Georgia's Juvenile Justice Chief Seeks Analysis of Federal Report

In the wake of a federal report released Thursday that found high rates of sexual victimization at Paulding County Regional Youth Detention Center and 12 other juvenile facilities, the commissioner of the Georgia Department of Juvenile Justice told the Paulding Neighbor that he wants a "committee to analyze the report for any significant data which could help lead to arrests and convictions for staff sexual misconduct."

Data from the 2012 National Survey of Youth in Custody identified 13 juvenile facilities with high rates of sexual victimization, and the Paulding County Regional Youth Detention Center was at the top of the list.

The survey found that 32.1 percent of Paulding juveniles reported that they were victimized sexually by either staff or other juveniles at the center.

That exceeded the national rate of 9.5 percent, according to the Bureau of Justice Statistics.

Paulding also had the highest rate of staff-on-youth sexual victimization (31 percent). About 7.1 percent of respondents said the staff sexual misconduct was the result of force or other forms of coercion.

Georgia Department of Juvenile Justice Commissioner Avery Niles told the Paulding Neighbor that if the committee presents "actionable" findings, "he intends to assign the case to a special internal affairs investigator for follow up and possible prosecution if evidence warrants."

For further contemplation and analysis, read the full report at http://www.bjs.gov/content/pub/pdf/svjfry12.pdf

Related content

• Report: Paulding Juvenile Facility Has High Rate of Sexual Misconduct