Cornerstone gets temporary permit for juvenile jail

by Carol Crump
Tuesday, May 6, 2008 2:04 PM MDT

With the Natrona County Commission's assurance that the minimum fire codes can be met, Cornerstone Programs Inc. was granted a provisional license for six months.

The license began on May 1, when Cornerstone took over operation of the Juvenile Detention Center on the third floor of the Hall of Justice.

A permanent license from the state Department of Family Services will be contingent on the county's getting a sprinkler system installed within the next two years.

"We'll do whatever it takes to make the facility work until we can get a new one built," promised Commission Chair Rob Hendry.

The minimum changes that will begin immediately in the County-owned building include swapping out doors that swing the wrong way, adding a smoke alarm system and emergency exit lights, cleaning a kitchen hood and replacing combustible trash cans.

The County is looking at options for installing sprinklers on another floor of a five-story building that is only partially sprinkled. The County's deadline is May 2010 to meet the 2006 fire code, which requires sprinklers in all multistory buildings.

Even with fire code compliance and new management, the County is left with a facility that houses juveniles in what used to be an adult jail. As the result of a request for technical assistance to the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) from Sheriff Mark Benton, the County has a report outlining an ideal juvenile facility for Natrona County and the region.

With a projected price tag topping $9 million for a juvenile facility that includes 24 beds for secure detention, the County still is exploring its options.

The commissioners contracted with Jennie Pagel, a former grant coordinator for the attorney general's office in Cheyenne, to "work on what we really need in this county," said Hendry.

Pagel will be doing 100 hours of "very specific research" that includes interviewing stakeholders and creating a flow chart of what the current juvenile system looks like.

"Judges don't have a lot of options," she said. "Sentencing is based on availability."

Pagel also will be visiting six sites in the Rocky Mountain region that already have built regional juvenile detention centers and dialoging with the new management team from Cornerstone.

Pagel will be paid $2,500 through a County contract for research, which she said will not include grant writing.

State DFS Director Tony Lewis told the commissioners the information from OJJDP consultants Michael McMillen and David Rousch that calls for a new, regional facility was "pretty good" and he had confidence in Cornerstone.

"Natrona County is not alone" in trying to deal with regional detention, Lewis said at a County Commission work session.

The County's current facility, which is licensed for up to 42 young people, is one of five regional centers in Wyoming. Together, facilities in Casper, Gillette, Fremont County, Rock Springs and Cheyenne should meet the state's needs for regional care.

"At this point, detention isn't overbuilt," DFS Juvenile Services Administrator Bob Quick said.

Quick told the Wyoming Legislature's Joint Judiciary Committee in November 2007 that he is aware of seven different instruments being used in the state to assess juveniles.

DFS plans to look county-by-county to determine each county's or region's needs to develop a coherent system of juvenile services.

"Where you put kids makes a difference about how well they do," Quick said. "A few are dangerous. Most are just kids."

E-mail Carol Crump at carol.crump@casperjournal.com.

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