Los Angeles County has issued a last-minute notice about a meeting at Plummer Park tomorrow to get local residents’ input on a proposed civilian oversight commission for the scandal-ridden county Probation Department.
A flyer announcing the meeting arrived at City Hall this afternoon. The flyer doesn’t state which building in Plummer Park will house the discussion, which is scheduled for 6 to 9 p.m. WEHOville was unable to reach any Probation Department workers this evening for clarification.
The L.A. County Board of Supervisors, prompted by supervisors Sheila Kuehl and Mark Ridley-Thomas, agreed in February to set up a working group to take a look at the various bodies that supervise the Probation Department.
The federal Department of Justice launched an investigation in November 2006 after hearing reports of brutal treatment of young people in the county’s juvenile camps. The investigation resulted in six years of federal monitoring of the Probation Department, which ended last year after federal officials decided the department had made reforms.
However in May a handcuffed boy allegedly was choked by a Probation Department staffer at Central Juvenile Hall. In June, a video was leaked that showed probation staffers brutally beating a young man at the Nidorf Juvenile Hall in Sylmar.
The Probation Department houses roughly 1,200 young people at three juvenile halls and 13 camps.
The Probation Department also has found itself in other scandals. Probation Chief Jerry Powers was forced out after being accused of hiring is lover in a senior position. L.A. County auditors also have found evidence of financial mismanagement.
