The Travis County Commissioners Court is facing pushback from justice advocates over a controversial proposal to expand the county's juvenile detention complex with a price tag potentially hitting $300 million. According to the Austin Monitor, the plan, which came under scrutiny at a June 27 meeting, would see an increase in facilities at the Gardner Betts juvenile jail campus in South Austin.
Opponents of the expansion, a coalition numbering more than 50, argue that investing in diversion and community-based services would be more effective than enhancing incarceration capabilities. They cite the county's recent strides toward alternative measures like the Diversion Center plan as a more favorable path. Advocates suggest that a variety of non-penal services, like family counseling and drug treatment programs, could reap benefits from the substantial funds proposed for the expansion effort, contributing directly to prevention rather than punishment.
The Juvenile Probation Department has presented this project as a critical update to the Comprehensive Facilities Plan from 2017. The department asserts the additional structures, including a dorm-style housing unit and transitional living spaces, would bridge service gaps and reduce the likelihood of youth reoffending, as currently "52 percent of children at Gardner Betts are at risk of reoffending," a county statistic reveals.
However, skepticism abounds among the legal professionals defending these youths. Veteran juvenile public defender Ruben Castañeda questioned the County Commissioners' engagement with community leaders on the planning process, highlighting a gap in understanding the actual needs of the children and families served. Castañeda told the Austin Monitor, "My office represents pretty much every kid in the system. I am all for investment in resources for these children and families, but we need to know and understand what they need. I don’t know that they need a centralized facility that would be difficult for them to get to."
Adding to the discourse, Maggie Luna from the Texas Harm Reduction Alliance shared her personal experience with the foster care system, emphasizing the positive change in her child due to community support, not incarceration. "The children we’re sending there are salvageable but … there’s no such thing as trauma-informed incarceration, ever. You’re still incarcerating children," she said to the Austin Monitor. Bob Batlan from Advocates for Social Justice Reform also weighed in, arguing for a more data-driven understanding of services that could aid young people before considering infrastructure to house them.
With the community's strong stance and previous decisions like the one on the women’s jail, the public defenders are urging the county officials to uphold principles that eschew incarceration-focused solutions. Chief public defender Adeola Ogunkeyede emphasized this sentiment, as stated by the Austin Monitor, "Travis County has already expressed these principles in prior votes on the women’s jail, saying that more buildings is not the way forward." The Commissioners Court delayed the expansion plan vote to further consider the testimonies from the June 27 meeting.
