Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Juvenile Detention And Probation topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Court services director reports rising juvenile stays, high probation caseloads and tentative labor agreement
Summary
The court services director told the committee adult probation caseloads remain above peer jurisdictions, juvenile probation has high turnover and juvenile detention average length of stay has risen to 31 days; the department reached a tentative three‑year agreement with Aspen Judicial Unit.
Bridal, director of Court Services, briefed the Peoria County Justice Committee on adult and juvenile probation, juvenile detention center (JDC) operations and workforce trends.
Bridal said adult probation added 2,647 clients in the first half of 2025, bringing the adult caseload to 4,857 and that caseloads per officer remain higher than comparable jurisdictions. “We still continue to struggle… almost all the way across through the levels,” Bridal said.
In juvenile probation, Bridal reported 124 youths placed on probation through June 30, for a total juvenile caseload of 638. She said juvenile staffing turnover is high — 32% so far this year — and roughly 70% of juvenile division staff have less than one year of experience.
At the juvenile detention center, Bridal said there were 373 referrals and 223 admissions through June 30, an average daily population of 31 and an average length of stay that has increased from about 19–20 days to 31 days. She attributed part of the lengthening stays to 12 juveniles who were transferred to adult court; Bridal said those youth have much longer average stays (she reported an average of 233 days for transferred youth and noted individual cases exceeding 600 days).
The JDC population, Bridal said, also includes a high clinical burden: “of those kids in secure detention, over 60 percent of them have a mental health diagnosis and [are] on psychotropic medications,” she said, and that reentry services are being expanded to help community transition.
Bridal told members the department reestablished a JDC work group at the committee’s request and has shared presentation materials with board members. She also said the department reached a tentative three‑year agreement with the Aspen Judicial Unit; the tentative contract includes negotiated time‑off language intended to reduce mandatory overtime. Bridal reported that annual increases in the tentative agreement were discussed during the presentation but did not provide a single consolidated percentage in committee discussion.
Discussion vs. decision: the report was informational. The tentative labor agreement was reported as reached but committee minutes did not record ratification or final approval.
Ending: Bridal said she will continue to make herself available for follow‑up and to provide additional data ahead of the budget discussions.
