Springfield Police Department seeing consequences of juvenile center closure

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (WAND)- It has been over a year since the Sangamon County Juvenile Detention Facility closed its doors. This happened after an inmate got a gun into the facility, took another teen hostage, and attempted to escape. A Springfield Police officer responding to the call shot the teen, who died from his injuries.

The building has still not reopened, which means many of the juveniles the Springfield Police Department are arresting, don't have a place to go. SPD Chief Ken Scarlette says when a teen is arrested and there are no spots available in juvenile facility, teens are usually released to their guardian until their sentencing.

He shared a current case where a teen was in court for a weapons charge and pled guilty. He then was released to a guardian. Hours later, he and two other teens hijacked a vehicle, and beat the driver to the point of unconsciousness. One of the teens then stomped on the victim's head, all while recording their actions.

"We arrested three individuals from that, but unfortunately, there was only one bed throughout the entire state of Illinois, so we could only send one of those three vicious, violent juveniles to be housed in a facility," said Scarlette. "So that individual had to be transported to St. Clair County which was another hour, hour and a half drive for one of our officers."

This is a struggle for officers who have to arrest the same offenders repeatedly, but they continue to be released.

"How does that make us feel as members of society, knowing that there are individuals out there that have committed heinous crimes such as this and are back out in society?" said Scarlette. "Every one of those individuals should spend some time in the juvenile detention center."

We reached out to Sangamon County to learn why it has taken so long to re-open the facility. This is the statement they provided to WAND News:

“Sangamon County has worked closely with the Administrative Office of Illinois Courts to prepare for the reopening of the Juvenile Detention Center. The Administrative Office has approved all of the measures taken to enhance and improve security including the addition of a body scanner. The reopening plan also requires a set minimum staffing level to operate the facility 24 hours a day seven days a week. Sangamon County like many detention centers around the state has struggled to fill openings. The Administrative Office will not approve reopening until we meet the appropriate staffing level.”