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Probation chief defends staffing shifts as supervisors press for decarceration metrics
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Summary
The board received a detailed update from the probation chief on juvenile depopulation plans and staffing changes, including moving field officers into facilities to meet court-ordered coverage. Supervisors sought clearer metrics and raised concerns about mental-health services for girls and gender-expansive youth moved from Dorothy Kirby to Camp Kilpatrick.
The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors on April 28 received a lengthy status report from Chief Probation Officer Guillermo Viera Rosa on the department's juvenile depopulation strategy, facility staffing, and plans to meet court and state oversight requirements.
Probation told the board it has reached staffing agreements to provide enhanced coverage and is preparing for reinspection at facilities affected by prior court findings. "We currently have an agreement with respect to the amount of staff at each of the facilities ... close to 1,300 peace officers in order to provide 24/7 coverage," the chief said during his presentation, describing steps the department has taken to comply with court and Board of State and Community Corrections requirements.
Chief Viera Rosa defended a model that moves many field probation officers into juvenile facilities and emphasized a shift to more in‑home and in‑community field contacts. "We're actually going to, at the end of these 12 months, have more field services with less staff," he said, arguing the department is changing the point of service rather than reducing contact with probationers.
Supervisors concentrated questioning on mental‑health programming and the reported transfer of girls and gender‑expansive youth from Dorothy Kirby Center to Camp Kilpatrick. Board members and the Probation Oversight Commission have expressed concerns that those youth may have lost access to the same level of programming and specialized DPO T&C staff they previously received.
Representatives from the Department of Mental Health (DMH) said they had staffed Kilpatrick with additional clinical personnel: "We have hired 11 dedicated clinicians, 2 mental health clinical supervisors, 1 full time board certified child and adolescent psychiatrist," a DMH deputy said, and added they would continue recruitment to fill vacancies. DMH officials said the number of clinicians is greater than Dorothy Kirby's currently staffed clinical positions, which they reported as around six.
Supervisors repeatedly pressed Probation to adopt measurable outcome metrics that reflect quality and impact (for example, mental‑health outcomes and recidivism) rather than only counting service hours. Supervisor Mitchell asked the department to formulate metrics that track outcomes, not just inputs, so the board and public can evaluate whether increased programming reduces reoffending and improves wellbeing.
Public commenters and advocacy groups called for urgency and for greater use of community alternatives to reduce detention. The board received and filed the report and instructed Probation to return with clearer metrics and additional information about alternative placements and staffing allocations.
What happens next: Probation committed to return with metrics and more precise counts of staff dedicated to decarceration, alternative placements for female youth, and measures of program quality and outcome.
