Louisiana intends to spend millions of dollars on expanding juvenile detention centers. (Photo by Julie O’Donoghue/Louisiana Illuminator)
Louisiana officials expect to put tens of millions of dollars over the next two months into expanding juvenile detention centers that house children and teenagers accused of crimes.
At the beginning of the summer, Gov. Jeff Landry and Louisiana lawmakers diverted $100 million from a state savings account in order to make upgrades to criminal justice facilities. A large chunk of the money will be used to increase the state’s capacity to incarcerate youth offenders, though the exact amount hasn’t been set yet.
“We are trying to prioritize funding for regional juvenile facilities,” Christopher Walters, Landry’s deputy executive counsel, said at an August hearing about how the money will be spent. “We are lacking in bedspace for juvenile offenders.”
The Landry administration gave the state juvenile justice office, adult prison system, sheriffs and parish officials the month of September to apply for criminal justice grants funded by money.
The Legislature’s Joint Legislative Committee on the Budget will select the winning projects by the end of the year based on recommendations from a newly formed group called the Criminal Justice Priority Funding Commission, which is primarily made up of state lawmakers.