Fixing TYC

Texas TYC was born in scandal—in 1948. Back then, the legislature responded to horrors, like the ‘water cure’ (high pressure hosing of boys' genitals), with the creation of the Texas Training School Code Commission. Scandals in the 60’s and 70’s resulted in the filing of Morales v. Thurman, a class action suit filed on behalf of hundreds of incarcerated juveniles.

In each instance, some reform happened, but not enough.

So, what now? How do we fix TYC, especially when budgets have been cut and cut again by conservative law makers? 

Based on recent successes in Missouri, Ohio and other states, here are seven steps to fixing TYC:

1. Clean House

To ensure that reform moves forward and the individuals who harmed our children are held accountable, we must clean house at TYC.  First, the current board must be removed and replaced.  The Senate sent a clear message on Feb. 28 with S.R. 384 that the allegations of abuse at TYC must be investigated and prosecuted.  This week, the Senate took action by unanimously passing S.B. 1921 to remove all of the current members of the board and require Governor Perry to appoint new ones. The inaction and incompetence of the current TYC board is why the board will resign Friday.

Furthermore, "Special Master" Jay Kimbrough should be replaced with an objective third-party investigator as initially advised by the Senate on Feb. 28.  Conflicts of interest have placed Kimbrough in a position where he is being asked to investigate himself.  In 2005, Kimbrough served as Deputy Chief of Staff for Governor Perry, during which time Governor Perry's staff was being advised of the abuses at TYC.  The following year, Kimbrough worked in the Texas Attorney General's Office as Deputy First Assistant Attorney General and Director of the Office of Special Investigations.  Not in one, but in two official capacities, Kimbrough himself knew or should have known about the TYC scandal, years prior to its public disclosure weeks ago.                  

2. Create Regional Centers

Fifty-four percent of all TYC inmates are from urban areas.  Houston alone accounts for 23% of TYC inmates.  Yet, TYC has pursued a policy of placing facilities in rural areas and youth in distant isolation from their families and communities.  The West Texas State School in Pyote, the central facility in the scandal, is located 569 highway miles from Houston, 404 miles from Dallas, 376 miles from San Antonio, 373 miles from Ft. Worth, and 400 miles from Austin.    

TYC's distant placement of these youth places an unconscionable hardship on these families and is counter-productive to meeting TYC's mission of rehabilitation and community reintegration for these young offenders.  

3. Adequately Fund TYC

Juvenile justice advocate Isela Gutierrez was recently quoted in the San Antonio Express-News saying, "Many [TYC] staff members are simply not adequately trained to deal with the very complex needs of the youth that they see: high mental health issues, extreme emotional disturbance." The State of Texas must adequately fund TYC so that it hires trained staff working in acceptable facilities.

4. Conduct Bi-Annual Confidential Audits

TYC should have bi-annual confidential, third-party audits conducted to ensure the agency is following the law and achieving its purpose—to protect, rehabilitate and reintegrate youth.  For unknown years, TYC has operated where sex is traded for favors and, in some cases, freedom.  From 2000-2006, 99.7% of all claims of abuse and neglect coming out of TYC facilities were left unheeded and uninvestigated.  These illegal and immoral conditions should never have happened and should never happen again under the state's eye.  A 1-800 hotline number should also be a permanent feature of the audit process.            

5. INCREASE CAPACITY of the texas ATTORNEY GENERAL and local da's to investigate abuse

The investigation into allegations of abuse at the West Texas State School was delayed repeatedly by lack of resources and information, and, more recently, unclear jurisdiction on the part of the local district attorney, Texas Attorney General's Office and U.S. Department of Justice, according to the Texas Observer.  The Texas Attorney General and local district attorney must be given the authority and resources to fully investigate abuse and neglect cases at TYC.  In addition, Texas must pass an obstruction of justice statute to prosecute individuals who deliberately hinder, corrupt or mislead investigations.

6. Increase Transparency and Accountability

The rule of law must be enforced in TYC.  The TYC scandal shows that TYC should not be left to self-investigate allegations of abuse and neglect.  A third-party, objective ombudsman should be created at TYC with powers to investigate abuse and advocate for youth.  Also, video surveillance at TYC should be updated and improved.  Moreover, increased site visits and reporting to the public must be implemented.   

7. A Compassionate Agency

Grover Norquist, an advisor to Governor Perry and President Bush, mapped out his view of government in these words: "My goal is to cut government…to get it down to the size where we can drown it in the bathtub." It is not surprising, then, that Republicans have created a government where children in prison are left to fend for themselves in an under-funded agency.

Government, and TYC in particular, must be re-transformed with a commitment to its own people—an unwavering dedication to competency and compassion.  The reconstituted board must be a new breed, dedicated to a government that governs best, and a duty to responsibility and human compassion.