Nearly three years after Sheriff Garry McFadden closed Mecklenburg County’s only juvenile detention center, there is still hope among some in the criminal justice system for its reopening, according to the Charlotte Observer.
The facility, once known as Jail North, was shut down in 2022 due to staffing issues, and local teenagers charged with crimes are now sent to a state juvenile facility in Cabarrus County. State public safety leaders and local advocates agree that something important was lost when the facility closed.
“I tried to lease. I tried to buy. I tried to offer incentives for them to do it,” said William Lassiter, Deputy Secretary of the Department of Public Safety. “All those have been rejected. At this point, I feel like the ball is in their court.”…