duties of the Psychiatrist Each youth in need of psychiatricservices, including monitoring of the use of psychotropic medications, shall be under the care of a licensed psychiatrist. The State shall employ or contract for sufficient psychiatric services to permit a psychiatrist to fulfill the following functions:
a. Conduct needed psychiatric evaluations prior to placing a youth on psychotropic medications;
b. Monitor, as appropriate but at least monthly, the efficacy and the side effects of psychotropic medications, including consultation with the facility medical, counseling, and security staff;
c. Participate in treatment team meetings for youth under the psychiatrist's care;
d. Provide individual counseling and psychotherapy when needed, in coordination with facility psychologists;
e. Evaluate and treat in a timely manner all youths referred as possibly in need of psychiatric services; and
f. Provide adequate documentation of treatment in the facility medical records.
(11) Review of Facility Records by Psychiatrists, Psychologists and Counselors The psychiatrist, psychologists, and counselors shall review incident reports, disciplinary tickets, suicide watch logs, and lockdown logs of youthunder their careto determine whether their treatment is working and, if not, how it should be modified.
(12) Treatment Plans The State shall ensure that each youth in need of mental health and/or substance abuse treatment shall have an appropriate treatment plan, including an appropriate behavior management plan, developed in accordance with generally accepted professional standards of practice, and that such plans are appropriately implemented. The State shall ensure that all youth in and discharged from suicide precaution receive mental health treatment in accordance with a treatment plan developed by a qualified mental health professional while in the facilities. The State shall make documented good-faith efforts to include parents or guardians in the creation and revision of the treatment plan, unless their participation would be inappropriate for some reason (e.g., the child has been removed from the parent's custody).

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(13) Content of Treatment Plans The State shall develop and implement policies and procedures for the required content of treatment plans, which shall include:
a. That the treatment plan be individualized;
b. An identification of the mental and/or behavioral health issues to be addressed;
c. A description of any medication or medical course of action to be pursued, including the initiation of psychotropic medication;
d. A description of planned activities to monitor the efficacy of any medication or the possibility of any side effects;
e. A description of any behavioral management plan or strategies to be undertaken;
f. A description of any counseling or psychotherapy to be provided;
g. A determination of whether the type or level of treatment needed can be provided in the youth's current placement; and
h. A plan for monitoring the course of treatment, and if necessary, for revising the treatment plan.
(14) Progress Notes The State shall promulgate and implement a policy requiring that all qualified mental health professionals be required to create and utilize progress notes to document each interaction and/or assessment of youth with serious mental illnesses. The State shall ensure that qualified mental health professionals thoroughly review a youth's clinical, medical, and master files for documentation of any prior suicidal behavior.
(15) Access to a Qualified Mental Health Professional The State shall develop and implement a policy and procedure to ensure that youth who seek access to a qualified mental health professional are provided appropriate access in a timely manner.
(16) Mental Health Involvement in Housing Decisions The State shall develop and implement a system for ensuring that mental health issues are adequately considered in making housing decisions, and shall ensure that mentally ill youth receive appropriate housing.
(17) Staffing The State shall staff, by contract or otherwise, the facilities with adequate numbers of child and adolescent psychiatrists and other qualified mental health professionals to meet the mental health needs of youth residents. Psychiatric care shall be integrated with other medical and mental health services and shall comport with generally accepted practices. The State shall ensure that there are sufficient numbers of adequately trained direct care and

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supervisory staff to allow youth reasonable access to structured programming.
(18) Informed Consent The State shall ensure that all youth are provided with information regarding the goals, risks, benefits and potential side effects of psychotropic medications offered for their treatment, as well as an explanation of what the consequences of not treating with the medication might be, so that they can provide informed consent. The State shall make documented goodfaith efforts to provide parents and guardians with similar information before renewing a prescription from a community provider or starting, modifying, or discontinuing a prescription, so that they can provide informed consent. However, following documented good-faith efforts, treatment need not be delayed.
(19) Mental Health Medications The State shall develop and implement policies, procedures, and practices to ensure that psychotropic medications are prescribed, distributed, and monitored properly and safely, and consistent with generally accepted practices. The State shall provide regular training to all health and mental health staff on current issues in psychopharmacological treatment, including information necessary to monitor for side effects and efficacy. The State shall issue and implement policies and procedures for the administration of appropriate tests (including, for example, blood tests, EKGs, and Abnormal Involuntary Movement Scale tests) to monitor the efficacy and any side effects of psychotropic medications in accordance with generally accepted professional standards.
(20) Mental Health and Developmental Disability Training for Direct Care Staff The State shall develop and implement strategies for providing direct care and other appropriate staff with training on mental health and developmental disabilities sufficient for staff to understand the behaviors and needs of youth residents in order tosupervise them appropriately.
(21) Transition Planning The State shall ensure that staff create transition plans for youth leaving the facilities. Plans shall include providing the youth and his or her parents or guardian with information regarding mental health resources available in the youth's home community; making referrals to such services when appropriate; making initial appointments with community service providers; and supplying appropriate psychiatric medications upon release from the facilities. Beyond these requirements, nothing in this MOA shall make the Defendants responsible for providing mental health services to youth no longer residing at the facilities.
(22) Structured Programming The State shall provide adequate structured programming, including an appropriate mix of rehabilitative, recreational or leisure activities, during non-school hours and days. The State shall develop and implement structured programming at each facility from the end of the school day until the youth go to bed, and on weekends. For youth housed in closed-cell environments, structured programming shall be designed to ensure that youth are not confined in locked cells except: (a) from after structured programming to wake-up, (b) as necessary to allow youth to calm down immediately after a violent incident, or (c) following an adequate disciplinary hearing, pursuant to an appropriate disciplinary sanction. The structured

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programming will be designed to modify behaviors and provide rehabilitation to the types of youth committed to each facility. The State shall utilize teachers, school administrators, correctional officers, caseworkers, school counselors, cottage staff, and any other qualified assistance to develop and implement the structured programming.
(23) Placements in the Paramilitary Program The State shall cease the placement of youths into paramilitary programs when, by reason of mental or physical disability or maturity level, the youth cannot reasonably be expected to obtain any benefit or the placement will likely result in physical or psychological harm to the youths. This includes, but is not limited to, youth who are seriously mentally ill or who have mental retardation, and youth who are younger than 13 years of age.
(24) Alternative Rehabilitative Programs The State shall develop alternative rehabilitativeprogramsfor those youth who should not or cannot participate in the paramilitary program, as determined by qualified mental health professionals.
(25) On-the-Spot Corrections in the Paramilitary Program The State shall adopt and implement a policy, and provide specific training, for sanctions or "on-thespot corrections" that will be permitted in paramilitary programs at the facilities and shall prohibit the use of any disciplinary measure not included in the policy. The policy shall also designate the maximum permissible extent or duration of the sanction.
(26) Notice to Youth of Facility Rules and Incentives/Consequences for Compliance The State shall explain the paramilitary program or alternative rehabilitative program to all youth during an orientation session, which shall set forth facility rules and the positive incentives for compliance as well as the sanctions for violating those rules. The State shall also explain to all youth during an orientation session the behavior management program and the positive incentives for good behavior, as well as disciplinary measures for misbehavior. The rules for all programs should be posted conspicuously in facility living units.
(27) Disciplinary Process and Accommodations for Youth with Disabilities The State shall develop and implement policies and procedures to make reasonable accommodations in its disciplinary processes for youth with mental disabilities. Whenever a youth with a mental disability is engaged in the disciplinary process, a qualified mental health professional shall be consulted to ensure that the accommodation is reasonable for that youth.
B. SPECIAL EDUCATION
(28) Provision of Special Education The State shall, at all times, provide all youth confined at the facilities with adequate special education in compliance with the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), 20 U.S.C. §§ 1400 et seq., and regulations promulgated thereunder, and this MOA.

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(29) Director The State shall designate a Director of Education to oversee the facilities. The Director shall meet minimum standards as specified by the State. The State shall provide the Director with sufficient staff and resources to perform the tasks required by this MOA, including:
a. Overseeing the special education programming in the facilities, including the development and implementation of policies, procedural manuals, and training programs.
b. Monitoring whether special education staffing and resources are sufficient to provide adequate special education services to youth at both facilities and to ensure compliance with this MOA.
c. Developing and implementing a quality assurance program for special education services.
d.Developing and implementing an adequate vocational education program for youth with disabilities.
e. Developing and implementing a curriculum for special education instruction at the facilities.
f. Ensuring that special education teachers are appropriately licensed to teach assigned courses.
(30) Special Education upon Intake The State shall ensure that all students who qualify for special education services receive such services within a reasonable time following intake at the facilities.
(31) Parent, Guardian and Surrogate Involvement The State shall develop and implement policies, procedures and practices to ensure appropriate parent, guardian or surrogate parent notice and involvement in evaluations, eligibility determinations, IEPs, placement and provision of special education services. This shall include holding IEP development and review meetings through telecommunications technology or during times reasonably calculated to accommodate the schedules of parents, guardians, or surrogate parents. The State shall post notices in each facility stating the rights of students, parents or guardians regarding education services, including special education services.
(32) Staffing The Superintendent(s) shall develop and implement an education staffing plan to ensure adequate staff to comply with the terms of this MOA. This plan shall provide for:
a. Sufficient numbers of certified special education teachers and staff to provide all youth with the opportunity to attend school fulltime and to obtain adequate educational services, and to provide teachers with sufficient time to plan lessons, grade assignments, and participate in special education meetings; and
b. Sufficient psychologist services to provide psychologist

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participation in the development of IEPs, administration of psychoeducational assessments, consultation with teachers and staff, and individual counseling related specifically to issues in youths' IEPs.
c. Sufficient services of speech and language professionals, audiologists, and other specialized professionals to meet the related services needs specified in IEPs.
(33) Screening for Special Education Needs Consistent with federal regulations, the State shall provide prompt and adequate screening of youth for special education needs and shall identify youth who are receiving special education in their home school districts or who may be eligible to receive special education services but have not been so identified in the past. Such screenings shall include:
a. Guidelines for interviewing youth upon admission to determine past receipt of special education services;
b. Protocols developed in conjunction with local school districts and the State Department of Education for expedited reporting of special education status of students entering the facilities, conducting adequate testing of youths' substantive educational knowledge, and performing necessary vision and hearing tests;
c. Policies describing the required activities of Teacher Support Team pre-referral functions, including criteria under which staff or teachers must refer a student for review, frequency at which interventions must be reviewed, and procedures for referral for Child Study evaluation if interventions are unsuccessful;
d. Policies describing the requirements for Child Study and comprehensive evaluation procedures to determine eligibility for special education services;
e. Policies describing the criteria for multi-disciplinary team decision-making regarding eligibility for special education; and
f. Protocols for re-evaluations to update eligibility certifications that have become outdated.
(34) Individual Education Plans
a. The State shall, in a reasonable time period,create and/or implement an Individual Education Plan ("IEP"), as defined in 34 C.F.R. § 300.340, for each youth who qualifies for an IEP. As part of satisfying this requirement, the State shall conduct required annual reviews of IEPs, adequately document the provision of special education services, and comply with requirements regarding parent, surrogate, and student participation in the IEP process. The State shall hold team meetings once per week or more

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often, if necessary, to develop or review IEPs for qualified special education students in accordance with federal regulations.
b. In developing or modifying the IEP, the State shall ensure that the IEP reflects the individualized educational needs of the youth and that services are provided accordingly. When the nature or severity of a youth's disability is such that education in regular classes with the use of supplementary aids and services cannot be achieved satisfactorily, the State shall provide an appropriate alternate educational setting in the least restrictive environment.
c. The State shall ensure that each developed or modified IEP include documentation of the team's consideration of the youth's need for related services and transition planning, and identifies the party responsible for providing all transition services. Nothing in this MOA shall require the State to provide services to the youth after discharge from the facilities.
d. The State shall assess each child for necessary related services, address these needs in the IEP, and provide these services as often as determined necessary by the IEP team.
(35) Vocational Education The State shall develop and implement adequate vocational education services for youth with disabilities.
(36) Forwarding Screening and Assessment Information upon Transfer The State shall ensure that if a youth is discharged from the facilities before the completion of the teacher support team intervention or educational evaluation required above is complete, the facilities shall forward to the superintendent of the youth's receiving school district all information regarding screening and evaluations completed to date, noting what evaluations are yet to be performed.
(37) Training and Quality Assurance
a. The Director shall design and implement annual in-service training requirements for special education staff of not less than four days per year, to enhance their ability to implement their duties under the provisions of this MOA.
b. The Director shall be charged with quality assurance of all special education services at all of the facilities. The State shall develop and implement a written quality assurance program. This program shall include a system of on-going review of at least a representative sample of IEPs developed or modified in the facilities to monitor quality and assure compliance with the requirements of facilities' policies and the IDEA.
c. The Director shall ensure that all special education teachers take the required steps to keep their educator licenses current and appropriate to the courses they are required to teach.

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V. COMPLIANCE AND QUALITY ASSURANCE
(38) Document Development and Revision The State shall revise and/or develop policies, procedures, protocols, training curricula, and practices to ensure that they are consistent with, incorporate, address, and implement all provisions of this MOA. The State shall revise and/or develop as necessary other written documents such as screening tools, logs, handbooks, manuals, and forms, to effectuate the provisions of this MOA.
(39) Document Review Within 30 days after the filing of this MOA with the Court, the State shall submit a master plan to DOJ that establishes a time line of up to one year to revise and/or develop written policies, procedures, protocols, training materials, and screening and assessment tools to effectuate the provisions of this MOA. The master plan and the policies, procedures, protocols, training materials, and screening and assessment tools shall be submitted to the DOJ for review and approval. The DOJ shall provide prompt guidance to the State, including specific explanations as to how the provisions, policies, or procedures, if any, are inconsistent with the terms of the MOA, and shall suggest revisions. In the event that the DOJ asserts that policies, procedures, and other written documents are not in compliance with the terms of this MOA, the parties will agree to a schedule for the parties' experts to communicate. The State shall revise policies as necessary to conform with the terms of this MOA. If, after the policies, procedures, and practices affected by this MOA are implemented, either of the parties determines that a policy, procedure, or practice, as implemented, fails to effectuate the terms of this MOA, the parties shall consult and the policy, procedure, or practice shall be revised as necessary to conform to the terms of this MOA. If the parties are unable to agree on revisions to the policies, etc., the parties shall submit the issue to the Monitor. If either party is unsatisfied with the Monitor's resolution, then either party may invoke mediation. If neither party requests mediation, or at the conclusion of mediation, the dispute may be submitted to the Court.
(40) Quality Assurance Programs The State shall develop and implement Quality Assurance programs consistent with generally accepted professional practices for each discipline addressed in this MOA.
(41) Corrective Action Plans For each discipline addressed in this MOA, the State shall develop and implement policies and procedures to address problems that are uncovered during the course of quality assurance activities. The State shall develop and implement corrective action plans to address these problems in such a manner as to prevent them from occurring again in the future.
(42) Technical Assistance DOJ will provide the State with technical assistance in the development of policies and procedures required to effectuate the terms of this MOA. DOJ will assist the State in identifying additional financial resources to supplement those resources currently allocated to the facilities.
VI. MONITORING AND ENFORCEMENT
(43) Monitor Selection The parties have jointly selected Joyce Burrell to serve

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as the Monitor. Should the position become vacant and the parties cannot agree on a replacement, the parties shall recommend candidates to the Court pursuant to the terms of the Consent Decree, and the Court will select the Monitor. Neither party, nor any employee or agent of either party, shall have any supervisory authority over the Monitor's activities, reports, findings, or recommendations. The cost for the Monitor's fees and expenses shall be borne by the State. The selection of the Monitor shall be conducted solely pursuant to the procedures set forth in this MOA, and will not be governed by any formal or legal procurement requirements. The Monitor may be terminated only for good cause, unrelated to the Monitor's findings or recommendations, and only with prior notice to and approval of both parties or by Court order.
(44) Monitor Qualifications The Monitor shall have experience and education, or training in the field of juvenile justice. The Monitor may also have education, training, or experience in general or special education, adolescent health and mental health needs (particularly the needs of institutionalized adolescents), and institutional abuse and incident investigations.
(45) Monitor Access The Monitor shall have full and complete access to the facilities, all facility and Division records, staff, and residents. The State shall direct all employees to cooperate fully with the Monitor. All non-public information obtained by the Monitor shall be maintained in a confidential manner, except that the Monitor's reports shall be filed with the Court and shall be public documents. Other than as expressly provided in this MOA, this MOA shall not be deemed a waiver of any privilege or right the State may assert, including those recognized at common law and created by statute, rule or regulation against any other person or entity with respect to the disclosure of any information.
(46) Monitor Ex Parte Communications The Monitor shall be permitted to initiate and receive ex parte communications with all parties.
(47) Limitations on Public Disclosures by Monitor Except as required or authorized by the terms of this MOA or the parties acting together, neither the Monitor nor any member of the Monitor's staff shall: make any public statements (at a conference or otherwise) or issue findings with regard to any act or omission of the State or its agents, representatives or employees, or disclose non-public information provided to the Monitor or the Monitor's staff pursuant to this MOA. Any press statement made by the Monitor or any member of the Monitor's staff regarding their employment must first be approved by the parties. Neither the Monitor nor any member of the Monitor's staff shall testify in any other litigation or proceeding with regard to any act or omission of the State, Division or any of their agents, representatives, or employees related to this MOA, nor testify regarding any matter or subject that he or she may have learned as a result of his or her performance under this MOA. Reports issued by the Monitor shall not be admissible against the State in any proceeding other than a proceeding related to the enforcement of the State's agreements with DOJ. Unless such conflict is waived by the parties, the Monitor shall not accept employment or provide consulting services that would present a conflict of interest with the Monitor's responsibilities under this MOA, including being retained (on a paid or unpaid basis) by any current or

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future litigant or claimant, or such litigant's or claimant's attorney, in connection with a claim or suit against the State or its departments, officers, agents or employees. The Monitor is not a state or local agency or an agent thereof, and accordingly the records maintained by the Monitor shall not be deemed public records subject to public inspection. Neither the Monitor nor any person or entity hired or otherwise retained by the Monitor to assist in furthering any provision of this MOA shall be liable for any claim, lawsuit or demand arising out of the Monitor's performance pursuant to this MOA. This paragraph does not apply to any proceeding before a court related to performance of contracts or subcontracts for monitoring this MOA.
(48) Monitor Reports The Monitor shall provide the Court and the parties with reports describing the steps taken by the State to implement this MOA and evaluate the extent to which the State has complied with each substantive provision of the MOA. Such reports shall be issued every four months, unless the parties agree otherwise. The reports shall be provided to the parties in draft form for comment at least two weeks prior to their issuance. These reports shall be written with due regard for the privacy interests of individual youth and staff and the interest of the State in protecting against disclosure of non-public information.
(49) Monitor Budget The Monitor shall have a budget sufficient to allow the Monitor to carry out the responsibilities described in this MOA and the Consent Decree. The Monitor may consult experts or consultants retained by either party. The Monitor may initiate and receive ex parte communications with the parties and with the parties' consultants.
VII. REPORTING REQUIREMENTS AND RIGHT OF ACCESS
(50) DOJ Access The DOJ shall have full and complete access to the facilities, and to youth records, staff records, staff and residents of those facilities regarding the topics addressed in this MOA. The DOJ shall have the right to conduct unannounced visits to the facilities. The DOJ shall have the right to conduct interviews with staff and confidential interviews with residents, and former residents. State attorneys may be present at interviews of staff and tours of facilities. All non-public information obtained by the DOJ shall be maintained in a confidential manner. Other than as expressly provided in this MOA, this MOA shall not be deemed a waiver of any privilege or right the State may assert, including those recognized at common law and created by statute, rule or regulation against any other person or entity with respect to the disclosure of any information. Such information may, however, be used in any proceedings to enforce the requirements of this MOA.
(51) State Response to DOJ Questions Limited to ten succinct questions without subparts within a six month period, within 30 days of receipt of written questions from the DOJ concerning the State's compliance with this MOA, the State shall provide the DOJ with written answers and access to any requested documents regarding the State's compliance with the requirements of this MOA. Any dispute regarding the scope or burden of the requests shall be resolved by the Monitor.

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(52) State Documentation of Compliance The State shall maintain sufficient records to document its compliance with all of the requirements of this MOA. The State shall also maintain (so long as this MOA remains in effect) any and all records required by or developed under this MOA.
(53) State Compliance Reports Fourteen calendar days before each report from the Monitor is due, the State shall provide the Monitor and the United States with a status report regarding its compliance with this Agreement.
(54) Privileges This MOA shall not be deemed to waive the attorney/client, attorney work product, deliberative process, or executive privileges. The State shall not assert physician/patient or psychotherapist/patient privileges with respect to the monitoring of this MOA by DOJ and the Monitor.
VIII. IMPLEMENTATION AND TERMINATION
(55) Information to Employees The State shall ensure that all current and future relevant Division employees understand the terms of this MOA (to the extent necessary to carry out their job duties and responsibilities) and implement the terms of the MOA.
(56) Implementation The State shall implement all reforms necessary to effectuate this MOA. The implementation will begin immediately upon the filing of this MOA. The parties agree that the systemic and comprehensive nature of this MOA will require implementation and refinement of policies and programs over a number of years. In addition, the parties agree that the State shall make continuous progress during the first three years of this Agreement to provide adequate juvenile correctional officers, counselor aides, and security officers. The parties also agree that the State shall make continuous progress during the first eighteen months of this Agreement to provide adequate teachers, nurses, and nurse practitioners. As a separate matter, minor, inconsequential, sporadic, unintentional or isolated harmless instances of noncompliance with the MOA shall not be a basis for enforcement, provided they do not affect a substantial interest of the youth.
(57) Integration This MOA shall constitute the entire integrated agreement of the parties with respect the United States' claims concerning mental health, rehabilitative services, education, and special education (as discussed above in Section I, a separate agreement addresses the United States' claims concerning protection from harm and medical and dental care). With the exception of DOJ's findings letter issued about the facilities in June 2003, the Consent Decree, and any DOJ technical assistance recommendations, no prior or contemporaneous communications, oral or written, will be relevant or admissible for purposes of determining the meaning of any provisions herein in this litigation or in any other proceeding.
(58) Enforcement If DOJ believes that the State has failed to substantially comply with any obligation under this MOA, DOJ will give written notice of the failure to the State. The parties shall conduct good-faith discussions to resolve the dispute. If the parties are unable to reach agreement within 15 days

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of the DOJ's written notice, the parties shall submit the dispute to mediation. The parties shall split the cost of the mediator. In the first instance, the mediator shall be Judge Reuben Vincent Anderson. If Judge Anderson is not available, the mediator shall be Robin Rosenberg. Thereafter, the order in which mediators are contacted shall alternate between mediations. If neither of these mediators is available, the Court shall select a mediator. The parties shall attempt in good faith to mediate the dispute for a minimum of 30 days prior to seeking the reinstatement of the civil proceeding that this MOA settled. The terms of this MOA are not subject to state or federal court enforcement other than the reinstatement of those paragraphs of the complaint that this MOA settled. However, in case of an emergency posing an immediate threat to the health or safety of youths, the United States may omit the notice and cure requirements herein (including the provision regarding mediation), before seeking reinstatement.
(59) Agreement Coordinator The State shall appoint an Agreement Coordinator to coordinate and oversee compliance with this MOA and the Consent Decree.
(60) Termination This MOA shall terminate four years from the date it is filed with the Court. The MOA may also end earlier than four years from the date it is ordered by the Court if the State has substantially complied with each of the provisions of the MOA and has maintained substantial compliance for at least two years. The burden shall be on the State to demonstrate this level of compliance. There are two substantive sections of this MOA - mental health care and rehabilitative services, and special education. A section of the MOA may be terminated if the State sustains its burden with respect to that section of the MOA. Noncompliance with mere technicalities, or temporary failure to comply during a period of otherwise sustained compliance will not constitute failure to maintain substantial compliance. At the same time, temporary compliance during a period of sustained noncompliance shall not constitute substantial compliance.
(61) Defense of MOA The parties agree to defend the provisions of this MOA. The parties shall notify each other of any court challenge to this MOA. In the event any provision of this MOA is challenged in any local or state court, removal to a federal court shall be sought.
(62) Successors This MOA shall be binding on all successors, assignees, employees, agents and all those working for or on behalf of the State.
(63) No Waiver for Failure to Enforce Failure by either party to enforce this entire MOA or any provision thereof with respect to any deadline or any other provision herein shall not be construed as a waiver of its right to enforce other deadlines or provisions of this MOA.
(64) Notice "Notice" under this MOA shall be provided by courier or overnight delivery and shall be provided to the Governor of the State of Mississippi and to the Attorney General of the State of Mississippi.
(65) Unforeseen Delay If any unforeseen circumstance occurs which causes a

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failure to timely carry out any requirements of this MOA, the State shall notify the DOJ in writing within 20 calendar days of the time that the State becomes aware of the unforeseen circumstance and its impact on the State's ability to perform under the MOA. The notice shall describe the cause of the failure to perform and the measures taken to prevent or minimize the failure. The State shall implement all reasonable measures to avoid or minimize any such failure.

(66) Non-Retaliation The State agrees that it shall not retaliate against any person because that person has filed or may file a complaint, provided information or assistance, or participated in any other manner in an investigation or proceeding relating to this MOA.
(67) Subheadings All subheadings in this MOA are written for convenience of locating individual provisions. If questions arise as to the meanings of individual provisions, the parties shall follow the text of each provision.
(68) Severability In the event any provision of this MOA is declared invalid for any reason by a court of competent jurisdiction, said finding shall not affect the remaining provisions of this MOA.
(69) Attorney's Fees and Expenses Each party shall bear the cost of their fees and expenses incurred in connection with this cause.
FOR THE UNITED STATES:

/s/Dunn O. Lampton DUNN O. LAMPTON United States Attorney Southern District of Mississippi

/s/R. Alexander Acosta R. ALEXANDER ACOSTA Assistant Attorney General Civil Rights Division

/s/Bradley J. Schlozman BRADLEY J. SCHLOZMAN Deputy Assistant Attorney General Civil Rights Division

/s/Shanetta Y. Cutlar SHANETTA Y. CUTLAR Chief Special Litigation Section

/s/Tammi R. Simpson JUDY PRESTON Deputy Chief TAMMI R. SIMPSON JEFFREY J. RESETARITS LAURA L. COON

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FOR THE STATE:
/s/Haley Barbour HALEY BARBOUR Governor State of Mississippi
/s/Donald Taylor DONALD TAYLOR Executive Director Department of Human Services
/s/Kathy Pittman KATHY PITTMAN Director Division of Youth Services
/s/Jim Hood JIM HOOD Attorney General State of Mississippi

MATTHEW J. DONNELLY Trial Attorneys U.S. Department of Justice Civil Rights Division Special Litigation Section 950 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20530

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 June 19, 2003
The Honorable Ronnie Musgrove Governor of Mississippi Office of the Governor Jackson, Mississippi 39205
Re: CRIPA Investigation of Oakley and Columbia Training Schools in Raymond and Columbia, Mississippi
Dear Governor Musgrove:
On May 8, 2002, we notified you of our intent to investigate the Oakley Training School in Raymond, Mississippi (“Oakley”) and the Columbia Training School in Columbia, Mississippi (“Columbia”) pursuant to the Civil Rights of Institutionalized Persons Act, 42 U.S.C. § 1997 (“CRIPA”), and the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994, 42 U.S.C. § 14141. Consistent with the statutory requirements of CRIPA, we are writing to report the findings of our investigation. At the outset, we wish to express our appreciation for the complete cooperation of the staff at the facilities, the Department of Human Services, and the Attorney General’s Office during this investigation.
On June 24-28, 2002 and July 16-17, 2002, we conducted onsite inspections of Oakley with expert consultants in juvenile justice administration, psychology, medicine, education, and sanitation. On July 29-August 1, 2002 and September 25-27, 2002, we inspected Columbia with all but the sanitation expert consultant. We reviewed documents including, but not limited to, policies and procedures, incident reports, medical and education files, and facility maintenance records.
We find that conditions at Oakley and Columbia violate the constitutional and statutory rights of juveniles. Youth confined at Oakley and Columbia suffer harm or the risk of harm from deficiencies in the facilities’ provision of mental health and medical care, protection of juveniles from harm, and juvenile justice management. There are also sanitation deficiencies at Oakley. In addition, both facilities fail to provide required general education services as well as education to eligible youth as required by the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (“IDEA”), 20 U.S.C. § 1401, et seq., and Section 504 of the

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Rehabilitation Act of 1973, 29 U.S.C. § 794. Finally, we find that Oakley and Columbia violate the youths’ First Amendment rights by forcing them to engage in religious activities.
I. BACKGROUND
The Mississippi Department of Human Services operates Oakley and Columbia through the Division of Youth Services. The average length of stay for youth in the training schools is two to three months, but some youth may stay up to six months or longer. The majority of youth committed to Oakley and Columbia are nonviolent offenders. For example, 75 percent of the girls at Columbia are committed for status offenses, probation violations, or contempt of court. The majority of boys at Oakley are committed for property offenses, lower level drug possession charges, or auto theft charges.
Youth offenders who are mentally ill or have mental retardation are to be committed by the Mississippi youth courts1 to rehabilitation facilities operated by the Mississippi Department of Mental Health. See MS ST §§ 41-21-109; 43-21-611. Thus, we were told that youth with mental illness or mental retardation are not confined at Oakley or Columbia. As discussed in greater detail below, this is not the case.
A. Description of the Facilities
1. Oakley Training School
Oakley Training School, also known as the Mississippi Youth Correctional Complex, sits on approximately 1,068 acres of land surrounded by agricultural fields in Raymond, Mississippi, which is approximately 30 minutes outside of Jackson, Mississippi. Oakley is designed to function as a paramilitary program for delinquent boys2 and is comprised of three operational units,

1

Mississippi youth courts are divisions of either

chancery or county courts and have original jurisdiction in

proceedings involving delinquent, neglected or battered children.

2

Reportedly, the program imposes a military style

discipline on youth and is purported to promote a “vigorous

physical fitness training program.”

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Unit One, Unit Two, and Ironwood. Boys housed at Oakley range in age from 10 to 17. At the time of our visit, 336 boys were committed to Oakley.
Unit One is a large, under-utilized, self-contained building with a housing capability of 275. Enclosed in a secure perimeter fence, Unit One contains the intake unit with approximately four separate cells, a medical infirmary, its own school, a small modern gym, and outside recreational space. The intake unit is where youth sent to Oakley are processed and evaluated, and contains 11 separate living units known as pods, each designed to hold approximately 20 juveniles. Each pod has a locked correctional officer’s control room designed in a manner such that no interaction between line staff and juveniles can occur. During our visit, only three of the 11 pods were operational due to staff shortages.
Unit Two consists of several unfenced buildings in a traditional juvenile detention campus setting with a freestanding school, vocational shops, a large cafeteria, a chapel, and open space used for parade and military training. Unit Two has eight living units known as cottages. The cottages hold between 24 to 32 juveniles. Unit Two also has a separate unit known as the Special Intervention Unit (“SIU”) for youth with behavioral and disciplinary problems, and youth who are suicidal. The SIU has 14 locked single cells and a large unfurnished day room that is adjacent to the staff control room. During our visit, approximately seven youth were confined to the SIU.
Ironwood, the third unit on the Oakley campus, is a freestanding building housing boys aged 10 to 17. Ironwood is described as a 90-day, therapeutic intensive treatment unit for boys with behavioral problems from Units One and Two at Oakley and transfers from Columbia. It is a self-contained maximum security unit purportedly used for the most aggressive juveniles. Youth who are considered difficult, have attempted to escape, have been involved in assaults, or have serious emotional or mental health problems are housed there. Ironwood can house 25 youths in locked single cells. Nineteen boys were confined in Ironwood during our visit.
2. Columbia Training School
The Columbia Training School, located in Columbia, Mississippi, is approximately two and one-half hours northwest of

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Gulfport, Mississippi. Like Oakley, Columbia sits on over 1,000 acres of land in an unfenced agricultural setting and purports to use a military model for delinquent youth. Columbia, comprised of several housing and administration buildings encircling a large field in a cottage setting, has a medical clinic, a freestanding school with a cafeteria, a chapel, and a gym. Columbia houses girls aged 10 to 18 and boys aged 10 to 15. During our site visit, 196 youth were committed to Columbia, 92 girls and 104 boys.
Columbia has two secure housing units, one for boys and the other for girls, used in the same manner as the SIU at Oakley with the added function of serving as the intake units for all Columbia youth. The boys’ population in an SIU unit called McGehee varied from seven to 12 during our tour. The girls’ SIU population in a unit called Cleveland ranged from 10 to 12. During our visit, only four residential cottages were being used and only one of those housed girls, Hammond Cottage. Hammond Cottage, designed to hold approximately 40 girls, has two divisions: one side of the cottage houses girls rotating through the basic training program and the other side houses the advanced training programs. During our visit, the basic side of Hammond housed 43 girls and the advanced side 37 girls. Many girls had bunks in the hallways due to overcrowding. Boys were housed in the other three cottages -- Rouse, Hugh-White, and Burrow. Rouse is a boys’ basic program cottage for new commitments and housed 28 boys during our visit. Hugh-White is for basic program participants who are re-committed to Columbia. Hugh-White housed 27 boys during our visit. Burrow is for boys in the advanced phase of the program and housed 40 boys.
B. Legal Background
Youth adjudicated delinquent have a right to reasonably safe confinement conditions and, at a minimum, should have the same constitutional protections as adult pretrial detainees. See Youngberg v. Romeo, 457 U.S. 307, 315-16 (1982) (holding that a person with mental retardation committed to the state’s custody has substantive due process rights under the Fourteenth Amendment); Bell v. Wolfish, 441 U.S. 520, 535-36 (1979) (Fourteenth Amendment standard applies to pretrial detainees); Gary H. v. Hegstrom, 831 F.2d 1430, 1432 (9th Cir. 1987) (applying the Fourteenth Amendment standard afforded adult pretrial detainees to juveniles); Morgan v. Sproat, 432 F. Supp. 1130, 1135-36 (S.D. Miss. 1977) (in a case involving the rights

-5-
of youth confined at Oakley, the court held that juveniles adjudicated delinquent are entitled to substantive due process protections under the Fourteenth Amendment); see also Morales v. Turman, 383 F. Supp. 53, 120 (E.D. Tex. 1974) (“all juveniles . . . are constitutionally entitled to care that at least conforms to minimal professional standards,”), rev’d on other grounds, 535 F.2d 864 (5th Cir. 1976), rev’d, 430 U.S. 322 (1977) (per curiam), on remand 562 F.2d 993 (5th Cir. 1977 (court did not reach definitive holding regarding existence of right to treatment), on remand 569 F. Supp. 332 (E.D. Tex. 1983).
Adjudicated youth have a right to adequate education instruction. See Morgan v. Sproat, 432 F. Supp. 1130, 1140-41 (S.D. Miss. 1977). Eligible youth also possess federal statutory rights to education under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (“IDEA”), 20 U.S.C. § 1400, et seq. and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, 29 U.S.C. § 794 et seq. See Alexander S. v. Boyd, 876 F. Supp. 773, 788 (D.S.C. 1995).
II. FINDINGS
Youth at Oakley and Columbia are confined in unsafe living conditions and receive inadequate treatment and care. These conditions exist mainly because of staff shortages, ineffective management and supervision at every organizational level within both facilities, and the facilities’ emphasis on control and punishment instead of rehabilitation.
A. Protection from Harm
Oakley and Columbia do not have any system of positive incentives to manage youth, but instead rely on discipline and force. This leads to unconstitutionally abusive disciplinary practices such as hog-tying, pole-shackling, improper use and overuse of restraints and isolation, staff assaulting youth, and OC spray abuse.
1. Abusive Disciplinary Practices at Columbia
(a) Hog-tying and Pole-Shackling
The use of restraints without penological justification is cruel and unusual punishment. See Hope v. Pelzer, 122 S. Ct. 2508, 2514, 2518 (2002) (the unnecessary handcuffing of an inmate to a hitching post after his disruptive behavior ended violated

-6-
the Eighth Amendment). Youth reported and one staff member confirmed incidents of hog-tying at Columbia in the boys’ and girls’ SIUs and in Hammond Cottage. Approximately 10 to 15 boys and girls consistently described the practice, where youth are placed face down on the floor with their hands and feet shackled and drawn together. That is, youths’ hands are handcuffed behind their backs. Their feet are shackled together and then belts or metal chains are wrapped around the two sets of restraints, pulling them together. A 13-year-old boy, in the SIU on suicide watch, told us that he had been hog-tied twice while in the SIU. Another boy told us that he was hog-tied for refusing to follow orders. Several girls in Hammond Cottage told us that either they had been hog-tied or they had witnessed other girls being hog-tied. They reported that girls are typically tied for three hour periods in the corners of the cottage and stated that girls were also hog-tied in the SIU. Girls also reported being hogtied in a SIU cell called the “dark room.”
Contrary to Columbia’s policy that requires the documenting of all uses of restraints, the practice is not documented in incident reports or unit logbooks. When our expert consultant discussed the apparent discrepancy between youth reports and lack of incident report documentation, Columbia SIU staff either denied that these incidents took place or reluctantly admitted they may have occurred -- but not during their shifts. A senior manager claimed it had been a long time since hog-tying had occurred because the practice was “inhumane.” However, one relatively new SIU staff person stated that hog-tying had occurred in the boys’ SIU a few months prior to our visit.
Thus, we have reason to believe that hog-tying occurs at Columbia despite the lack of penological justification or therapeutic or rehabilitative benefit to hog-tying. Columbia’s own policies prohibit the use of restraints as punishment.
Columbia youth consistently reported another abusive restraint practice. Youth reported that they had either observed or experienced having their arms and legs shackled to poles in public places. For instance, one young girl reported that her arms and legs were handcuffed and shackled around a utility pole because she was non-compliant during military exercises. The rest of the unit was forced to perform military drills around her. The youth was shackled for at least three hours, released for lunch, and briefly shackled again. This incident was witnessed and similarly described by other youth, both boys and

-7
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girls. Another girl reported that two weeks prior to our visit, she was shackled to a pole for talking in the cafeteria. Still another girl reported that she was shackled to a pole for approximately four hours because she did not say, “Yes, sir,” on command. Again, this practice is not documented in incident reports or unit logbooks in violation of Columbia’s restraint policy. Not only is this abusive practice in violation of Columbia’s policies, it is unlawful.
(b) The girls’ SIU
Girls in the SIU at Columbia are punished for acting out or for being suicidal by being placed in a cell called the “dark room.” The “dark room” is a locked, windowless isolation cell with lighting controlled by staff. When the lights are turned out, as the girls reported they are when the room is in use, the room is completely dark. The room is stripped of everything but a drain in the floor which serves as a toilet.
Most girls are stripped naked when placed in the “dark room.” According to Columbia staff, the reason girls must remove their clothing before being placed in the darkroom, is that there is metal grating on the ceiling and the cell door which could be used for hanging attempts by suicidal girls. Such suicidal hazards should be remedied rather than requiring suicidal children to strip naked.
One girl told us that the weekend prior to our visit, she was placed naked in the “dark room” from Friday until Monday morning. She stated that she was allowed out of the cell once a day to take a shower, but received all her meals inside of the cell. Another girl told us that in July 2002, she was placed in the “dark room” with the lights off for three days with little access to water as her requests for water were largely ignored.
While facility administrators told us that this room is rarely used and if used, for no longer than a few hours at a time, a number of girls reported being locked in the cell for as long as three days to a week. There is no separate log book to record the use of the “dark room” to substantiate the administrators’ claims regarding the length of time the darkroom is in use. To the contrary, log book entries for a three-month period for the girls’ SIU indicate that the dark room often is used overnight or over the weekend, particularly when the SIU is

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overcrowded, as well as used for punishment and for suicidal girls.
During our visit to the girls’ SIU at Columbia, there were 14 girls present. Nine of the girls had been locked in bare cells for more than a week; one girl had been locked in a bare cell for 114 days. The conditions we observed in the SIU are particularly inhumane. The cells are extremely hot with inadequate ventilation. Some girls are naked in a dark room where they must urinate and defecate in a hole that they cannot flush. Restraint chairs are use for punishment in violation of Columbia’s own policy and procedures manual.3 OC spray is sometimes used in response to a youth’s minor misbehavior. As discussed earlier, sometimes, girls are hog-tied. Girls are often not given access to basic necessities, such as water, personal hygiene items, and bathroom facilities, and girls are not given sufficient mental health services. Given the significant number of juvenile girls in Mississippi juvenile facilities who suffer from various forms of mental disorders, particularly separation anxiety disorder,4 the use of the SIU in its present form should be banned at Columbia.5
(c) Other abusive practices at Columbia

3

Columbia’s policy states that a restraint chair should

only be used if extreme force is necessary and that restraints,

in general, must not be used to punish. Generally accepted

professional standards mandate that restraint chairs be used only

for youth whose self-destructive or dangerous behavior cannot be

controlled safely in any other way; they should never be used as

punishment.

4

Girls in Mississippi juvenile justice facilities are

five to seven times more likely than boys to have a depression

disorder, and are two to five times more likely than boys to meet

the criteria for an anxiety disorder. Angela Robertson & Jonelle

Husain, Prevalence of Mental Illness and Substance Abuse

Disorders Among Incarcerated Juvenile Offenders 27-28 (2001).

5

See Lollis v. New York State Department of Social

Services, 322 F. Supp. 473, 482 (S.D.N.Y. 1970) (two-week

confinement of a 14-year-old girl dressed in night clothes in a

bare cell with no recreational facilities or reading matter is

cruel and unusual punishment).

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Youth at Columbia describe a number of abusive practices imposed by staff. For example, youth report “sitting in a chair,” in which youth are required to assume a sitting position while holding their backs up against the wall with knees bent for as long as 20 to 30 minutes. Youth also are forced to perform “guard duty.” Youth are awakened in the middle of the night, required to get dressed, and walk inside the cottage for hours with their hands to their heads (similar to a military salute) from bed to bed. In June 2002, according to the SIU log book, a staff person was given permission to awaken the boys at midnight, take away their mattresses and covers, and force them to perform “guard duty.” Boys housed in the cottages are sent by drill instructors to the SIU during the day for punishment for failing to perform exercises. SIU staff confirmed that boys’ punishment may last for hours and consists of running around tables in the SIU day room with mattresses on their backs. Girls are punished in the military field by being forced to run with automobile tires around their bodies or carrying logs. Girls reported being forced to eat their own vomit if they throw-up while exercising in the hot sun.
Our juvenile justice expert consultant observed a cottage staff person punish an entire cottage by forcing youth to run inside the dorm room silently for at least 25 minutes while other youth showered. We learned that prior to our visit, one youth had broken his toe by hitting it on a bed while performing this exercise.
These exercises and disciplinary practices serve no penological or rehabilitative purpose. Many are cruel and demeaning.6 They also are unsafe because, as our expert noted, when this type of physical punishment is imposed, the facility does not monitor the physical well-being of the youth.
2. Abusive Staff
(a) Assault

6

See Morales v. Turman, 364 F. Supp. 166, 174 (E.D. Tex.

1973) (subsequent history omitted)(“Requiring [youth] to maintain

silence during periods of the day merely for purposes of

punishment, and to perform repetitive, nonfunctional, degrading,

and unnecessary tasks for many hours . . . constitutes cruel and

unusual punishment in violation of the Eighth Amendment.”).

-10-
Based on our interviews with youth, our observations during the tours, and review of documentation provided by the State, we find that staff at Oakley and Columbia use excessive force with impunity.
At Oakley, more than half of the youth in Ironwood reported that staff had physically abused them. In Unit One, a number of youth reported, and some line staff confirmed, that youth who are re-committed to Oakley are taken to one of the isolation rooms in the intake area and punched and slapped by staff as punishment for being re-committed. Youth reported in Unit Two that staff hit and physically assaulted other children. One such incident was confirmed by staff members who reported that approximately two weeks prior to our visit, a school counselor physically abused a youth. This youth was choked by the counselor and sent to Ironwood based on the counselor’s recommendation to the facility director. The youth never received a hearing. We were told by staff and youth that the counselor would never be held accountable for the incident. Indeed, we received no written incident or investigative reports concerning this incident.
When asked why abuses were allowed to occur at Oakley without consequences to staff, we were told that staff shortages inhibited the facility administration’s ability to follow-up on youth’s complaints. Staff also stated that some staff abused youth with impunity because they were favored by the administration. When asked why staff did not report these allegations, most staff responded that they feared retaliation. In other cases, youth did not file complaints because they believed that their concerns would not be investigated or addressed. During our second tour of Oakley, we observed a general assembly conducted by administration officials where a number of the youth voiced concerns about being assaulted by staff. For example, one youth stated that a staff person had shoved his head into a toilet. The youth wanted to know how the administration would respond to complaints. One administrative official responded that youth were not allowed to defend themselves against staff who assaulted them.
In the girls’ SIU at Columbia, staff reportedly have hit, choked, and slapped girls. For instance, girls reported that a ten-year-old girl was slapped by a male security guard. A young boy in the boys’ SIU reported that before being taken to the SIU,

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security slapped him twice in the face and placed his neck in a “sleeper hold.”7
(b) OC Spray Abuse
Both at Oakley and Columbia, staff practices regarding the use of OC spray amount to excessive force. According to the facilities’ policy, OC spray may be used in only three situations: to “quell a riot”; or to “prevent further injury when students are fighting” and all other efforts to resolve the fight have failed; or if a youth possesses a device “clearly intended to be used as a weapon and refuses to disarm.” Incident reports and youth complaints reflect that youth are sprayed arbitrarily and in violation of facility policy and law. See Alexander S. v. Boyd, 876 F. Supp. 773, 786 (D.S.C. 1995) (indiscriminate use of OC spray violates youth’s constitutional rights. OC spray should only be used when there is a risk of serious bodily harm and no other less intrusive restraint is available). At Columbia, boys in the SIU reported that staff sprayed under their locked cell doors and that staff sprayed boys in the face while they were hog-tied. Boys also told us that staff sprayed into the air while boys were doing exercises for punishment in the SIU. Incident reports make clear that suicidal youth are sprayed for their suicidal gestures and behaviors and that youth locked in isolation rooms who bang on the door of their cell are sprayed. A log entry for the SIU in May 2002 indicates that a suicidal girl was sprayed because she refused to remove her clothes before being placed in the “dark room.”
Youth at Columbia reported that staff routinely sprayed youth for failing to perform military exercises. Our review of incident reports confirms that OC spray is used for this purpose. For example, a 13-year-old boy was sprayed because he did not perform exercises. Reportedly, he was punished further by being forced to do 100 squat thrusts, 100 push ups, and 100 jumping jacks. One girl, prior to being sent to the SIU, had difficulty keeping up with the group during exercise in the parade field. She yelled to a staff person that it was hot and to “shut up talking to me.” Security was called and she was sprayed in the face. Youth also talked extensively about “running the ridge,” a

7

Youth told us that in order to be placed in a sleeper

hold, a security officer stands behind a youth with his arm

around the neck of the youth, cutting off the ability to breath.

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form of intensive running on the campus grounds.8 Youth who refuse to run the ridge are reportedly sprayed by staff.
On the Oakley campus, staff at Ironwood and Unit One use excessive force, spraying OC to control youth who misbehave or who are noncompliant. For example, a youth in Unit One was sprayed for refusing to go into his cell. In another case, two youths were sprayed in Ironwood as they engaged in horseplay.
Finally, based on our document review and conversations with staff and juveniles, OC spray use at both facilities often is undocumented and unreported. We find that OC spray is used regularly at both facilities for minor infractions or for punishment.
3. Investigation of Abuse Allegations
Oakley and Columbia do not have systemic internal and external review processes of abuse allegations to ensure that investigations are conducted thoroughly and objectively.
(a) Internal Review
All abuse allegations are not being investigated internally at the facilities or by the Division of Youth Services. Oakley and Columbia share an investigator who investigates allegations of abuse, when reported to him by the facility administrators. The investigator also functions as the “military coordinator.” The investigator conducts a limited perfunctory investigation and submits brief investigative reports and summary recommended courses of action to the Director of the Division of Youth Services for approval. However, the investigator’s authority to conduct abuse investigations is not clearly defined. As a result, we found that Oakley and Columbia administrators are not held accountable if they fail to report all allegations to the investigator.
In addition, youth reported feeling prohibited from reporting abuse allegations. Youth at both facilities stated that they did not report staff abuse because they believed that

8

“Running the ridge” is a practice where staff force

youth to repeatedly run up and down the upper fields of the

Columbia grounds at a fast pace.

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reporting led to retaliation, or their allegations were not taken seriously. A medical clinic incident notebook at Columbia documents the nursing staff’s treatment of youth’s injuries from alleged physical abuse by staff or pepper spray use. However, these abuse allegations appear never to have been investigated, even when an injury was noted by the nurse and could have possibly substantiated the youth’s claim.
(b) External Review
We found few external reviews of abuse allegations from outside agencies. The Division of Youth Services’ Division of Program Integrity conducted only 10 external reviews of abuse allegations between May 2000 and May 2002, most of them concerning staff at Columbia. We are aware of allegations of staff abuse at Columbia and Oakley that would have warranted more than 10 investigations from the Division of Program Integrity during that time period.
Moreover, during our tour of Columbia, children made various abuse allegations concerning specific staff. Several girls alleged that a recreation staff person forced girls to run and perform military exercises wearing tires. Many youth reported that the acting head nurse routinely denied medical care and access to appropriate health services. The girls in the advanced cottage alleged that a security guard engaged in inappropriate sexual behavior by standing in front of the uncovered windows of the girls’ cottage and observing them while they were undressing before going to bed.
We provided enough information for a thorough investigation to be conducted. We relayed the nature of the allegations, the approximate date and location of where the incidents occurred, and the names of the staff persons allegedly responsible for the incidents9 to the Mississippi State Attorney General’s Office (“Attorney General’s Office”).10 We were informed by the Public Integrity Division of the Attorney General’s Office that they

9

We did not, however, provide the names of the allegedly

involved youth in deference to the youths’ request for

confidentiality, many of whom had relayed fears of retaliation.

10 The Mississippi Department of Human Services agreed to defer its investigation of the allegations to the Attorney General’s Office.

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would need the names of the youth making the allegations in order to conduct the investigation because approval of the youth court judge who adjudicated the youth delinquent was required.11
4. Severe Staff Shortages
Columbia and Oakley fail to keep the youth in their care safe due to severe staffing shortages. Oakley has a staff vacancy rate of 39 percent. Due to budgetary constraints, Oakley is under a hiring freeze and cannot hire new staff to fill the vacancies, according to administration officials. During our tours, we noted that the staff at Oakley, including the facility management, appeared to be under stress and overworked. The documentation we received indicated that the Division of Youth Services was notified as early as January 2002 that these shortages compromised the safety of both staff and youth on Oakley’s campus. Specifically, during an incident that resulted in the use of pepper spray, a staff person had to enlist the assistance of a youth to defuse a fight in one of the cottages. The facility investigator wrote to the administrators at the Division of Youth Services that “[t]here is a serious need for additional staff members which [sic] are adequately trained in juvenile justice and security requirements before a staff member or student is critically injured or killed.”
Staff and administration are typically required to work overtime. On the weekends, youth are sometimes distributed to other living units due to staffing shortages. In Units One and Two, one staff person supervises 30 or more juveniles on every shift. This ratio substantially departs from generally accepted professional practices. During our tour, staff and senior managers repeatedly told us that Oakley is a dangerous place to work. Staff repeatedly stated that they are unable to protect youth from harm. Some senior managers admitted that all critical incidents were not being reported because the facility cannot afford to fire abusive staff. Line staff accused other staff of assaulting youth and stated that nothing is done about the abuse.
Similarly, Columbia has staffing shortages and an inability to fill vacant positions. At the time of our on-site
11 We were told that the Attorney General’s Office could not initiate its own inquiry without prior court approval or in conjunction with the Department of Human Services. See MS ST §§ 43-21-353; 43-21-261.

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investigation, Columbia had a hiring freeze and a vacancy rate of approximately 30 percent. The result of the shortage is particularly harmful for the girls. The girls’ cottage is severely overcrowded. Girls are made to sit in a confined lobby area or on the day room floor every evening for at least four hours in silence because staff shortages prevent them from staying in their rooms. Our expert noted a critical shortage of direct care workers. Like Oakley, Columbia’s staffing patterns substantially depart from generally accepted professional practices.
B. Mental Health Care
The Constitution requires that confined juveniles receive adequate medical treatment, including adequate mental health treatment and suicide prevention measures. Hott v. Hennepin County, 260 F.3d 901, 905 (8th Cir. 2001) (citing Williams v. Kelso, 201 F.3d 1060, 1065 (8th Cir. 2000)); Young v. City of Augusta, 59 F.3d 1160, 1169 (11th Cir. 1995); Horn v. Madison County Fiscal Court, 22 F.3d 653, 660 (6th Cir. 1994); Bowring v. Godwin, 551 F.2d 44, 47 (4th Cir. 1977).
Oakley and Columbia house a large population of juveniles who suffer from mental disorders, substance abuse, and suicidal thoughts.12 A July 2001 study funded by the Mississippi Department of Public Safety Division of Public Safety Planning and the Department of Mental Health Division of Children and Youth Services found that between 66 and 85 percent of the incarcerated juvenile offenders in Mississippi “met DSM-IV diagnostic criteria for a mental disorder.”13 The study added that “multiple, co-occurring mental health and substance abuse diagnoses were evident . . . [and] 9% [of the juveniles] had suicidal thoughts and plans.” Oakley and Columbia do not provide adequate services for this vulnerable population. Lack of training, resources, program structure and staffing shortages
12 However, as indicated previously, these youth should be committed to rehabilitation facilities operated by the Mississippi Department of Mental Health. See supra, p. 2.
13 Angela Robertson & Jonelle Husain, Prevalence of Mental Illness and Substance Abuse Disorders Among Incarcerated Juvenile Offenders (2001) (“the Mississippi State University Study”). Robertson and Husain are researchers at Mississippi State University.

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have severely affected Oakley and Columbia’s counseling programs and as a result youth with mental health concerns receive haphazard and cursory treatment.
1. Administration of Psychotropic Medications
The care of youth with severe mental illness requires assessment and management by a psychiatrist, and where medications are prescribed before confinement, the continuation of medications without interruption upon admission to the facilities. The management of youth with mental illness and the administration of psychotropic medications is seriously deficient at Oakley and Columbia.
Many youth on psychiatric medications are not allowed to continue to receive those medications when they are admitted to Oakley or Columbia. The physicians, not the psychiatrists, determine which youth with mental illness will continue to receive their psychotropic medicine while committed. For example, before his admission to Columbia, a youth was treated at a psychiatric hospital and discharged with a prescription for risperdal, which treats the symptoms of schizophrenia. His risperdal was continued in detention and his medicine was sent to Columbia when he was transferred. However, the facility physician discontinued the youth’s risperdal without referring him to the psychiatrist for follow-up treatment. In another case, a youth was hospitalized for mental health treatment and upon release was prescribed psychotropic medications. Upon admission to Columbia, the physician discontinued these medications and made no referral to the psychiatrist. After staff reported the youth’s unacceptable behavior, he was referred to the psychiatrist who, apparently either ignoring or being unaware of the youth’s prior history, prescribed a different medication altogether. The youth was still taking the facilityprescribed medication at the time of our visit, and staff continued to find the youth’s behavior unacceptable.
Physicians should not make decisions about whether a child will continue on most prescribed psychiatric medications. A psychiatrist should evaluate the youth’s medication needs based on a diagnostic interview, a review of records of prior care, and, if necessary, in consultation with the youth’s psychiatrist in the youth’s home community.

-17-
Rarely are the contracted psychiatrists and staff psychologists informed when a child is admitted with or has a history of treatment with psychiatric medicine. Youth with mental illness often are untreated while in the facilities, even though they are admitted with a history of mental illness.
2. Managing Suicidal Youth
Oakley and Columbia fail to employ adequate suicide prevention measures. Activity, positive relationships between staff and youth, individual attention, school, exercise, reading, and counseling are necessary aspects of an adequate adolescent suicide prevention program. Instead, at Columbia, suicidal youth are isolated in SIUs in stripped cells, sometimes naked, are not allowed outdoor exercise, and receive very little schooling or counseling. As previously discussed, some suicidal girls at Columbia are placed in the “dark room.” Furthermore, in the isolation units or SIUs at both facilities, children’s mattresses are taken away during the day, leaving them with the option of lying or sitting on concrete or standing.
Boys at Oakley who are judged to be suicide risks are placed in an empty day room adjacent to the control room where they sit on the floor all day without access to books, school, or outdoor exercise. They also are not permitted to interact with other boys in the room. The counselor assigned to counsel suicidal youth attempts to see each youth once per day, but if she is unavailable, no one provides mental health counseling in her absence.
C. Rehabilitative Treatment
The Constitution requires that youth confined at Oakley and Columbia receive adequate rehabilitative treatment. Morgan v. Sproat, 432 F. Supp. 1130, 1135-36 (S.D. Miss. 1977); Pena v. New York State Division for Youth, 419 F. Supp. 203, 207 (S.D.N.Y. 1976). Oakley and Columbia youth, however, receive inadequate rehabilitative treatment. We found that counselors and psychologists are the staff responsible for rehabilitative treatment. Psychiatrists are contracted for only one day a month at both facilities. The majority of their time is spent conducting forensic evaluations for the court, rather than providing mental health or rehabilitative treatment to youth. Staff assigned to the housing units, such as juvenile correctional officers, function as security and play no role in

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the youths’ rehabilitative treatment. There is little or no interaction between the various disciplines regarding youths’ strengths and needs or rehabilitative treatment. The lack of communication between staff hampers their ability to provide a rehabilitative environment. Indeed, the programs’ current focus on discipline, control, and negative reinforcement fosters an atmosphere where staff demean, belittle, and abuse youth and is not conducive to rehabilitative treatment.
Oakley and Columbia counselors have masters degrees and the qualifications to provide effective rehabilitation, however, with the average caseload of between 20 and 30 youth, individual goals are impossible to achieve. For example, counselors routinely are unable to see youth individually or in group sessions. Moreover, therapy continuity is not maintained because counselors are reassigned when youth move from the basic to the advanced program. Furthermore, counselors are responsible for implementing youths’ individual treatment plans, but are not involved in the development of the plans. Counselors, typically, decide which goals they will work on with the youth and as a result youths receive canned group sessions, such as, “obey authority” or “value an education,” which have little rehabilitative value. A senior mental health employee at Oakley admitted that youth do not receive individualized rehabilitative treatment.
1. Individual Treatment Plans
Both facilities rely solely on individual treatment plans (“ITPs”) provided by the youth court, rather than developing an individualized plan once the youth arrives at the facility. Unfortunately, the courts’ ITPs are not comprehensive and fail to evaluate the youth’s mental health status. Youth are not involved in their own treatment planning, nor are the counselors or the youths’ parents. In addition, youths’ ITPs repeatedly contained the diagnosis of “conduct disorder, alcohol abuse, cannabis abuse, strong borderline and antisocial personality traits.” Given the time constraints, lack of information, and the absence of individual sessions with youth, it is not clear how the youth courts’ psychologists could make appropriate diagnoses. The fact that many diagnoses are remarkably similar heightens this concern.
2. Anti-Therapeutic Conditions

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Many of the conditions at Columbia do not promote rehabilitation or good mental health, but instead cause depression and mental deterioration. In the evenings, youth are required to sit in silence for large blocks of time while they sort their clothes, clean their boots, or for girls, braid each other’s hair. This time could be better spent productively engaged in activity and learning. The environment as it currently exists invites acting out by youth and the abusive institutional practices that too often follow. For example, youth are forced to perform physical exercise and threatened with SIU if they are caught talking to each other. In fact, youth expressed frustration at the wasted time and lack of rehabilitation services being offered in the evenings. Lack of activity, social interaction, and counseling assistance put youth at risk for depression.
Many of the conditions at Oakley and Ironwood, similarly, are harsh and do not promote rehabilitation. Oakley’s SIU is purportedly used to address the needs of the most vulnerable boys, but instead, functions like an adult prison. Instead of addressing the boys’ mental health or rehabilitative treatment needs, boys are either locked in isolated cells (where they are sometimes also shackled) or shackled and forced to perform work details around the campus in order to earn their way out of the SIU. They are not permitted to attend school or receive any educational instruction, and are provided limited access to counseling. Except for work details, the boys are permitted out of their cells only once a day to exercise in the hallway, but must eat their meals in their cells.
On the day of our arrival to Oakley, we observed a 13-yearold boy sitting in a restraint chair near the Ironwood control room. Reportedly, he was placed in the restraint chair to prevent self-mutilation. No staff approached him, and he was not allowed to attend school or receive programming, counseling, or medication. This boy had been severely sexually and physically abused by family members and had been in several psychiatric hospitals prior to being sent to Ironwood. Just before our arrival, he had been locked naked in his empty cell. His cell smelled of urine, and we observed torn pieces of toilet paper on the concrete floor that he had been using as a pillow.
3. The Military Program

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The use of paramilitary programs at youth training schools is not, in itself, unconstitutional. However, our experts noted, and it is generally accepted, that four segments of the youth population at Oakley and Columbia are particularly unsuitable for paramilitary programs: younger boys, girls, youth with developmental disabilities, and youth who are emotionally or physically fragile.
The disciplinary practices are particularly harmful to the younger boys at Columbia who are physically, emotionally, or psychologically unable to participate fully in the training program. Young boys at Columbia are not developmentally suited to benefit from the military approach. Many staff perceived that this particular population was noncompliant and anti-authority, when in reality, many of the boys are merely active third, fourth and fifth graders with short attention spans. The result is that the younger boys stay at Columbia longer because they are considered behavior problems. A Columbia counselor told us:
You can’t change developmental stages. They are not ready. They are playful . . . . The young kids usually stay longer, usually four to six months -there is no tolerance for their silly behavior, so they have to start over. Many have ADHD [Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder], and they have an especially hard time, partly because the doctor here usually takes them off medication -- they are not really defiant, but they can’t be judged the same as the older kids. I do a lot of counseling with young kids who cry and really miss their families. They get depressed.
Additionally, the counselor stated that a suggestion had been made by other counselors to place at least the younger boys in a separate unit. However, they were told there was insufficient staff to run it. In our experts’ opinions, the military program is ineffective and harmful for younger boys.
Columbia’s paramilitary program also is unsuitable for some of the troubled girls it serves. Our expert noted that girls may make some self-esteem gains in physically challenging programs but the girls at Columbia are deriving no benefits, physical or otherwise, from the program that is currently being administered. Harsh disciplinary practices are characterized as training. A June 2002 log book entry shows that a facility manager punished a girl by requiring her to sleep one hour and walk one hour for two

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successive nights. This same girl also had to eat every meal standing for one week thereafter. These punishments are largely unregulated and in some cases endorsed by supervisory personnel because they are considered military training. From a juvenile justice and mental health perspective, the military program is inappropriate for girls who have a history of being victimized and abused either physically or sexually.
A paramilitary program also is inappropriate for youth with learning or developmental disabilities. Youth are only permitted to move to the ‘advanced’ unit once they have met behavioral objectives and passed a written and oral test on military procedures. Youth with learning or developmental disabilities have difficulty passing the test and serve longer commitments because they cannot move beyond the basic phase of the program. One counselor stated that, “[a]t least ten percent are developmentally slow, and the staff don’t understand lowfunctioning kids. They can’t make it.” For example, staff made fun of a girl who had both physical and cognitive impairments. This girl was just learning to read and was unable to earn a grade higher than 70 on the military test the youth must pass in order to move from the basic to the advanced phase of the program. Her peers were concerned that she would never be able to pass the test. Youth with learning and developmental disabilities are particularly inappropriate for the programs offered at Oakley and Columbia.
Finally, youth who are physically or emotionally fragile are singled out and made to feel worse because of their fragility. Boys at Oakley reported staff routinely picked on boys who were small in size, emotionally sensitive, or had difficulty adjusting to the military program. Some, but not all, of these boys may be placed in Unit Two’s Magnolia Cottage for boys who for medical or psychological reasons are considered inappropriate for the physical training component of the military program. However, boys in Magnolia Cottage are verbally and physically abused by staff during non-physical components of the military program as often as the emotionally and physically vulnerable boys in other cottages. A 15-year-old former resident of Magnolia Cottage who was moved to the SIU told us that he tried to perform well in the non-physical aspects of the program but was sensitive to being teased by staff and had difficulty controlling his reactions, which precipitated his being sent to isolation in SIU. The Magnolia Cottage residents confirmed his account. Again, from a juvenile justice and a mental health perspective, the

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paramilitary training program, even when the physical aspects are eliminated, is not only ineffective, but harmful to such youth.
D. Medical and Dental Care
Youth at Columbia and Oakley receive inadequate medical and dental care.
1. Quality of Care
Staff shortages and a lack of medical leadership have greatly affected the ability of staff to provide necessary medical services to youth at Oakley and Columbia. No one is accountable for Oakley and Columbia’s medical program. Neither the facility director nor anyone in the Division of Youth Services or the Department of Human Services is directly responsible for primary care at either facility.
Columbia has only two full-time Licensed Practical Nurses (LPNs) providing services for a 200 bed juvenile facility with an average of 13 new admissions every week. Oakley has five fulltime LPNs and a full-time contract RN servicing a population that can reach up to 400 with 15 to 25 new admissions every week. At Oakley and Columbia, LPNs are unsupervised and given responsibilities beyond their scope of practice. In short, the LPNs are practicing medicine without a license.
Oakley and Columbia do not have full-time physician assistants or nurse practitioners on staff and both have several vacant nursing positions. Oakley’s contract physician sees patients approximately four hours per week with half of his time performing clinical exams on new admissions; Columbia’s contract physician sees patients three hours per week. The physicians at Oakley and Columbia are contracted solely for clinical care and have no responsibility for the nursing staff or ensuring that policies and procedures are followed. The result is that access to adequate medical care is very limited. Also, responses to health issues such as chronic disease care and health education are virtually non-existent.
Columbia and Oakley routinely fail to continue youths’ preexisting medical regimens after they are committed to the training schools. At Columbia, medicines are often discontinued upon arrival. Even asthmatic youth do not receive follow-up care to ensure that their cases are being managed. For example, a

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girl was admitted to Columbia with a history of asthma. She was not asked about her medical history during her initial exam. She subsequently told the nurse about her inhaler and that it prevented asthma attacks if used prior to exercise. The youth never received an inhaler. While performing exercises, she began to have an asthma attack. She was not allowed to see the nurse and was told to continue to exercise or be punished for disobedience. In a highly restricted environment where access to medical services is limited, acutely asthmatic youth must have routine, scheduled follow-up care.
We found that nurses at Oakley do not routinely follow-up with youth after providing rescue inhalers. Poor care can cause severe illness in youth as the following example illustrates: A youth was admitted to Oakley in May 2002. He had a history of asthma and was hospitalized for acute asthma one month prior to his admission to Oakley. Several asthma medications were sent with him to Oakley including singulair and maxair. These and all other medications were discontinued upon his arrival. Moreover, medical staff made no attempt to find out his prior medical history. Two days after his admission, he developed acute asthma and suffered from shortness of breath, coughing, and wheezing for at least a week. The only treatment provided by the nurse was a rescue inhaler. The youth was finally examined by the physician who noted that his vital signs were significantly abnormal, but sent the youth back to his cottage without treatment. Another five days passed before the youth was permitted a consultation with an asthma specialist who subsequently prescribed singulair and maxair.
The facilities fail to maintain equipment or lack equipment to provide essential emergency services. Columbia’s medical clinic contained old, rusty, dirty, and sharp equipment stored in easily-accessible places such as unlocked drawers and trays on the counter in the examination room. Equipment that could be stolen easily and used as weapons such as scissors, razor blades and even a scalpel blade were left unattended and readily accessible to youth on a cart in the exam room rather than securely stored. The medical clinics at both facilities do not carry adequate emergency or medical equipment. For instance, the clinics do not carry oxygen or syringes which are necessary for emergencies, or basic medical equipment such as needles with engineered controls used to prevent injury to health staff.

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Staff fail to follow basic universal precautions which have led to dangerous health hazards for youth in the facilities. A nurse at Oakley was observed by our expert giving one resident a pre-filled syringe of the hepatitis B immunization. She accidentally inserted the same needle into the arm of the next resident before realizing her mistake. Moreover, a scalpel blade is repeatedly used by Columbia’s facility physician to shave warts, permitting the transmission of blood-borne pathogens from patient to patient. In violation of standard medical practice and at the risk of contamination, Oakley staff store food in the same refrigerator as pharmaceuticals such as immunizations and control solutions to analyze blood. Our expert noted that the Oakley physician conducted nine examinations in one day and never changed the roll of paper that lined the surface of the examination table.
2. Health Assessments
Columbia and Oakley’s health assessments are incomplete, and necessary intake services are not provided. Both facilities fail to give tuberculosis skin tests upon admission even though Mississippi is in the top quartile of states with annual incidence of the disease. Moreover, identified medical histories are not pursued. For example, a girl at Columbia had a history of thrombocytopenia.14 No platelet count was obtained upon admission to assess the status of disease activity or to determine risk of internal bleeding. This is of great concern because she is expected to be a full participant in the military program. Furthermore, abnormal medical findings are not pursued. For example, a youth at Columbia with a significantly low hematocrit15 did not receive further evaluation by the contract physician or a specialist, nor did the youth receive any treatment. A female patient, also at Columbia, with a green vaginal discharge noted during her admission physical examination was neither referred to the gynecologist nor provided treatment. At Oakley, a patient who had blood in his urine was not referred to the contract physician and received no evaluation or treatment. Another boy with a history of asthma was admitted to
14 Thrombocytopenia is a disease of the blood in which there are too few platelets. It is a condition that interferes with clotting.
15 A low hematocrit means that there is a lower than normal level of red blood cells.

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Oakley. Intake medical staff did not note this on his initial health assessment and other staff were reportedly unaware of his asthma until he suffered from shortness of breath for several days while in military training. At both facilities, past health records from medical providers and basic but necessary health information from parents or guardians are almost never obtained or requested.
3. Sick Call
Youth must be provided sick call in a clinical setting where they can discuss health problems confidentially with a qualified clinician. Neither Oakley nor Columbia have an adequate sick call protocol. At Columbia, youth must verbally tell cottage staff that they need to see the nurse. Staff sometimes disregard the requests, and other times call the nurse to evaluate the problem. The nurse may or may not see the child depending on what the staff tells her about the problem over the telephone. Youth may have an opportunity to see the nurse when she makes medication rounds in the cottages or at other times she happens to be in the cottages. This evaluation is not done confidentially, but where cottage staff and other residents are present. The Acting Head Nurse reportedly curses at youth, ignores medical requests, fails to provide medical advice to girls about their female conditions, and consistently prevents youth’s access to the doctor. This nurse has denied assistance to girls who felt faint and dizzy from exercising in the heat. In one instance, a girl was injured after falling on her knee which swelled into a large knot. Staff allowed her to see the Acting Head nurse in the cafeteria. The nurse did nothing for her knee. When this youth saw another nurse, she referred her to the physician who treated her knee.
4. Inadequate Dental Care
Columbia and Oakley do not have adequate dental programs. The medical policies and procedures for both facilities do not require routine initial dental assessments. Initial dental assessments and treatment should be part of the overall health assessment of every youth admitted to Oakley and Columbia. Columbia has not had a contract dentist since December 2001. Therefore, dental screening, examination, and oral hygiene, among other important components of an adequate dental care program, were non-existent. It appears that when Columbia did have a dentist, the only services that were provided were extractions.

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Dental treatment is necessary to both maintain and restore oral structures.
The dental program at Oakley raised additional concerns. The dentist did not provide adequate dental examinations. His dental assessments involved a simple inspection of the mouth without the aid of a light or a dental explorer. We learned that the dentist’s contract was not renewed after our first tour. However, it is unclear whether Oakley has contracted with another dentist for services. In any case, no dentist should provide services to youth in the dental clinic we observed. The clinic was extremely dirty and contained mouse droppings and cob webs. Medications in the cabinets had expired between 1991 and 1995. Needles and other instruments were lying on counters and in unlocked drawers. We recommended during our first tour of Oakley that the dental clinic be shut down immediately until it is thoroughly cleaned.
E. Education
Youth at Oakley and Columbia are entitled to an adequate education and vocational training during commitment. Morgan v. Sproat, 432 F. Supp. 1130, 1140-41 (S.D. Miss. 1977) (Oakley must provide sufficient education, vocational training and recreation). The State also is obligated to provide a free and appropriate education to qualified students under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (“IDEA”) and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. Some of the core provisions of the IDEA include parental notification, identification of students who may be eligible for special education, evaluation of new admissions, and individual education plan development and revisions. However, Oakley and Columbia fail to provide these and other general education services such as ensuring that youth receive the required number of class hours per day and educational services within a reasonable amount of time after commitment. They also fail to provide most special education services and fail to properly screen for youth who may be in need of such services.
1. Delay in Providing Educational Services
Oakley and Columbia youth do not attend school for several weeks after admission. At Oakley, the administrator, school principal, staff, and youth told us that youth committed for the first time receive no education for three weeks. Youth who are

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re-committed receive no education for five weeks. We also found that youth were denied access to education services for periods longer than three and five weeks. We found that Oakley did not have any policies governing these practices, which violate the Mississippi Compulsory School Attendance Law.16 Pursuant to policy, Columbia youth do not attend school for the first three weeks or more after admission which also is a violation of state compulsory attendance laws and the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. See Donnell C. v. Illinois State Board of Education, 829 F. Supp. 1016, 1018-19 (N.D. Ill. 1993). Unless unforeseen circumstances occur, youth should be provided with educational services soon after admission in accordance with state and federal law.
2. General Education
Although we encountered some well-intentioned teachers and school administrators at both facilities, the structural problems of the school program coupled with the absence of support and resources results in an education program that is sorely inadequate and fails to meet the needs of students.
(a) Programming at Columbia and Oakley
Columbia has strengths that can be improved upon, such as a school environment that is conducive to learning, properly certified teachers who are given adequate time for planning, adequate space and educational materials, a computer lab, a wellequipped library, and a GED program for age-appropriate girls. In comparison, Oakley’s program suffers from a serious lack of leadership and little staff support. Oakley’s principal admitted that his focus is on Unit Two, leaving the Unit One school program to be administered by an interim facility administrator and Ironwood to be run by a teacher. Oakley’s SIU has no school program. Youth in Unit Two at Oakley were observed simply sitting in class rooms and not engaged in any school work. Teachers typically provide little instruction there or in
16 We have been informed since our education tour of Oakley that it was changing the structure of its military and education programs to provide youth with education services within one week of admission. We were not provided with documentation of how this transition was to occur nor the current status of its implementation.

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Ironwood. The youth in Unit One, however, appeared to be engaged in class room activity.
Most youth at Oakley and Columbia are not receiving the full state mandated class time, which is a violation of Mississippi’s compulsory education laws.17 Youth routinely are pulled from class for significant periods of time to perform work details or participate in “recreation” such as card playing, contributing to this violation.
Oakley and Columbia do not have policies to ensure that youth are placed in appropriate classes, have balanced class sizes or are taught appropriate subject matter. Moreover, an analysis of class subjects taken by youth shows that youth are not receiving the full benefit of class instruction in core subjects at either Columbia or Oakley. The population of youth at Columbia and Oakley include those with severe academic deficiencies who function well-below grade level. Yet, only 40 percent of Columbia youth attend classes in the four core academic subjects: math, English, social studies, and science. Otherwise, youth are enrolled in classes such as “Life Skills” and “Family Dynamics.” In light of the population that Columbia serves, these elective courses should be a supplement to the four core subjects, not in place of them. Some core academic courses at Columbia were linked into one class such as “math/science” and “reading/social studies.” While there is a logical integration of these subjects, youth are unable to master all of the competencies required for both courses during a single class period. This is troubling because youths’ grades are forwarded to home schools, reflecting credit for two core classes when they instructionally receive less than that.
Furthermore, Columbia does not employ substitute teachers to cover classes when teachers are sick or on vacation. When a teacher is absent, youth are regularly placed in “overflow” which means that youth are divided into other classes in session during that time period. Youth reported that they were not given any work to do in these situations, but were required to sit in the class and be silent. There also are no substitute teachers employed at Oakley for absent teachers.
17 Even though Oakley’s and Columbia’s education structure provides for the State mandated 330 minutes of instruction, a majority of the students do not receive 330 minutes of instruction per day.

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School records from youths’ home schools should be obtained so that youth are placed in appropriate classes at Oakley and Columbia. However, we found that youths’ files rarely contained public school records. Neither facility had a protocol for receiving records from non-responsive school systems. We were told during our tour at Columbia that the school planned to be linked to the Mississippi Student Information System which will provide access to youths’ most recent transcripts. However, until that connection is made, Columbia and Oakley must develop a system for receiving and maintaining permanent and cumulative records containing academic information.
(b) Education services for youth in disciplinary isolation
Youth are not provided with adequate education in the SIUs at Oakley and Columbia. The lack of education in the SIUs at Columbia was the most glaring denial of access to education services in the facilities. Youth can be locked up for two or more weeks without attending school. If a youth is “committed” to the SIU program, then a youth is in lock-up for several months and education is limited and often-times sporadic. The boys in SIU who had access to educational programming received approximately 45 minutes to an hour of class time less than two days per week and did not receive any instruction the week prior to our visit. In addition, all of the boys in the SIU class received the same work assignments despite differences in their ages, abilities, and academic levels. Girls received only two hours of education per day, except on Tuesdays when no academic classes were held.
At Oakley, youth in the SIU are denied education for the duration of their confinement. Confinement may be for one to seven or more days and students may be sent back to the SIU successively, causing even more disruption in their education. The Ironwood program has one unsupervised teacher responsible for teaching up to 25 youth. Youth in Ironwood receive approximately three hours of instruction two days per week, but not all students receive the benefit of this minimal programming. Some who had been locked in Ironwood 90 days or more reported rarely being taken out of their cells for class and others reported being given materials in their cells, but given no pencils, which limited their ability to do the assignments. We respect the facilities’ legitimate security concerns, however, youth committed to the SIUs should have access to the full range of

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educational services in order for Columbia and Oakley to be in compliance with Mississippi compulsory education laws.
3. Special Education
The problems we encountered with the provision of special education services at both facilities were pervasive. Oakley and Columbia fail to follow key provisions of the IDEA and other special education services mandates. School administrators at both facilities were either unaware of the IDEA or erroneously believed their schools were exempt from its requirements. For instance, Oakley’s principal believed Oakley was exempt from core IDEA provisions because of an agreement between the Mississippi Department of Human Services and Mississippi Department of Education. Oakley and Columbia are not exempt from the IDEA.
(a) Screening, evaluation and identification
Pursuant to the IDEA, Oakley and Columbia are responsible for screening, evaluating, and identifying youths suspected of having a qualifying disability which would entitle them to special education services. Yet, neither facility has a structured mechanism to screen potentially eligible youth. The facilities rely heavily on school records from community schools to identify youth eligible for special education services. However, youth may not have been attending school regularly prior to their commitment, so reliance on school records alone is not enough. Furthermore, as discussed earlier, we found that youths’ files rarely contained public school records. The IDEA requires that eligibility be determined by a team of qualified professionals, the child, and the parent or guardian, if available.
Furthermore, we found that ineligible youth are being placed in special education while many other students who may be eligible are never identified and denied access to services in violation of federal law. At Oakley, a youth was given four segments of special education services a day, but the special education teacher could not identify the student’s eligibility for these classes. The student’s file contained no information regarding the reason for placement in special education courses. When asked why this student was in special education, the teacher responded that the student did not do well in math. Six other students’ files contained no information documenting the reason for their placement in special education classes. Another

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student was receiving four segments of special education services per day as required by his expired individual education plan. However, his psychological report indicated that his IQ was 66 which brings the appropriateness of his placement at Oakley into question, given that youth with mental retardation are not supposed to be placed at Oakley or Columbia.
(b) Individual Education Plans
The foundation of the special education process is the development and implementation of an individual education plan (“IEP”) for each qualified youth. See Honig v. Doe, 484 U.S. 305, 311 (1988); see also 34 C.F.R. § 300.341(a). The facilities have failed to create a system of developing, implementing, monitoring, and reviewing students’ IEPs. None of the special education teachers at Oakley were able to produce a current, valid IEP for any of the youth in their classes. Furthermore, IEPs contained identical, rather than individualized, goals and objectives. IEPs did not contain, for example, statements of present levels of performance or measurable annual goals and objectives as required by law, and no IEP meetings have been held, in part, because teachers and administrators were unaware that youth must be re-evaluated periodically to keep IEPs current. Eligible youth must have an IEP completed for each school year. Schools must offer a continuum of placement options for special education students. Oakley only has two of the four options available while Columbia has no options available for eligible youth.
Parents and guardians at Columbia and Oakley are not notified regarding evaluations, eligibility determinations, placements, or provision of special education services. Parent or guardian participation in every step of the process is a guiding principle of the IDEA which is being violated by both facilities.
(c) Related and Transition Services
Related services, such as individual and family counseling, speech pathology, and psychological services, must be provided where indicated so that youth receive the maximum benefit of special education. See 34 C.F.R. § 300.24. The few related services that had been available at Columbia have been discontinued and they have never been provided at Oakley.

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Children eligible for special education 14 years of age and older also are entitled to transition services. Transition services include vocational training, continuing education, or employment services. Columbia provides no transition services for students’ re-entry into their home communities -- another violation of federal law. Oakley offers some limited opportunities for vocational training. However, only students who achieve a certain score on the Test of Adult Basic Education are permitted to take the vocational courses. This requirement typically excludes special education children and limits Oakley’s ability to provide legally-required transition services. The vocational program should be expanded and made more inclusive, particularly in the provision of transitional services to special education students.
F. Religion
Religious activities can further a juvenile facility’s rehabilitative mission. Moreover, Oakley and Columbia must allow youth to engage in religious exercise through voluntary religious activities, unless the facilities can demonstrate that curtailing such activities would be the least restrictive means of achieving a compelling governmental interest. See Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act of 2000, 42 U.S.C. § 2000cc. However, Oakley and Columbia’s interests in affording youth the benefits of religious activities have led to the “establishment” of religion in violation of the First Amendment by coercing youth to engage in specific religious activities.
During our first visit to Oakley, we observed youth-led prayer during the graduation ceremony which occurs every Wednesday morning and which youth in Unit Two are required to attend or face discipline. Furthermore, Oakley staff informed us that for two weeks following our visit, the youth would be attending Vacation Bible School. We observed posters containing religious material such as the “The Lord’s Prayer” and other Bible verses hanging on the walls in military training classrooms and in counseling rooms in the cottages. Mandatory prayer and the posting of religious literature in the common areas of state facilities for youth violates the Establishment Clause. See Engel v. Vitale, 370 U.S. 421 (1962) (holding that classroom prayer at the beginning of each school day violates the Establishment Clause); Stone v. Graham, 449 U.S. 39, 39 (1981) (finding that posting the Ten Commandments on the walls of classrooms violates the Establishment Clause).

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At Columbia, youth are required to attend religious services at the church every Sunday. Some girls reported they would be subject to discipline if they did not sing during services. The facility administrator stated that youth had the option of not attending the Sunday worship services if they chose not to, but both boys and girls indicated that attending Sunday worship services was a requirement or they would be disciplined. Youth also must participate in a religious service in their cottages every Tuesday evening or face discipline. The only reading material the children in the SIUs and some of the housing units are allowed to possess is the Bible. We witnessed a mandatory group counseling session in the boys’ SIU in which youth were required to read Bible verses and sing religious songs.
In each of these cases, youth were required to engage in specific religious activities and were subject to disciplinary action if they did not participate. As discussed above, these are the same types of activities that the Supreme Court has found to amount to the State sponsorship of particular religious beliefs. Moreover, none of these activities are required to maintain facility security or for any other operational purpose. Therefore, these activities violate the Establishment Clause.
We emphasize that we are not suggesting that all religious practices at Oakley or Columbia must stop. In fact, the Free Exercise Clause of the First Amendment protects the youths’ rights to engage in voluntary religious activity. In light of the unique nature of the correctional setting, facilitating juveniles’ religious exercise may require a degree of State involvement in religious activities that would not be appropriate in other settings. For example, courts have held that it is permissible for the State to pay for chaplains in order to accommodate the religious exercise of those under State custody and control. See Katcoff v. Marsh, 755 F.2d 223 (2d Cir. 1985) (upholding military chaplaincy program); Carter v. Broadlawns Medical Center, 857 F.2d 448 (8th Cir. 1988), cert. denied, 489 U.S. 1096 (1989) (holding the county hospital’s hiring of chaplain did not violate the Establishment Clause). Likewise, while having a chapel in a public school would clearly violate the Constitution, chapels are present in most large correctional facilities. Similarly, substance abuse programs that incorporate faith, such as Alcoholics Anonymous, are used by correctional facilities and probation departments throughout the country. Such programs are permissible under the Establishment Clause, though participants objecting to the religious elements must be

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given a secular alternative if participation is mandatory. See Warner v. Orange County Dep’t of Probation, 115 F.3d 1068 (2d Cir. 1997).
To comply with the Constitution, Oakley and Columbia need not excise religion from their facilities or programs. However, they must ensure that they do not coerce the youth to engage in religious activities by making all such activities voluntary. Also, the exhibition of religious posters in common areas should be limited to areas where the juveniles are voluntarily present, such as a room where a religious service or religious instruction is being held.
G. Safety and Sanitation
1. Oakley
Oakley’s buildings and grounds are unsafe and unsanitary, creating unconstitutional confinement conditions for youth.
(a) Physical Plant
Oakley’s campus contains old administration buildings and housing units which require constant upkeep and maintenance. Unfortunately, Oakley’s maintenance staff consists of four employees who have received little or no training. These four individuals are required to maintain all of the buildings, control pest and rodent infestation, and mow and landscape the expansive grounds. There is no facility safety officer.
(1) Administration Buildings
The medical and dental clinics pose numerous safety hazards to Oakley’s youth and staff. The Unit II Medical Clinic is a decrepit building with many water leaks that have created structural damage. The isolation room within the building is not equipped or constructed for its purpose which is to isolate youth with respiratory or gastrointestinal problems. Even more concerning is that there is no sterilization equipment in the clinic to clean medical instruments. Moreover, supplies and equipment were not properly stored to maintain any kind of sterilization. The dental clinic had not been cleaned in many months because we observed dirt, spider webs, mouse droppings, and dead roaches everywhere. It was apparent that the clinic has a major insect and rodent infestation.

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The kitchen had several deficiencies. First, rodent and insect infestation are causing unsanitary conditions. We saw mouse droppings in the food storage areas and live and dead cockroaches in the kitchen. Kitchen staff stated that they had to cover food while cooking to prevent cockroaches from falling in from the hood above the stove. Youth also complained about finding roaches in their food. Many areas of the kitchen were unclean and some areas invited roach infestation. Second, water temperatures in the kitchen created unsafe conditions. The temperatures were high enough to cause first degree burns in a matter of seconds. Also, the water temperature and pressure in the dishwashing machine were improperly set so that dishes were not always clean.
The vocational training area, which includes the auto-body, small engine repair, welding, and carpentry shops, had a number of safety hazards. Our expert observed numerous mislabeled or unlabeled chemicals stored around the trade areas. There were no “Material Safety Data Sheets” relating to the chemicals in these areas, which inform staff how to handle and store this type of material. The sheets also provide important safety and emergency information on the chemicals. For example, a “chemical reducer” was located uncovered on a shelf in the auto-body shop, where the warning label clearly warns against this. Also, gas cylinders used for torches and welding were not properly secured. This fact, coupled with the fact that the areas have no fire sprinkler system and that the fire extinguishers have not been properly inspected, creates an extreme fire hazard. Furthermore, the exhaust system in the painting booth was inoperable.
The gymnasium at Oakley is supposed to be used for recreation. Unfortunately, during our visit much of it was unuseable because of water leaks from the roof. The locker rooms, showers, and stage area were not operable because of disrepair and flooding. The boy’s restroom was dirty and the floor was in disrepair. The girl’s restroom was in poor repair and had no hot water.
(2) Housing Units
The housing units at Oakley are divided into dormitories and cottages in Unit II and pods in Unit I, Ironwood, and the SIU. Two older cottages in Unit II, Cypress and White cottages, are in extremely poor physical condition. Cypress and White cottages suffer from age and deterioration and are not regularly

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maintained. We observed the following problems in Cypress: paint peeling from ceiling and walls, three out of the four urinals were not operational, three of the eight showers were not operational, and showers were only operable through the control room. In other Unit II, SIU, and Ironwood housing, many bathrooms had not been maintained properly with walls and ceilings in poor repair and many washbasins, showers, and toilets not operable. Furthermore, SIU and Ironwood’s housing set-up does not allow youth access to toilets or washbasins without getting the attention of staff. Youth also share one bar of soap during showers.
The housing units suffer from numerous other problems. Lighting in the living units varied greatly. There were numerous areas in which the lighting was so poor that it invited accidents and certainly eyestrain. Hot water temperatures varied substantially between the housing units. Temperatures varied between 81 and 135 degrees. Air temperature and humidity were generally in the acceptable range, but a few living units were extremely cold because of too much air conditioning. There were numerous examples of mis-stored chemicals and cleaning supplies, such as, a dirty mop head stored next to clean sheets and underwear. Many of the youth’s mattresses were worn far beyond their useful life. In this condition, they cannot be adequately cleaned or sanitized and are fire safety risks. Youth sleep on the floor in crowded housing units or if the youth is on suicide precautions.
(b) Pest Control
In addition to what has already been discussed above, pest control in the housing units at Oakley is woefully lacking. There were rat burrows behind Cypress cottage, mice and roaches in the Unit I medical clinic, and roach infestations in Elm cottage and the SIU.
(c) Fire Safety
In an April 2002 fire inspection report, a fire marshal determined that four of the living units and the Unit II school did not have an operable fire alarm system. The report also found that the staff lacked adequate training and understanding for emergency situations. At the time of our visit three months later, these issues still had not been addressed. Other fire safety concerns included: emergency generators that required

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hand cranking; Pine cottage’s only fire extinguisher was partially discharged; Cypress cottage’s only fire extinguisher was behind a locked door and the fire exit was locked and barred; and generally staff had a difficult time finding the right keys for fire extinguishers and fire exits.
2. Columbia
In general, we found the Columbia facility in better condition than the Oakley campus,18 but found the following problems: (1) potentially dangerous areas in the housing units for youth with suicidal ideation;19 and (2) sweltering temperatures in the girl’s SIU with girls having no access to water.
H. Other Juvenile Justice Issues
1. Lack of Due Process
Youth routinely are locked in isolation in the SIUs at Oakley and Columbia, and in Ironwood at Oakley, without adequate due process. As a general rule, juveniles may be isolated and locked briefly in their rooms as an immediate response to out-ofcontrol behavior that may endanger the youth, other children, or staff. However, extended isolation for punitive purposes may only be imposed if the youth is afforded notice of the charges and after an informal hearing before a staff member not involved in the incident. Moreover, the youth should be able to appeal adverse results of the due process hearing. Cf. H.C. v. Jarrard, 786 F.2d 1080, 1082 (11th Cir. 1986); Gary H. v. Hegstrom, 831 F.2d 1430, 1443 (9th Cir. 1987); Patterson v. Hopkins, 481 F.2d 640, 641 (5th Cir. 1973). Both Oakley and Columbia have policies detailing adequate due process procedures to which youth are entitled before being placed in disciplinary isolation. However, actual practices at both facilities deviate substantially from written policy. For example, a disciplinary committee at
18 At Columbia, there were some general maintenance issues for some of the older housing units.
19 For example, we observed metal hooks for hanging uniforms in the hallways of most of the basic and advanced housing areas. Metal grating with openings large enough to tie off a hanging device was found in several cells in the girls’ SIU.

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Columbia hears complaints against youth. However, if a youth appears before the Committee and testifies to something other than what the staff attests to, the youth is typically given added time or punishment. Youth sent to the SIUs do not receive the benefit of the committee hearing prior to removal from the cottages and in fact may be confined in isolation for several days before they receive word regarding their punishment or release back to the cottages. Hearings are not provided to students at Oakley when they are removed from the open cottages and sent to Unit One, the SIU, or Ironwood. Youth reported, and the documentation we reviewed showed, that youth are routinely removed to the secure, locked units based on recommendations from the psychologist, the facility administrator, or the director of the Division of Youth Services, without the opportunity for a hearing.
2. Grievance Process
Columbia and Oakley youth have no ability to access a grievance system designed to address their complaints regarding their treatment at the facilities. Generally accepted professional standards mandate that youth should have readily available access to a grievance process. Where courts have considered this, they have uniformly found that detained youth have a constitutional right to file grievances with facility administrators regarding their treatment. Bradley v. Hall, 64 F.3d 1276, 1279 (9th Cir. 1995); D.B. v. Tewksbury, 545 F. Supp. 896, 905 (D.Or. 1982); Morales v. Turman, 364 F. Supp. 166, 175 (E.D. Tex. 1973). An objective grievance system should be well known to youth at Oakley and Columbia and be easily accessible. Grievances also provide an important quality-control mechanism by which Oakley and Columbia administrators can monitor whether facility staff are adhering to policies and procedures.
3. Staff Training
Many of the deficiencies we identified at each facility can be directly attributed to lack of training. Staff at both facilities lacked adequate training in behavioral management techniques, assessment of suicidal youth, crisis management, psychiatric medications, therapeutic techniques, verbal communication and de-escalation, and working with violent juveniles. Staff also need to be trained in properly documenting serious incidents, use of physical and chemical restraints, and visual checks of youth locked in cells. Nurses at Oakley and

-39
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Columbia are not provided training to improve their skills and clinical competency and are not regularly trained and certified in CPR. Staff at Oakley had not received any training in CPR, first aid, or other medical issues in recent years. Staff at both facilities are ill-equipped to handle emergencies.
4. Mail, Telephone, and Visitation
Youth have the right to send and receive written communications through the postal service. See Milonas v. Williams, 691 F.2d 931, 939 (10th Cir. 1982). Both Oakley and Columbia’s policies state that incoming and outgoing mail will not be read by staff unless there is reasonable cause to believe the mail is a threat to the security of the institution or another individual, or contains sexually explicit or obscene matter. Youth at Columbia reported that their mail was censored. Reportedly, correspondence to family or to youth court judges which mentioned anything negative about Columbia or the Columbia staff was not mailed. At both facilities, many youth indicated that they were not given regular opportunities to write their families. Overly-restrictive practices with respect to mail, telephone, and visitation work together to deny youth in both facilities the ability to communicate with their families, communities, and attorneys.
Additionally, youth cannot make or receive telephone calls at Oakley and Columbia. Families are permitted visits for only two hours on Sunday. Many youth reported that families could not visit because of the youth’s placement in a facility far from home combined with such limited visitation opportunities. This forced estrangement from their families negatively impacts youths’ abilities to achieve success at the facilities.
5. Lack of Opportunities for Exercise at Ironwood
Ironwood staff do not allow youth to go outside for exercise in the recreation yard attached to the building. During our first tour, more than half of the youth had been in Ironwood longer than 90 days. One youth had been confined in Ironwood for nearly two years and reported that he had never been allowed

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outside even though there is a secure court in the back of the facility. This is unhealthy and inhumane, and unlawful.20

III.

REMEDIAL MEASURES

In order to rectify the identified deficiencies and protect the constitutional and statutory rights of the youth confined at Oakley and Columbia, the facilities should implement, at a minimum, the following measures:

A. Protection from Harm

1. Ensure that any imposition of discipline is appropriate and justified by a legitimate, appropriate penological interest. Ensure that abusive institutional practices such as hogtying, pole shackling, “sitting in a chair,” “guard duty,” making youth run with tires around their bodies, use of the “dark room” in the girls’ SIU at Columbia, and requiring youth to strip naked before being placed in isolation, are ceased immediately.

2. Ensure that juveniles are adequately protected from staff abuse. Employ sufficient trained and independent investigators to ensure that all incidents of violence, use of force, or serious injury are adequately investigated and that appropriate personnel actions are taken in response to substantiated findings. Ensure that OC spray is used only where there is an imminent risk of serious bodily harm and no other less intrusive restraint is available. Ensure that all uses of OC spray or mechanical or chemical restraints are well-documented and reviewed in a timely manner by senior administrators.

3. Develop and implement adequate quality assurance mechanisms and review to ensure the efficacy of corrective measures.

B. Mental Health Care

20 Youth in confinement “must receive at least an hour’s physical exercise out of the [unit] or in the gym . . . .” Morgan v. Sproat, 432 F. Supp. 1130, 1140 (S.D. Miss. 1977). Youth “should have at least one to two hours of recreation each weekday and two to four hours on weekends, when they are not in school.” Id. at 1154.

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1. Provide adequate mental health and rehabilitative treatment.
2. Ensure that there are an adequate number of counselors and psychologists and an adequate amount of contracted psychiatric hours to provide adequate mental health and rehabilitative treatment services to all youth who require such services.
3. Ensure that all youth with mental health needs have current comprehensive individual treatment plans, and that the youth, and facility counselors, are involved in their development.
4. Develop and implement policies and procedures that comply with generally accepted professional standards for the management of suicidal youth.
5. Ensure that restraints and isolation other than disciplinary isolation are used only when a youth presents a clear and present danger to him/herself or others. Provide adequate positive behavior management programs.
6. Cease placement of youth in isolation cells for prolonged periods. Ensure that youth placed in isolation cells receive adequate exercise and recreation outdoors.
7. Cease placement of mentally ill youth in programs and units where they cannot receive adequate mental health care or where they face a likelihood of punishment or other harm in response to their mental illness. Cease placement of youth with suicidal ideation at Ironwood or in the SIUs at Oakley and Columbia.
8. Provide appropriate rehabilitative activities during nonschool hours and days.
9. Cease placement of youths into paramilitary programs when, by reason of mental or physical disability or maturity level, the youth cannot reasonably be expected to obtain any significant benefit or the placement will likely result in physical or psychological harm to the youths.
C. Medical Care

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1. Staff all medical units with sufficient medical staff to screen and evaluate incoming youth, and provide adequate treatment and monitoring of youth with medical needs.
2. Ensure that nurses provide medical care within the scope of their training and licensure.
3. Train staff to conduct medical and mental health assessments properly and to look for signs of mental and physical illness in the youth interviewed.
4. Revise and implement procedures to ensure that youth reporting or exhibiting possible signs of significant medical or mental health problems during the initial assessment are seen promptly by a doctor or psychiatrist, where appropriate, and receive follow-up care.
5. Develop and implement procedures for validating and continuing, if appropriate, current prescriptions for medications of incoming youth within the prescriptions’ clinically indicated time period.
6. Ensure that the medical clinics at each facility are equipped with adequate equipment to provide essential emergency services. Ensure that medical equipment that could be used as weapons is not accessible to youth.
7. Provide for an appropriately confidential environment in which to conduct medical and mental health assessments. Ensure that youth have adequate opportunities to contact and discuss health concerns with health care staff in a setting that affords privacy.
8. Develop and implement policies, procedures, and practices to ensure that youth receive care from the appropriate level and specialty of practitioner in a timely manner.
9. Ensure that all youth receive a full dental examination at the time of the initial health assessment, and provide adequate treatment and monitoring of youth with dental needs.
10. Cease the use of the dental clinic at Oakley until such time as the risks of infection from the contaminated instruments,

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and equipment, and dirt, pests, and other vermin are removed.
D. Education
1. Ensure that all students receive appropriate education instruction within a few school days of their arrival at the facility.21
2. Ensure that all students receive 330 minutes of classroom time per day and that all students receive the benefit of class instruction in math, English, social studies, and science.
3. Provide adequate qualified substitute teachers.
4. Provide youth in disciplinary confinement with the full range of educational services.
5. Provide all youth reasonable access to reading and writing materials in their cells.
6. Provide adequate screening of youth for special education needs. Obtain prior education records from school systems in a timely fashion. Provide special education services to all youth identified by the screening process.
7. Implement procedures to identify all youth with mental retardation or mental illness and ensure that they are transitioned out of Oakley and Columbia as quickly as possible. Implement procedures to prevent the placement of youth with mental illness or mental retardation at the facilities.
21 One way Oakley and Columbia could provide this remedy is to set up a special “intake” education class. This classroom could focus on basic education skills such as literacy, current events, and math skills. The curriculum would be applicable to children with a broad range of education backgrounds. It would also provide the facility with an opportunity to evaluate the children’s education abilities before all relevant education records had been obtained. After an appropriate period of time in this intake classroom, children could be integrated into the general school population.

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8. Ensure parent or guardian involvement in evaluations, eligibility determinations, placement and provision of special education services.
9. Ensure that all eligible youth have current, valid IEPs. Create a system of routinely developing, implementing, monitoring and reviewing youth’s IEPs.
10. Provide juveniles with adequate related services at Oakley and Columbia and ensure that special education students have access to transition services specified in the IDEA, such as the vocational training program at Oakley.
E. Religious Freedom
1. Revise the policies regarding the exercise of religion to clarify the proper role that religious activities can play at the facilities. The policies shall provide that youth be allowed to engage in voluntary religious activities unless the facilities can show that curtailing such activities would be the least restrictive means of achieving a compelling governmental interest. At the same time, the policies must not coerce youth to engage in specific religious activities. Provide adequate training to all staff on the policies and protocols described above. Monitor facility programs and the decorations on the units to ensure that the policies described above are being followed.
F. Environmental Health
1. Correct deficiencies in maintenance and sanitation at Oakley. Appoint a facility safety officer to ensure accountability in the areas of safety and sanitation.
2. Repair all safety hazards in administrative buildings and housing units at Oakley. Remedy all suicide hazards in areas where youth with suicidal ideations may be potentially housed.
3. Ensure that Oakley provides proper water temperatures in the kitchen and housing areas.
4. Obtain Material Safety Data Sheets for all applicable chemicals used in the facilities.

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5. Develop written policies and procedures specifically addressing the handling, storage and use of flammable, caustic and toxic chemicals in compliance with applicable state and federal regulations.
6. Correct structural problems in Oakley’s gymnasium.
7. Repair and replace all malfunctioning toilets, lavatories and showers at Oakley.
8. Ensure that adequate sleeping accommodations are provided such that no youth is required to sleep on the floor at Oakley.
9. Implement proper sanitation and maintenance control of cockroaches, spiders and mice throughout Oakley, including housing and medical areas.
10. Ensure that bi-annual fire safety inspections are conducted at Oakley by state and local fire officials.
11. Address all issues identified by the Fire Marshal at Oakley immediately.
12. Ensure that Oakley staff are adequately trained quarterly in fire and emergency procedures.
13. Ensure adequate ventilation throughout the boys’ and girls’ SIUs at Columbia so that youth receive an adequate supply of fresh air and reasonable levels of heating and cooling. Maintenance staff should review and assess compliance with this requirement at appropriate intervals.
G. Other Juvenile Justice Issues
1. Ensure that youth are afforded a due process hearing before imposing confinement for disciplinary purposes in the SIUs at both facilities, Unit One at Oakley, and Ironwood.
2. Develop and implement an adequate grievance system at Oakley and Columbia.
3. Employ sufficient trained staff to ensure safety and to satisfy the individual treatment, training and

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rehabilitative needs of juveniles confined in these facilities.
4. Train existing staff so that they perform their positions adequately and ensure that all staff demonstrate an understanding of and/or demonstrate the application of applicable skills. For all staff working with juveniles, the areas of training and demonstrated competence should include: passive restraint; stages of adolescent development; communication skills; therapeutic intervention skills; basic rights of residents and staff; report writing; basic medical terminology; recognizing and responding to seizure disorders; common side effects of prescription and non-prescription medication; universal precautions to prevent infection of TB or HIV/AIDS; confidentiality of medical information; the provision of health education for residents; basic information concerning learning disabilities; certification in first aid and CPR; and adaptive activities for physically and developmentally challenged juveniles.
5. Provide juveniles with adequate access to mail, telephones, and visitation.
6. Ensure youth confined to Ironwood are permitted access to adequate outdoor exercise.
* * * * *
During the exit interview at our on-site tours, we provided State officials with preliminary observations made by our expert consultants. State officials and facility staff reacted positively and constructively to the observations and recommendations for improvements. The collaborative approach the parties have taken thus far has been productive. We hope to be able to continue working with the State in an amicable and cooperative fashion to resolve deficiencies previously noted. In addition, due to the State’s cooperation in this matter, and State officials’ expressed desire to improve conditions in these facilities, we will send, under separate cover, reports from our experts which provide their more detailed findings and recommendations to address the inadequacies they found in the operation of the facilities. Although the expert consultants’ evaluations and work do not necessarily reflect the official

-47
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conclusions of the Department of Justice, their observations, analysis, and recommendations provide further elaboration of the issues discussed in this letter and offer practical assistance in addressing them.
In the unexpected event that the parties are unable to reach a resolution regarding the concerns outlined above, the Attorney General may initiate a lawsuit pursuant to CRIPA, to correct deficiencies or to otherwise protect the rights of Oakley and Columbia residents, 49 days after the receipt of this letter. See 42 U.S.C. § 1997b (a)(1). We have every confidence, however, that this matter will be resolved cooperatively. Accordingly, Civil Rights Division attorneys will soon contact State officials to discuss in more detail the State’s implementation of these remedial measures.
Sincerely,
/s/ Ralph F. Boyd, Jr.
Ralph F. Boyd, Jr. Assistant Attorney General
cc: The Honorable Mike Moore Attorney General State of Mississippi
Thelma Brittain 
 Interim Executive Director
 Mississippi Department of Human Services

Willie Blackmon, Director
 Division of Youth Services
 Mississippi Department of Human Services

Dr. Nanolla Yasdani 
 Executive Director
 Oakley Training School

Mr. Michael Morris
 Executive Director
 Columbia Training School

The Honorable Dunn O. Lampton
 United States Attorney for the 
 Southern District of Mississippi


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The Honorable Roderick R. Paige Secretary United States Department of Education
Mr. Robert H. Pasternack Assistant Secretary Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services United States Department of Education
Ms. Stephanie S. Lee Director Office of Special Education Programs United States Department of Education

 
 Case: 3:03-cv-1354 As of: 03/03/2016 04:23 PM CST 1 of 15
CLOSED,JCS,LEAD,TRIAL_SET
U.S. District Court Southern District of Mississippi (Northern (Jackson)) CIVIL DOCKET FOR CASE #: 3:03−cv−01354−HTW−JCS

United States, et al v. Mississippi State Of, et al Assigned to: District Judge Henry T. Wingate Referred to: Magistrate Judge James C. Sumner Demand: $0 Cause: 42:1981 Civil Rights
Plaintiff
United States of America

Date Filed: 12/18/2003 Date Terminated: 05/31/2005 Jury Demand: None Nature of Suit: 440 Civil Rights: Other Jurisdiction: U.S. Government Plaintiff
represented by Laura Welp U. S. DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE 950 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW SPL, 601 D Street Washington, DC 20530 Email: laura.welp@usdoj.gov LEAD ATTORNEY ATTORNEY TO BE NOTICED

Mitzi Dease Paige U. S. ATTORNEY'S OFFICE − Jackson 501 East Court Street Suite 4.430 Jackson, MS 39201 601/973−2840 965−4480 Fax: 601/965−4409 or 4032 Email: Mitzi.paige@usdoj.gov LEAD ATTORNEY ATTORNEY TO BE NOTICED

Silvia Judith Dominguez − Federal Gov U. S. DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE − CIVIL RIGHTS DIVISION 950 Pennsylvania Ave., NW − NWB Washington, DC 20530 202/616−8547 Fax: 202/514−4883 Email: silvia.dominguez@usdoj.gov LEAD ATTORNEY ATTORNEY TO BE NOTICED

Dunn Lampton U. S. ATTORNEY'S OFFICE − Jackson 501 East Court Street Suite 4.430 Jackson, MS 39201 601/973−2832 Fax: 601/965−4110 Email: dunn.lampton@usdoj.gov

Joshua C. Delaney − Federal Gov U. S. DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE 950 Pennsylvania Avenue Washington, DC 20530 202/616−−2446 Fax: 202/514−0212 Email: joshua.delaney@usdoj.gov ATTORNEY TO BE NOTICED

Robert G. Anderson ANDERSON LAW GROUP, PLLC

Case: 3:03-cv-1354 As of: 03/03/2016 04:23 PM CST 2 of 15

576 Highland Colony Parkway, Suite 210 Ridgeland, MS 39157 601/707−9447 Fax: 601/605−1983 Email: andersonlawpllc@comcast.net

Tammi R. Simpson − Federal Gov U. S. DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE − CIVIL RIGHTS DIVISION 950 Pennsylvania Ave., NW − NWB Washington, DC 20530 202/514−9811 Fax: 202/514−0212 Email: Tammi.Simpson@usdoj.gov TERMINATED: 01/26/2011 ATTORNEY TO BE NOTICED

Plaintiff Rosetta Williams

represented by David B. Miller FORREST COUNTY BOARD OF SUPERVISORS P. O. Box 1310 Hattiesburg, MS 39403 601/545−6006 Fax: 601/545−6172 Email: dmiller@co.forrest.ms.us LEAD ATTORNEY ATTORNEY TO BE NOTICED

Sheila A. Bedi SOUTHERN POVERTY LAW CENTER − Jackson 111 East Capitol Street, Suite 280 Jackson, MS 39201 601/948−8882 Fax: 601/948−8885 Email: sheila.a.bedi@gmail.com LEAD ATTORNEY ATTORNEY TO BE NOTICED

Danielle J. Lipow(PHV) SOUTHERN POVERTY LAW CENTER P. O. Box 2087 Montgomery, AL 36102 334/956−8200 Email: dlipow@splcenter.org (Inactive)

V. Defendant Mississippi State Of

represented by Harold Edward Pizzetta , III OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL P.O. Box 220 550 High Street (39201) Jackson, MS 39205−0220 601/359−3680 Email: hpizz@ago.state.ms.us LEAD ATTORNEY ATTORNEY TO BE NOTICED
Shawn Stephen Shurden MISSISSIPPI PUBLIC SERVICE

Case: 3:03-cv-1354 As of: 03/03/2016 04:23 PM CST 3 of 15

COMMISSION 501 N. West Street Suite 201−A Jackson, MS 39201 601/961−5497 Fax: 601/961−5469 Email: shawn.shurden@psc.state.ms.us TERMINATED: 01/26/2011 ATTORNEY TO BE NOTICED

Defendant Governor Ronnie Musgrove

represented by Shawn Stephen Shurden (See above for address) TERMINATED: 01/26/2011 ATTORNEY TO BE NOTICED

Defendant
Mississippi Department of Human Services (the Department)

represented by Shawn Stephen Shurden (See above for address) TERMINATED: 01/26/2011 ATTORNEY TO BE NOTICED

Defendant Thelma Brittain

represented by Shawn Stephen Shurden (See above for address) TERMINATED: 01/26/2011 ATTORNEY TO BE NOTICED

Defendant Mississippi Division of Youth Services

represented by Shawn Stephen Shurden (See above for address) TERMINATED: 01/26/2011 ATTORNEY TO BE NOTICED

Defendant Willie Blackmon

represented by Shawn Stephen Shurden (See above for address) TERMINATED: 01/26/2011 ATTORNEY TO BE NOTICED

Defendant Irvin Holston

represented by Shawn Stephen Shurden (See above for address) TERMINATED: 01/26/2011 ATTORNEY TO BE NOTICED

Defendant Richard James

represented by Shawn Stephen Shurden (See above for address) TERMINATED: 01/26/2011 ATTORNEY TO BE NOTICED

Defendant Kathy Pittman

represented by Harold Edward Pizzetta , III (See above for address) LEAD ATTORNEY ATTORNEY TO BE NOTICED

Shawn Stephen Shurden (See above for address)

Case: 3:03-cv-1354 As of: 03/03/2016 04:23 PM CST 4 of 15

TERMINATED: 01/26/2011 ATTORNEY TO BE NOTICED

Defendant Donald Taylor

represented by Harold Edward Pizzetta , III (See above for address) LEAD ATTORNEY ATTORNEY TO BE NOTICED

Shawn Stephen Shurden (See above for address) TERMINATED: 01/26/2011 ATTORNEY TO BE NOTICED

Date Filed 12/18/2003 12/18/2003
12/18/2003 12/18/2003
01/07/2004 01/07/2004 01/07/2004 01/07/2004 01/07/2004 01/07/2004 01/07/2004 01/08/2004 01/09/2004
01/09/2004 01/13/2004 01/14/2004 01/14/2004

# Docket Text
1 COMPLAINT ; Notice of Assignment mailed. (thr) (Entered: 12/18/2003)
Case assigned to Pending Track − designation of appropriate track will be made after Case Management Conference and a final track assignment. (thr) (Entered: 12/18/2003)
Magistrate Judge Assignment Alfred G. Nicols (thr) (Entered: 12/18/2003)
SUMMONS(ES) issued for defendant Mississippi State Of, defendant Ronnie Musgrove, defendant MS Dept of HS, defendant Thelma Brittain, defendant MS Div. of Youth, defendant Willie Blackmon, defendant Irvin Holston, defendant Richard James (thr) (Entered: 12/18/2003)
2 SUMMONS Returned Executed as to defendant MS Dept of HS 12/18/03 Answer due on 1/7/04 for MS Dept of HS (jkm) (Entered: 01/08/2004)
4 SUMMONS Returned Executed as to defendant Mississippi State Of 12/18/03 Answer due on 1/7/04 for Mississippi State Of (jkm) (Entered: 01/08/2004)
5 SUMMONS Returned Executed as to defendant Thelma Brittain 12/18/03 Answer due on 1/7/04 for Thelma Brittain (jkm) (Entered: 01/08/2004)
6 SUMMONS Returned Executed as to defendant Willie Blackmon 12/18/03 Answer due on 1/7/04 for Willie Blackmon (jkm) (Entered: 01/08/2004)
7 SUMMONS Returned Executed as to defendant MS Div. of Youth 12/18/03 Answer due on 1/7/04 for MS Div. of Youth (jkm) (Entered: 01/08/2004)
8 SUMMONS Returned Executed as to defendant Irvin Holston 12/18/03 Answer due on 1/7/04 for Irvin Holston (jkm) (Entered: 01/08/2004)
9 MOTION by defendants Mississippi State Of, etc. to Extend Time to Respond to the Complaint (jkm) (Entered: 01/08/2004)
3 SUMMONS Returned Executed as to defendant Ronnie Musgrove 12/18/03 Answer due on 1/7/04 for Ronnie Musgrove (jkm) (Entered: 01/08/2004)
10 ORDER granting [9−1] motion to Extend Time to Respond to the Complaint on or before 1/30/04. ( signed by Magistrate Judge Alfred G. Nicols ); copies mailed. (jkm) (Entered: 01/13/2004)
SUMMONS(ES) issued for defendant Thelma Brittain (jkm) (Entered: 01/13/2004)
SUMMONS(ES) issued for defendant MS Dept of HS, defendant MS Div. of Youth, defendant Willie Blackmon (jkm) (Entered: 01/13/2004)
11 RESPONSE by plaintiff United States to [9−1] motion to Extend Time to Respond to the Complaint by defendant (jkm) (Entered: 01/14/2004)
12 SUMMONS Returned Executed as to defendant Thelma Brittain 1/14/04 Answer due on 2/3/04 for Thelma Brittain (jkm) (Entered: 01/15/2004)

Case: 3:03-cv-1354 As of: 03/03/2016 04:23 PM CST 5 of 15

01/14/2004 01/14/2004 01/14/2004 01/29/2004 02/02/2004 02/03/2004
02/13/2004 02/13/2004 02/24/2004 02/24/2004
02/27/2004 03/16/2004 03/26/2004 04/02/2004 04/20/2004 04/22/2004 04/22/2004 04/22/2004 04/22/2004 04/22/2004
04/22/2004 05/05/2004 05/14/2004

13 SUMMONS Returned Executed as to defendant MS Dept of HS 1/14/04 Answer due on 2/3/04 for MS Dept of HS (jkm) (Entered: 01/15/2004)
14 SUMMONS Returned Executed as to defendant MS Div. of Youth 1/4/04 Answer due on 1/26/04 for MS Div. of Youth (jkm) (Entered: 01/15/2004)
15 SUMMONS Returned Executed as to defendant Willie Blackmon 1/14/04 Answer due on 2/3/04 for Willie Blackmon (jkm) (Entered: 01/15/2004)
16 SUMMONS Returned Executed 12/18/03 to Mitzi Paige, US Attorney's Office Answer due on 1/7/04 (jkm) (Entered: 01/29/2004)
17 MOTION by defendants Mississippi State, et al to Extend Time to Respond to the Complaint (jkm) (Entered: 02/03/2004)
18 ORDER granting [17−1] motion to Extend Time to Respond to the Complaint on or before February 13, 2004. ( signed by Magistrate Judge Alfred G. Nicols ); copies mailed. (jkm) (Entered: 02/05/2004)
19 ANSWER to Complaint by defendant Mississippi State Of (jkm) (Entered: 02/17/2004)
20 NOTICE of Filing of Motion to Consolidate in Related Case by plaintiff United States (jkm) (Entered: 02/17/2004)
21 Rule 16.1(A) Initial Order; copies mailed (jkm) (Entered: 02/24/2004)
Telephonic Case Management Conference set 11:15 4/13/04 location: Jackson, MS before Magistrate Judge Alfred G. Nicols copies mailed to Dunn Lampton (jkm) (Entered: 02/24/2004)
22 NOTICE of filing respon to motion to consolidate in related case J75−21N by plaintiff United States (cwl) Modified on 03/01/2004 (Entered: 03/01/2004)
23 ORDER, reset Telephone Conference for 2:30 4/15/04 ( signed by Magistrate Judge Alfred G. Nicols ); copies mailed. (jkm) (Entered: 03/18/2004)
24 ORDER, resetting Telephone Conference for 11:45 4/20/04 ( signed by Magistrate Judge Alfred G. Nicols ); copies mailed. (pkm) (Entered: 03/26/2004)
25 Pre−Discovery Disclosure by plaintiff United States (jkm) (Entered: 04/05/2004)
Telephonic Case Management Conference held (rrl) (Entered: 04/23/2004)
26 ORDER, of recusal ( signed by Judge William H. Barbour Jr. ); copies mailed. (rrl) (Entered: 04/23/2004)
CASE reassigned to Judge Henry T. Wingate (rrl) (Entered: 04/23/2004)
Magistrate Judge Assignment − JCS (rrl) (Entered: 04/23/2004)
27 Minute entry: telephonic case management conference held 4/20/04 before Judge Nicols (rrl) (Entered: 04/23/2004)
28 CASE MANAGEMENT PLAN AND SCHEDULING ORDER Case Assigned to CJRA Track: Standard Scheduling Deadlines: Non−jury Trial 6/6/05 ; Final Pretrial Conference for 5/13/05 ; Discovery cutoff 1/6/05 ; Joining of parties,amending of pleadings by 5/20/04 ; Pla. Designation of Experts by 10/6/04 ; Dft Designation of Experts by 11/8/04 ; Motion Filing deadline on 1/21/05 ; ( signed by Magistrate Judge Alfred G. Nicols ) copies mailed. (rrl) (Entered: 04/23/2004)
Case assigned to Standard Track. (rrl) (Entered: 04/23/2004)
29 MOTION by plaintiff United States to Consolidate Cases (jkm) (Entered: 05/05/2004)
30 REQUEST for Production of Documents and Request for Entry upon land to inspect documents and interview youth by plaintiff United States to defendants Mississippi State Of, et al (jkm) (Entered: 05/14/2004)

Case: 3:03-cv-1354 As of: 03/03/2016 04:23 PM CST 6 of 15

05/20/2004 05/20/2004 05/24/2004 05/25/2004 06/04/2004 06/08/2004 06/15/2004
06/21/2004
06/22/2004 06/25/2004 07/01/2004 07/08/2004 07/08/2004 07/08/2004 07/12/2004
07/12/2004 07/16/2004 07/23/2004 07/23/2004 07/26/2004

32 RESPONSE by plaintiff United States to [29−1] motion to Consolidate Cases by plaintiff (jkm) (Entered: 05/24/2004)
34 MEMORANDUM by plaintiff United States in support of [29−1] motion to Consolidate Cases by plaintiff (jkm) (Entered: 06/04/2004)
31 REQUEST for Admissions by plaintiff United States to counsel for defendants Mississippi State Of, et al (jkm) (Entered: 05/24/2004)
33 RESPONSE by defendant Mississippi State Of in opposition to [29−1] motion to Consolidate Cases by plaintiff (jkm) (Entered: 05/25/2004)
35 RESPONSE by plaintiff United States in support of [29−1] motion to Consolidate Cases by plaintiff (cwl) (Entered: 06/04/2004)
36 MOTION by defendants Mississippi State Of, et al State Defendant's Supplement to Their Opposition to Consolidation (jkm) (Entered: 06/09/2004)
37 REQUEST for Production of Documents and Objections and Responses to Plaintiff's Request for Entry Upon Land to Inspect Documents and Interview Youth by defendant Mississippi State Of to plaintiff United States (jkm) (Entered: 06/16/2004)
38 REQUEST for Production of Documents by plaintiff United States to defendants Mississippi State Of, Ronnie Musgrove, MS Dept of HS, Thelma Brittain, MS Div. of Youth, Willie Blackmon, Irvin Holston, Richard James (jkm) (Entered: 06/21/2004)
39 MOTION by defendants Mississippi State Of, et al to Extend Time to respond to Plaintiff's First Set of Request for Admissions (jkm) (Entered: 06/22/2004)
40 RESPONSE by plaintiff United States to [39−1] motion to Extend Time to respond to Plaintiff's First Set of Request for Admissions by defendant (jkm) (Entered: 06/25/2004)
41 ORDER granting [39−1] motion to Extend Time to respond to Plaintiff's First Set of Request for Admissions up to an including 7/7/04. ( signed by Magistrate Judge James C. Sumner ); copies mailed. (jkm) (Entered: 07/01/2004)
42 MOTION by plaintiff United States to Compel entry upon land for inspection and other purposes. (rrl) (Entered: 07/08/2004)
43 MEMORANDUM by plaintiff United States in support of [42−1] motion to Compel entry onto land for inspection and other purposes by plaintiff (rrl) (Entered: 07/08/2004)
44 Notice of Service of Response by defendant Mississippi State Of to Defendants' Objections and Responses to Plaintiff's First Request for Admissions (lbt) (Entered: 07/08/2004)
45 ORDER granting [29−1] motion to Consolidate Cases 2:04cv149BrSu and 3:03cv1354WSu are consolidated for all purposes. All subsequent filings shall be made solely in civil action no. 3:03cv1354WSu. ( signed by Magistrate Judge James C. Sumner ); copies mailed. (jkm) (Entered: 07/12/2004)
Consolidated Lead Case (mjr) (Entered: 07/13/2004)
46 RESPONSE by plaintiff Rosetta Williams in opposition to defendants' motion for judgment on the pleadings and motion to stay consideration of plaintiffs' motion for class certification. (rrl) (Entered: 07/21/2004)
47 MOTION by defendants Mississippi State Of, et al to Extend Time file rebuttal memorandum in support of defendant's motion for judgment on the pleadings (jkm) (Entered: 07/26/2004)
48 ORDER, for Protective Order ( signed by Magistrate Judge James C. Sumner ); copies mailed. (jkm) (Entered: 07/28/2004)
50 ORDER granting [47−1] motion to Extend Time file rebuttal to Defendant's Motions for Judgment on the Pleadings signed by Judge David C. Bramlette III );

Case: 3:03-cv-1354 As of: 03/03/2016 04:23 PM CST 7 of 15

07/27/2004 08/03/2004 08/05/2004 08/11/2004 08/13/2004 08/18/2004 08/19/2004 08/23/2004
08/23/2004 09/16/2004 09/16/2004 09/17/2004 09/23/2004
09/30/2004 10/15/2004 10/15/2004 10/15/2004
10/28/2004

copies mailed. (jkm) (Entered: 07/29/2004)
49 MOTION by defendants Mississippi State Of, et al to Extend Time to Respond to Plaintiff's Motion to Compel Entry Upon Land for Inspection and Other Purposes (jkm) (Entered: 07/28/2004)
51 Notice of Service of Interrogatories and Request for Production of Documents by plaintiff United States (jkm) (Entered: 08/03/2004)
52 RESPONSE by plaintiff United States to [49−1] motion to Extend Time to Respond to Plaintiff's Motion to Compel Entry by defendant (jkm) (Entered: 08/05/2004)
53 RESPONSE by defendant Mississippi State Of in opposition to [42−1] motion to Compel by plaintiff (jkm) (Entered: 08/11/2004)
54 MOTION by defendants Mississippi State Of, et al to Second Extend Time to File Rebuttal Memorandum in Support of Defendant's Motion for Judgment on the Pleadings (jkm) (Entered: 08/13/2004)
55 Notice of Service of Interrogatories by plaintiff United States (jkm) (Entered: 08/19/2004)
56 REBUTTAL/MEMORANDUM by plaintiff United States in support of [42−1] motion to Compel by plaintiff (jkm) (Entered: 08/20/2004)
57 ORDER granting [49−1] motion to Extend Time to Respond to Plaintiff's Motion to Compel Entry shall have on or before 8/9/04. ( signed by Magistrate Judge James C. Sumner ); copies mailed. (jkm) Modified on 08/24/2004 (Entered: 08/24/2004)
58 REBUTTAL/RESPONSE by defendant Mississippi State Of in support of motion for judgment on the pleadings and stay of class certification (*these motions filed in 2:04cv149) (jkm) (Entered: 08/27/2004)
59 MOTION by plaintiff United States to Extend Time Discovery Deadlines (jkm) (Entered: 09/17/2004)
60 MEMORANDUM by plaintiff United States in support of [59−1] motion to Extend Time Discovery Deadlines by plaintiff (jkm) (Entered: 09/17/2004)
61 Notice of Service of Response by defendant Mississippi State Of to Plaintiff's First Interrogatories and Request for Production of Documents (jkm) (Entered: 09/20/2004)
62 ORDER granting [59−1] motion to Extend Time Discovery Deadlines, Set Case Management Order Deadlines Jury Trial 12/5/05 ; Final Pretrial Conference for 11/22/05 ; Discovery Cutoff 7/6/05 ; Pla. Designation of Experts by 4/6/05 ; Dft Designation of Experts by 5/6/05 ; Motion Filing Deadline on 8/5/05 ; ( signed by Magistrate Judge James C. Sumner ); copies mailed. (jkm) (Entered: 09/23/2004)
63 Notice of Service of Response by defendant Mississippi State Of to Plaintiffs' First Request for Documents and First Set of Interrogatories (jkm) (Entered: 09/30/2004)
64 MOTION by plaintiff United States to Compel Documents previously withheld based on assertion of privilege (jkm) (Entered: 10/18/2004)
65 MEMORANDUM by plaintiff United States in support of [64−1] motion to Compel Documents by plaintiff (jkm) (Entered: 10/18/2004)
66 Good Faith Certificate executed by Harold Edward Pizzetta III, David B. Miller, Danielle J. Lipow, Sheila A. Bedi, Mitzi Dease Paige, Robert G. Anderson, Dunn Lampton as to [64−1] motion to Compel Documents by plaintiff (jkm) (Entered: 10/18/2004)
67 MOTION by defendants Mississippi State Of, et al to Extend Time to respond to plaintiff's motion to compel (jkm) (Entered: 10/28/2004)

Case: 3:03-cv-1354 As of: 03/03/2016 04:23 PM CST 8 of 15

11/02/2004 11/04/2004
11/04/2004 11/05/2004 11/10/2004 11/17/2004 11/26/2004 12/07/2004 12/16/2004 12/16/2004 12/21/2004 12/27/2004
12/27/2004 01/05/2005 01/05/2005 01/10/2005 01/12/2005 01/12/2005 01/25/2005 01/25/2005

68 NOTICE of by plaintiff United States of Second Discovery Request (jkm) (Entered: 11/02/2004)
69 RESPONSE by defendant Mississippi State Of, defendant Ronnie Musgrove, defendant MS Dept of HS, defendant Thelma Brittain, defendant MS Div. of Youth, defendant Willie Blackmon, defendant Irvin Holston, defendant Richard James, defendant Kathy Pittman, defendant Donald Taylor in opposition to [67−1] motion to Extend Time to respond to plaintiff's motion to compel by defendant (lbt) (Entered: 11/04/2004)
70 Notice of Service of Second Interrogatories by plaintiff United States (jkm) (Entered: 11/05/2004)
71 MOTION by plaintiff Rosetta Williams to Expedite Ruling on Motion for Class Certification (jkm) (Entered: 11/09/2004)
72 ORDER granting [67−1] motion to Extend Time to respond to plaintiff's motion to compel shall have until 11/16/04 to respond. ( signed by Magistrate Judge James C. Sumner ); copies mailed. (jkm) (Entered: 11/10/2004)
73 RESPONSE by defendant Mississippi State Of in opposition to [64−1] motion to Compel Documents by plaintiff (jkm) (Entered: 11/17/2004)
74 REBUTTAL MEMORANDUM by plaintiff United States in support of [73−1] opposition response by defendant (jkm) (Entered: 11/26/2004)
75 Notice of Service of Response by defendant Mississippi State Of, et al, to Second Set of Interrogatories (thr) (Entered: 12/07/2004)
76 MOTION by plaintiff Rosetta Williams to Extend Time to Submit Petition for Attorney Fees (jkm) (Entered: 12/17/2004)
77 MOTION to Vacate Order of Dismissal (jkm) (Entered: 12/17/2004)
78 Remark Plaintiffs' Objections to Involuntary Dismissal by Magistrate Judge. (Moore, Janet) (Entered: 12/23/2004)
Minute Entry for proceedings held before Judge James C. Sumner : Settlement Conference held on 12/07/2004. The parties were directed to submit an appropriate order to the court. The consolidated case 2:04cv149 settled. An order of dismissal will be entered by the court in this case only. (Frazier, Caroline) (Entered: 12/27/2004)
Minute Entry for proceedings held before Judge James C. Sumner : Telephone Conference held on 12/22/2004. (Frazier, Caroline) (Entered: 12/27/2004)
79 MOTION to Compel adequate responses to the United States' second set of interrogatories and to impose sanctions on defendants by United States of America. (THR, ) (Entered: 01/07/2005)
80 MEMORANDUM in Support re 79 MOTION to Compel filed by United States of America. exhibits maintained in court file (THR, ) Modified on 1/7/2005 (THR, ). (Entered: 01/07/2005)
81 ORDER granting 42 Motion to Compel . Signed by Judge James C. Sumner on 01−07−05. (THR, ) (Entered: 01/10/2005)
82 MOTION to Withdraw 77 Motion to Vacate by Rosetta Williams, United States of America. (THR, ) (Entered: 01/12/2005)
83 SETTLEMENT AGREEMENT IN K.L.W.V.JAMES by United States of America et al, and Mississippi State Of, et al. (THR, ) (Entered: 01/12/2005)
84 MOTION for Extension of Time to File Response/Reply to Plaintiff's Motion to Compel by Mississippi State Of. (Moore, Janet) (Entered: 01/28/2005)
85 NOTICE of Service of Second Set of Interrogatories by United States of America.(Moore, Janet) (Entered: 01/28/2005)

Case: 3:03-cv-1354 As of: 03/03/2016 04:23 PM CST 9 of 15

01/28/2005 02/02/2005
02/07/2005 02/08/2005 02/08/2005 02/09/2005 02/09/2005 02/15/2005 02/17/2005 02/17/2005 02/24/2005 02/24/2005
02/28/2005
03/02/2005 03/02/2005 03/02/2005
03/02/2005 03/03/2005

86 NOTICE of Service of 3rd set of Interrogatories by United States of America.(THR, ) (Entered: 01/28/2005)
87 ORDER granting 84 Motion for Extension of Time to File Response/Reply re 84 MOTION for Extension of Time to File Response/Reply Responses due by 2/7/2005 Replies due by 2/7/2005. Signed by Judge James C. Sumner on February 1, 2005. (CSF, ) (Entered: 02/02/2005)
89 ORDER withdrawing 76 Motion for extension of time, withdrawing 77 Motion to Vacate, withdrawing 82 Motion to Withdraw . Signed by Judge Henry T. Wingate on 02/04/05. (THR, ) (Entered: 02/09/2005)
88 NOTICE of Service of Request for Entry Upon Land for Inspection and Other Purposes by United States of America (THR, ) Modified on 2/8/2005 (THR, ). (Entered: 02/08/2005)
DOCKET ANNOTATION as to #88, added docket text, for Inspection and Other Purposes (THR, ) Modified on 2/17/2005 (THR, ). (Entered: 02/08/2005)
90 RESPONSE in Opposition re 79 MOTION to Compel filed by Mississippi State Of, et al. (THR, ) Exhibits maintained in court file. Modified on 2/9/2005 (THR, ). (Entered: 02/09/2005)
DOCKET ANNOTATION as to #90, added docket text, Exhibits maintained in court file. (THR, ) Modified on 2/17/2005 (THR, ). (Entered: 02/09/2005)
91 Subpoena Returned Executed as to Charles Coleman. (THR, ) (Entered: 02/15/2005)
92 REBUTTAL MEMORANDUM in Further Support re 79 MOTION to Compel filed by United States of America. (THR, ) (Entered: 02/19/2005)
93 Subpoena Returned executed as to Gerri Hill−Chance, M.D. (THR, ) (Entered: 02/19/2005)
95 NOTICE to Take Deposition of Gerri Hill−Chance, Charles Coleman, Clarence Buford, Dr. Seal by United States of America.(THR, ) (Entered: 03/01/2005)
96 NOTICE to Take Deposition of designee(s) most knowledgeable of the provision of services at Oakley Training School, Columbia Training School; designee(s) most knowledgeable of medical health care at Oakely Training School, Columbia Training School by United States of America.(THR, ) (Entered: 03/01/2005)
94 NOTICE of Service of Response to Interrogatories by Kathy Pittman, Donald Taylor, Mississippi State Of, Ronnie Musgrove, Mississippi Department of Human Services (the Department), Thelma Brittain, Mississippi Division of Youth Services, Willie Blackmon, Irvin Holston, Richard James.(Pizzetta, Harold) (Entered: 02/28/2005)
97 MOTION for Extension of Time to Complete Discovery by United States of America. (Eichner, Jim) (Entered: 03/02/2005)
98 ORDER granting 97 Motion for Extension of Time to Complete Discovery . Signed by Judge James C. Sumner on 3/2/05. (dfk, ) (Entered: 03/02/2005)
Set Deadlines/Hearings: Discovery due by 9/6/2005. Designate Experts Plaintiff Deadline due by 6/6/2005. Designate Experts for Defendant Deadline due by 8/6/2005. Motions due by 10/6/2005. Bench Trial set for calendar beginning 2/14/2006 before District Judge Henry T. Wingate. Final Pretrial Conference set for 2/1/2006 or 2/2/2006 before District Judge Henry T. Wingate. (dfk, ) (Entered: 03/02/2005)
99 NOTICE of Receipt of Deposition of Dr. Gerri Hill−Chance by United States of America. (Attachments: # 1 Exhibit First page of deposition)(Eichner, Jim) (Entered: 03/02/2005)
100 NOTICE of Service of Request for Production by United States of America.(Eichner, Jim) (Entered: 03/03/2005)

Case: 3:03-cv-1354 As of: 03/03/2016 04:23 PM CST 10 of 15

03/03/2005 03/03/2005 03/04/2005 03/04/2005 03/04/2005 03/04/2005 03/04/2005
03/08/2005 03/14/2005
03/16/2005
03/17/2005 03/17/2005 03/21/2005
03/22/2005
03/24/2005 03/24/2005 03/24/2005 04/07/2005 04/20/2005 05/04/2005

103 CORRECTED NOTICE to Take Deposition of Michael Peterson by United States of America.(THR, ) Modified on 3/4/2005 (THR, ). (Entered: 03/04/2005)
104 CORRECTED NOTICE to Take Deposition of Victor D'Illio by United States of America.(THR, ) (Entered: 03/04/2005)
101 MOTION for Discovery − to increase deposition limit by United States of America. (Eichner, Jim) (Entered: 03/04/2005)
102 MOTION for Discovery memorandum in support of motion to increase deposition limit by United States of America. (Eichner, Jim) (Entered: 03/04/2005)
DOCKET ANNOTATION as to #103, added the word corrected to docket text. (THR, ) (Entered: 03/04/2005)
DOCKET ANNOTATION as to #102, termed motion 102 should have been filed as memorandum. attorney to refile (THR, ) (Entered: 03/04/2005)
105 MEMORANDUM in Support re 101 MOTION for Discovery − to increase deposition limit filed by United States of America. (Eichner, Jim) (Entered: 03/04/2005)
106 ORDER granting 101 Motion to Increase Deposition Limit . Signed by Judge James C. Sumner on 3/7/05. (dfk, ) (Entered: 03/08/2005)
107 NOTICE of Service of Response to Request for Production by Kathy Pittman, Donald Taylor, Mississippi State Of, Ronnie Musgrove, Mississippi Department of Human Services (the Department), Thelma Brittain, Mississippi Division of Youth Services, Willie Blackmon, Irvin Holston, Richard James.(Pizzetta, Harold) (Entered: 03/14/2005)
108 NOTICE of Receipt of Deposition of Dr. Charles Coleman by United States of America. (Attachments: # 1 Exhibit Deposition Cover Sheet)(Eichner, Jim) (Entered: 03/16/2005)
109 NOTICE of Receipt of Deposition of James Sims by United States of America. (Attachments: # 1)(Eichner, Jim) (Entered: 03/17/2005)
110 NOTICE of Receipt of Deposition of Perceta Tuggle by United States of America. (Attachments: # 1)(Eichner, Jim) (Entered: 03/17/2005)
TEXT ONLY ORDER finding as moot 36 Motion to supplement. Signed by Judge James C. Sumner on 3/21/05. No further written order will be issued. (dfk, ) (Entered: 03/21/2005)
111 ORDER granting 54 Motion for additional time to file rebuttal memorandum; also granted is docket 36 motion of defendant State of Mississippi to supplement its opposition to consolidation . Signed by Judge Henry T. Wingate on 3/18/05. (scm, ) (Entered: 03/22/2005)
112 NOTICE of Receipt of Deposition of Dr. Juanita Seals by United States of America. (Attachments: # 1)(Eichner, Jim) (Entered: 03/24/2005)
113 NOTICE of Service of Interrogatories by United States of America.(Eichner, Jim) (Entered: 03/24/2005)
114 NOTICE of Service of Request for Production by United States of America.(Eichner, Jim) (Entered: 03/24/2005)
115 NOTICE of Substituion of Lead Counsel by United States of America (Eichner, Jim) (Entered: 04/07/2005)
116 ORDER denying 79 Motion to Compel . Signed by Judge James C. Sumner on 4/20/05. (dfk, ) (Entered: 04/20/2005)
117 Joint MOTION for Settlement Agreement as a Court Order and for Conditional Dismissal of Portions of the Complaint by United States of America. (Attachments: # 1 # 2)(Paige, Mitzi) (Entered: 05/04/2005)

Case: 3:03-cv-1354 As of: 03/03/2016 04:23 PM CST 11 of 15

05/10/2005
05/31/2005 06/09/2005 01/23/2006 03/22/2006 07/17/2006 11/15/2006 03/16/2007 06/08/2007 09/28/2007 12/05/2007 12/05/2007 12/11/2007
01/08/2008
01/28/2008
02/22/2008 02/22/2008

118 NOTICE OF ENDORSEMENT by Kathy Pittman, Donald Taylor, Mississippi State Of, Ronnie Musgrove, Mississippi Department of Human Services (the Department), Thelma Brittain, Mississippi Division of Youth Services, Willie Blackmon, Irvin Holston, Richard James re 117 Joint MOTION for Settlement Agreement as a Court Order and for Conditional Dismissal of Portions of the Complaint (Pizzetta, Harold) (Entered: 05/10/2005)
119 ORDER DISMISSING CASE . Signed by Judge Henry T. Wingate on 5/31/05. (Moore, Janet) Additional attachment(s) added on 5/31/2005 (Moore, Janet). (Entered: 05/31/2005)
120 ATTACHMENT (AGREEMENT) re 119 Order Dismissing Case. (McPhail, Patsy) (Entered: 06/09/2005)
121 STATUS REPORT Monitor's First Quarterly Report (Nov. '05) by United States of America. (Simpson, Tammi) (Entered: 01/23/2006)
122 STATUS REPORT: MONITOR'S SECOND REPORT by United States of America. (Attachments: # 1 Exhibit)(THR, ) (Entered: 03/23/2006)
123 3rd Monitor's Report (Attachments: # 1 Exhibit # 2 Exhibit # 3 Exhibit # 4 Exhibit # 5 Exhibit # 6 Exhibit) (THR, ) (Entered: 07/19/2006)
124 FOURTH MONITOR'S REPORT (Attachments: # 1 Exhibit) (THR, ) (Entered: 11/17/2006)
125 5th Monitor's Report. (Attachments: # 1 Monitor's Report (cont))(Lowery, R.) (Entered: 03/16/2007)
126 SIXTH MONITOR'S REPORT OAKLEY AND COLUMBIA TRAINING SCHOOL (Attachments: # 1 Exhibit # 2 Exhibit) (THR) (Entered: 06/11/2007)
127 MOTION to Clarify for Judiciary to Bear Costs of Special Master by Mississippi State Of (Attachments: # 1 Exhibit Exhibits 1 − 2)(Shurden, Shawn) (Entered: 09/28/2007)
128 NOTICE of Replacement Co−Monitors for MOA by United States of America (Simpson, Tammi) (Entered: 12/05/2007)
129 Joint MOTION to Replace Monitor for the Medical Section of the Consent Decree submitted by United States of America (Simpson, Tammi) (Entered: 12/05/2007)
130 NOTICE OF ENDORSEMENT by Kathy Pittman, Donald Taylor, Mississippi State Of, Ronnie Musgrove, Mississippi Department of Human Services (the Department), Mississippi Division of Youth Services re 128 Notice (Other), 129 Joint MOTION to Replace Monitor for the Medical Section of the Consent Decree submitted (Shurden, Shawn) (Entered: 12/11/2007)
131 NOTICE of Hearing on Motion 127 MOTION to Clarify for Judiciary to Bear Costs of Special Master, 129 Joint MOTION to Replace Monitor for the Medical Section of the Consent Decree: Motion Hearing set for 1/28/2008 04:00 PM in Courtroom 1 before District Judge Henry T. Wingate (TRS) (Entered: 01/08/2008)
Minute Entry for proceedings held before District Judge Henry T. Wingate. APPEARANCES: Tammi Simpson and Laura W., USDOJ, Mitzi Paige, AUSA; Shawn Shurden andn Cindy Eubank, defense counsel.Motion Hearing held on 1/28/2008. Court denied 127 MOTION to Clarify for Judiciary to Bear Costs of Special Master filed by Mississippi State Of, granted 129 Joint MOTION to Replace Monitor for the Medical Section of the Consent Decree submitted filed by United States of America. Court will meet with parties again on February 26, 2008 at 8:30 a.m. (TRS) (Entered: 01/28/2008)
132 Joint MOTION to Amend/Correct 120 Attachment Consent Decree by United States of America (Simpson, Tammi) (Entered: 02/22/2008)
133 NOTICE of Amendment of Memorandum of Agreement by United States of America (Simpson, Tammi) (Entered: 02/22/2008)

Case: 3:03-cv-1354 As of: 03/03/2016 04:23 PM CST 12 of 15

02/25/2008
02/26/2008 02/26/2008
03/14/2008 03/28/2008 04/22/2008 04/28/2008 04/29/2008
04/30/2008 04/30/2008
04/30/2008 04/30/2008 05/29/2008 05/29/2008

134 NOTICE OF ENDORSEMENT by Kathy Pittman, Donald Taylor, Mississippi State Of, Ronnie Musgrove, Mississippi Department of Human Services (the Department), Thelma Brittain, Mississippi Division of Youth Services, Willie Blackmon, Irvin Holston, Richard James re 132 Joint MOTION to Amend/Correct 120 Attachment Consent Decree, 133 Notice (Other) (Shurden, Shawn) (Entered: 02/25/2008)
135 AMENDMENT TO CONSENT DECREE. Signed by District Judge Henry T. Wingate on 2/26/08 (SM) (Entered: 02/26/2008)
Minute Entry for proceedings held before District Judge Henry T. Wingate: Status Conference held on 2/26/2008. The Court agreed to sign an Amendment to the Consent Decree concerning the Oakley Training School. The parties stipulated to various facts which precipitated the Amendment. The agreement assigns two (2) monitors to assess the state's compliance with the Consent Decree. Further, the parties will develop an action plan and submit it to the court for its approval within 60 days. (Court Reporter Gina Morris, 965−4357) (TRS) (Entered: 02/26/2008)
136 SEVENTH MONITOR'S REPORT OAKLEY AND COLUMBIA TRAINING SCHOOL (Attachments: # 1 Cover Letter) (THR) (Entered: 03/14/2008)
Set Hearings: Status Conference set for 4/30/2008 03:00 PM in Courtroom 1 before District Judge Henry T. Wingate (TRS) (Entered: 03/28/2008)
137 ORDER denying 127 Motion to Clarify; granting 129 Motion ; granting 132 Motion to Amend/Correct. Signed by District Judge Henry T. Wingate on 4/22/08 (SM) (Entered: 04/22/2008)
138 Joint MOTION to Amend/Correct 135 Order with Suicide Prevention Action Plan by United States of America (Attachments: # 1 Exhibit Action Plan − Suicide Prevention)(Simpson, Tammi) (Entered: 04/28/2008)
139 NOTICE OF ENDORSEMENT by Kathy Pittman, Donald Taylor, Mississippi State Of, Ronnie Musgrove, Mississippi Department of Human Services (the Department), Thelma Brittain, Mississippi Division of Youth Services, Willie Blackmon, Irvin Holston, Richard James re 138 Joint MOTION to Amend/Correct 135 Order with Suicide Prevention Action Plan (Shurden, Shawn) (Entered: 04/29/2008)
Minute Entry for proceedings held before District Judge Henry T. Wingate: Status Conference held on 4/30/2008. The Court approved the Agreed Order of the Suicide Prevention Plan and will allow parties an additional 30 days to complete the Protection From Harm Plan. (TRS) (Entered: 04/30/2008)
140 ORDER: that defendant Charles Roy McMillan is permanently enjoined from being physically located within 50 feet of the Jackson Women's Health Organization's property line. Section III, paragraph (C) of this court's June 1996 Consent Decree Order is to be modified to read: "Being physically located within 50 feet of JWHO's property line." Defendant Charles Roy McMillan is forever to abide by all provisions of the Consent Decree Order of this court entered June 27, 1996, and as modified pursuant to this Order. Signed by District Judge Henry T. Wingate on 4/29/08 (SM) (Entered: 04/30/2008)
141 ORDER granting 138 Motion to Approve and Enter the Suicide Prevention Action Plan. Signed by District Judge Henry T. Wingate on 4/30/08. (Attachments: # 1 Action Plan) (RRL) (Entered: 04/30/2008)
DOCKET ANNOTATION as to #140 −− order inadvertently entered in wrong case; will be re−entered in correct case. (RRL) (Entered: 04/30/2008)
142 Joint MOTION to Amend/Correct Order with Protection from Harm Action Plan by United States of America (Attachments: # 1 Exhibit Protection from Harm Action Plan)(Simpson, Tammi) (Entered: 05/29/2008)
143 NOTICE OF ENDORSEMENT by Kathy Pittman, Donald Taylor, Mississippi State Of, Ronnie Musgrove, Mississippi Department of Human Services (the Department), Thelma Brittain, Mississippi Division of Youth Services, Willie Blackmon, Irvin Holston, Richard James re 142 Joint MOTION to Amend/Correct

Case: 3:03-cv-1354 As of: 03/03/2016 04:23 PM CST 13 of 15

07/10/2008 07/30/2008 07/30/2008 11/12/2008 11/12/2008 03/20/2009 03/20/2009 08/10/2009 11/12/2009 04/02/2010 05/20/2010 05/20/2010 05/28/2010 05/28/2010
06/21/2010 08/30/2010 09/16/2010 09/16/2010

Order with Protection from Harm Action Plan (Shurden, Shawn) (Entered: 05/29/2008)
144 ORDER REGARDING PROTECTION FROM HARM ACTION PLAN shall become an order of the Court as a modification to the Consent Decree. Signed by District Judge Henry T. Wingate on 7/9/08 (TRS) (Entered: 07/10/2008)
145 EIGHT MONITORS' REPORT (Attachments: # 1 Exhibit, # 2 Exhibit, # 3 Exhibit) (THR) (Entered: 07/30/2008)
146 NOTICE OF CONVENTIONAL FILING re 145 EIGHTH MONITORS' REPORT (THR) (Entered: 07/30/2008)
147 9TH MONITORS' REPORT OAKLEY TRAINING SCHOOL (11/10/08) (Attachments: # 1 Report Continued, # 2 Report Continued) (THR) (Entered: 11/13/2008)
148 NOTICE of Conventional Filing re 147 9TH MONITORS' REPORT OAKLEY TRAINING SCHOOL (11/10/08) (THR) (Entered: 11/13/2008)
149 NOTICE/LETTER OF CONVENTIONAL FILING of the 10th Monitors' Report − Oakley Training School (THR) (Entered: 03/25/2009)
150 ATTACHMENT of 10th Monitors' Report − Oakley Training School re 149 Notice/Letter OF CONVENTIONAL FILING (Attachments: # 1 Exhibit, # 2 Exhibit, # 3 Exhibit)(THR) (Entered: 03/25/2009)
151 11TH MONITORS' REPORT OAKLEY TRAINING SCHOOL (ND) (Entered: 08/10/2009)
152 NOTICE of 12th Monitors' Report − Oakley Training School (Attachments: # 1 Supplement)(MGB) (Entered: 11/12/2009)
153 NOTICE of 13TH MONITORS' REPORT OAKLEY TRAINING SCHOOL (Attachments: # 1 Report Cont.)(ND) (Entered: 04/02/2010)
154 NOTICE of Appearance by Laura Welp on behalf of United States of America (Welp, Laura) (Entered: 05/20/2010)
155 MOTION to Withdraw as Attorney Tammie R. Simpson by United States of America (Welp, Laura) (Entered: 05/20/2010)
156 Joint MOTION to Amend/Correct 120 Attachment Consent Decree by United States of America (Attachments: # 1 Exhibit Revised Agreement)(Welp, Laura) (Entered: 05/28/2010)
157 NOTICE OF ENDORSEMENT by Kathy Pittman, Donald Taylor, Mississippi State Of, Ronnie Musgrove, Mississippi Department of Human Services (the Department), Thelma Brittain, Mississippi Division of Youth Services, Willie Blackmon, Irvin Holston, Richard James re 156 Joint MOTION to Amend/Correct 120 Attachment Consent Decree (Shurden, Shawn) (Entered: 05/28/2010)
158 ORDER granting 156 Motion to Amend/Correct Consent Decree. Signed by District Judge Henry T. Wingate on 6/21/2010 (SM) (Entered: 06/21/2010)
159 First MOTION for Leave to Appear by United States of America (Dominguez, Silvia) (Entered: 08/30/2010)
160 First MOTION to Amend/Correct the Agreement by Entering Compliance Action Plan as a Modification by United States of America (Attachments: # 1 Supplement Compliance Action Plan)(Dominguez, Silvia) (Entered: 09/16/2010)
161 NOTICE OF ENDORSEMENT by Willie Blackmon, Thelma Brittain, Irvin Holston, Richard James, Mississippi Department of Human Services (the Department), Mississippi Division of Youth Services, Mississippi State Of, Ronnie Musgrove, Kathy Pittman, Donald Taylor re 160 First MOTION to Amend/Correct the Agreement by Entering Compliance Action Plan as a Modification (Shurden, Shawn) (Entered: 09/16/2010)

Case: 3:03-cv-1354 As of: 03/03/2016 04:23 PM CST 14 of 15

11/17/2010 12/20/2010 01/12/2011 01/12/2011 01/26/2011
01/26/2011 01/27/2011
02/09/2011 05/04/2011 05/19/2011 05/25/2011 05/31/2011
06/09/2011

162 MOTION to Withdraw as Attorney by Willie Blackmon, Thelma Brittain, Irvin Holston, Richard James, Mississippi Department of Human Services (the Department), Mississippi Division of Youth Services, Mississippi State Of, Ronnie Musgrove, Kathy Pittman, Donald Taylor (Shurden, Shawn) (Entered: 11/17/2010)
163 First MOTION Leave to schedule status conference by United States of America (Dominguez, Silvia) (Entered: 12/20/2010)
DOCKET ANNOTATION as to # 163 . Attorney advises that there is an error (incorrect date) in this entry, and it should be disregarded. It will be refiled and the current motion will be terminated. (ND) (Entered: 01/12/2011)
164 Amended MOTION re 163 First MOTION Leave to schedule status conference by United States of America (Dominguez, Silvia) (Entered: 01/12/2011)
165 ORDER granting 155 Motion to Withdraw as Attorney: Attorney Tammi R. Simpson terminated; granting 159 Motion for Leave to Appear ; granting 160 Motion to Amend/Correct; granting 162 Motion to Withdraw as Attorney: Attorney Shawn Stephen Shurden terminated; granting 164 Motion for Leave to Schedule a Status Conference Signed by District Judge Henry T. Wingate on 1/26/11 (TRS) (Entered: 01/26/2011)
Set Hearings: Status Conference set for 1/27/2011 04:30 PM (Jackson) via Conference Call before District Judge Henry T. Wingate (TRS) (Entered: 01/26/2011)
Minute Entry for proceedings held before District Judge Henry T. Wingate: Status Conference held on 1/27/2011 via telephone. ATTENDEES: Dr. Kelly Dedel (monitor); Silvia Dominquez, DOJ; Mitzi Paige, AUSA; Cynthia Eubank and Harold Pizzetta, defense counsel for State of MS; Kathy Pittman, Director Juvenille Facilities; Jim Maccarone, Administrator of Oakley Training School. A Status Conference was held on the monitor's report and progress of the State's compliance. The parties agreed to submit the Court with an order similar to the 6/21/10 order, which established that this court would hold status conferences in this case every 6 months. The Court will contact the parties of the next Status Conference in May two week's in advance. (TRS) (Entered: 01/28/2011)
166 ORDER. The court will schedule the next status conference for the end of May 2011. Signed by District Judge Henry T. Wingate on 2/8/2011 (SM) (Entered: 02/09/2011)
Set Hearings: Status Conference set for 5/27/2011 09:00 AM in Courtroom 1 (Jackson) before District Judge Henry T. Wingate (TRS) (Entered: 05/04/2011)
Reset Hearings: Status Conference reset for 5/31/2011 10:00 AM via CONFERENCE CALL before District Judge Henry T. Wingate (TRS) (Entered: 05/19/2011)
167 NOTICE of 15TH MONITORS' REPORT OAKLEY TRAINING SCHOOL (ND) (Entered: 05/25/2011)
Minute Entry for proceedings held before District Judge Henry T. Wingate. VIA TELEPHONE: M. Paige and S. Dominguez, counsel for the government; H. Pizzetta and C. Eubank, counsel for State of MS; J. Maccarone, Oakley Training School Administrator; Dr. K. Dedel, Monitor. Status Conference held on 5/31/2011. The Court was advised during the current monitoring period, the State came into substantial compliance with 3 additional provisions (those related to due process, grievances, and transition). However, the compliance ratings did not advance for any of the 5 provisions that were beginning compliance in the previous monitoring period (two related to physical restraints, child abuse investigations, classification, and corrective action plans). Parties will be notified the date the Court expects to conduct a site visit to the facility. Further, the parties were directed to submit a proposed agreed order regarding the next scheduled Status Conference. (TRS) (Entered: 05/31/2011)
168 ORDER that the Court will schedule the next status conference for mid to late January 2012 and the parties will be notified of the date for the nextt telephonic status conference two weeks in advance. Signed by District Judge Henry T.

Case: 3:03-cv-1354 As of: 03/03/2016 04:23 PM CST 15 of 15

10/05/2011 01/30/2012 02/07/2012
08/13/2012
10/17/2012 02/15/2013 03/18/2013 04/12/2013
09/27/2013 05/23/2014 08/15/2014 08/19/2014 01/30/2015

Wingate on 6/7/11 (TRS) (Entered: 06/09/2011)
169 NOTICE of 16TH MONITORS' REPORT OAKLEY TRAINING SCHOOL (ND) (Entered: 10/05/2011)
170 NOTICE OF 17th MONITORS' REPORT − OAKLEY TRAINING SCHOOL. (RRL) (Entered: 01/30/2012)
Minute Entry for proceedings held before District Judge Henry T. Wingate. APPEARANCES via telephone: S. Dominiquez and M. Paige, government's counsel; Dr. K. Dedel, monitor; C. Eubank and T. Blair, counsel for State of MS; J. Maccarone, Administrator of Oakely Training School. Telephone Conference/Status Conference held on 2/7/2012. The Court was given an overview of the 17th Monitor's Report. Oakely Training School's next site visit is scheduled the week of March 19. (TRS) (Entered: 02/08/2012)
Minute Entry for proceedings held before District Judge Henry T. Wingate. VIA TELEPHONE: Dr. K. Dedel; S. Dominquez; J. Maccarone; W. Simpson; H. Pizzetta, C. Eubank. Telephone Conference held on 8/13/2012. The parties discussed the recent Monitor's Report and the need for an external Quality Assurance audit. The parties further discussed the recent news report concerning allegations of abuse within the Oakley Training School. The Monitor's next site visit is scheduled for September 3, 4, and 5, 2012. The following Conference Call is scheduled for February 27, 2013, at 9:30 A.M. (TRS) Modified on 8/14/2012 (TRS). (Entered: 08/14/2012)
171 NOTICE OF 19th MONITOR'S REPORT − OAKLEY TRAINING SCHOOL (ND) (Entered: 10/17/2012)
172 NOTICE of Appearance by Joshua C. Delaney on behalf of United States of America (Delaney, Joshua) (Entered: 02/15/2013)
Set Hearings: Telephone Conference set for 4/12/2013 11:30 AM in Courtroom 6A (Jackson) Wingate before District Judge Henry T. Wingate (TRS) (Entered: 03/18/2013)
Minute Entry for proceedings held before District Judge Henry T. Wingate. APPEARANCES: J. Delaney, M. Paige, and K. Dedell (monitor), counsel for government; J. Macarone, administrator of Oakley Training School, T. Blair, H. Pizzetta, M. Hobby, W. Simpson, counsel for State of MS. Status Conference held on 4/12/2013. Parties advised the court that the state has satisfied the requirements in the major substantive areas of the Consent Decree. All that remains is the implementation of the Quality Assurance program. Defense will submit a proposed order reflecting the areas that were in compliance. Once the order has been received, the court will conduct a site visit at Oakley Training School. (TRS) (Entered: 04/12/2013)
173 AGREED ORDER TERMINATING SPECIFIC PROVISIONS OF THE AMENDED CONSENT DECREE. Signed by District Judge Henry T. Wingate on 9/27/13 (TRS) (Entered: 09/27/2013)
174 NOTICE OF 21st MONITOR'S REPORT OAKLEY TRAINING SCHOOL (TRS) (Entered: 05/23/2014)
175 Joint MOTION to Dismiss by United States of America (Delaney, Joshua) (Entered: 08/15/2014)
176 ORDER OF FINAL DISMISSAL. It is hereby ordered that the Consent Decree and its associated Orders are terminated; and the case is finally dismissed with prejudice. Signed by District Judge Henry T. Wingate on 8/19/14 (TRS) (Entered: 08/19/2014)
177 ORDER finding as moot 175 Motion to Dismiss. Signed by District Judge Henry T. Wingate on 1/30/15. (TLC) (Entered: 01/30/2015)