State legislators said yesterday they were outraged - but not surprised - by a Department of Juvenile Services review that revealed more than 100 examples of caseworkers who have failed to contact the young offenders they are supposed to be supervising.
"As it is currently being run, DJS is a threat to public safety," said state Sen. C. Anthony Muse, a Prince George's County Democrat. "Having kids with violent offenses and violent cases and not knowing where they are? That's a threat to public safety."
Muse and other senators called for more legislative involvement - but some weren't sure what they can do to overhaul a department with a decades-long history of chaos and mismanagement.
Sen. Brian E. Frosh, a Montgomery County Democrat, said the DJS will "certainly" be among the topics that his Judicial Proceedings Committee discusses in meetings over the summer. But he said he is "wrestling" with what the legislature can do, given that laws already on the books are not being followed.
The reaction followed a report yesterday in The Sun detailing results from the first half of an unprecedented internal review of all 2,000 city DJS cases. The rest are slated for review early next month and will be followed by meetings between DJS officials and the city's 129 caseworkers and 22 supervisors.
DJS Secretary Donald W. DeVore, who initiated and participated in the review, said other areas, including Prince George's County and Baltimore County, can expect a similar process.
State Sen. Bobby A. Zirkin, a Baltimore County Democrat and juvenile justice reform advocate, praised DeVore for "shining a light on what's going on in his agency."
"It's not a pleasant task when the agency is as dysfunctional as this has been," Zirkin said.
Mayor Sheila Dixon also said yesterday through a spokesman that she is "pleased that they are doing the review."
DeVore has said he is "very concerned" about what he has learned so far and would likely push for more training, department policy changes and redeployment of resources. Some staff changes might be necessary, he said this week, adding that the inquiry is "not a witch hunt."
The findings in the review include a caseworker who failed to maintain contact with a juvenile determined to be at high risk of committing another crime and an entire unit of caseworkers that went unsupervised when a manager took an extended leave of absence.
