Commission approves juvenile monitoring contract as officials warn of detention strain

The St. Clair County Commission voted to approve a $10,000 contract with APOC Solutions to expand use of Repath electronic monitoring for juveniles, the county’s chief juvenile probation officer said. The contract — approved subject to attorney review — will allow probation staff to enroll new offenders and day‑program participants in a monitoring program that offers facial recognition, GPS location checks and frequent check‑ins.

Emily Klein, chief juvenile probation officer, told commissioners the juvenile office handled 708 intakes in 2025 — 494 in Pell City and 214 in Asheville — and has been operating understaffed. "We have a kid that has been there for over a year…he's been there for 262 days," Klein said, describing cases that complicate placement decisions and prolong stays in regional detention centers.

Klein and commissioners discussed current limits in local detention capacity, noting the county relies on Coosa Valley (which has 47 beds and commonly stays full). She told the board county corrections staff are already familiar with Repath through juvenile drug court and the proposed contract would let probation use that system for additional offenders. Commissioners asked that the contract be reviewed by the county attorney before final execution; the motion to approve carried.

Klein also requested two full‑time administrative positions — one each for the Asheville and Pell City juvenile offices — to handle intakes and pay‑review dockets. She said the county’s juvenile court fund (fund 106) had an approximate fund balance of $250,000 and brings in about $70,000 annually from supervision fees and court dockets. She estimated an administrative assistant would cost about $17 per hour plus benefits. Commissioners discussed whether the county should directly hire the staff or reimburse the Administrative Office of Courts (AOC) if the AOC provided the employee; they asked staff to pursue options and report back at the next work session.

Separately, the commission later authorized Commissioner Stevens to engage architects to design a juvenile detention facility, linking the earlier monitoring and staffing discussion to longer‑term capacity planning. Commissioners emphasized coordination among the sheriff’s office, engineers and architects on utilities, site work and costs before moving to construction.

The commission did not set an immediate timetable for hiring additional juvenile staff; members asked county staff to return with cost estimates and reimbursement options for the next meeting.