More than one in four offenders housed in West Virginia’s juvenile correctional facilities are actually adults.
From Dave’s story:
As of earlier this month, 65 of the 256 male and female offenders in juvenile detention centers were 18 or older, according to data (Secretary Joe Thornton of the Department of Military Affairs and Public Safety) provided.
There are 59 men in the system who are 18 or older. Most are 18 or 19. Five are 20. Of the offenders who are juveniles, most are 15 to 17. There are 29 who are 14 or younger, including three 12-year-olds.
State law says a court that sentences a juvenile keeps jurisdiction over that person until he or she turns 21. That’s causing some problems in juvenile facilities, however, as adult offenders are accused of assaulting younger inmates. Correctional officers also say their presence also leads to morale problems.
Click here to read the full story.
In other news…
- Interim meetings are going on this week at the state Capitol. Click here for the full schedule of meetings, and click here to listen live.
- Daily Mail education reporter Shay Maunz reports the West Virginia Secondary Schools Athletics Commission will keep a closer eye on sports-related concussions this school year, requiring all head coaches for middle and high school sports receive training on how to recognize concussions and how to proceed when they occur. Earlier this year, the state Legislature passed a bill requiring any athlete with a suspected concussion be removed from play, and forbids them from returning to the field without approval from a medical professional.
- As we reported last week, newly elected Speaker Tim Miley, D-Harrison, shuffled his leadership team last week, making former House Finance Chairman Harry Keith White the new Majority Leader, and former Majority Leader Brent Boggs the new Finance Chairman. Larry Messina of the Associated Press has this story about the challenges each man faces in his new post.
- If you haven’t already, check out the new podcast Dave and I started last week. We’re calling it “The Capitol Chat.” Also, subscribe to my weekly email newsletter, the Capitol Notebook Week in Review.
