Key Reads

On the night of Monday, June 24th, there was a violent fight at the Department of Corrections’ Lincoln Hills youth facility. According to reports, a 16 year old attacked two DOC employees. Corey Proulx, a 49 year old youth counselor was one of the victims of the attack. Proulx died of his injuries the next day.

If one were to only go by the recent account offered by the Department of Corrections press release, the death of Corey Proulx was a mere blip in the road and that things at Lincoln Hills are getting much better.

The Lincoln Hills School for Boys, and Copper Lake School for Girls were the subject of a lawsuit, filed seven years ago. The state paid out millions of dollars in settlements and attorney fees and agreed to change disciplinary and corrective action procedures and to have the facilities be overseen by a court-appointed monitor.

That monitor, as a part of their regularly scheduled duties, visited the facilities a few weeks after the murder. Contrary to the rosy scenario painted by the Department of Corrections press release, conditions at Lincoln Hills remain dangerous, and guards at unease.

Here is link to the Monitor’s report

At a legislative hearing held shortly after the murder, Republican State Senator Mary Felzkowski repeatedly said that staff at Lincoln Hills have told her they fear for their safety.

“I’m not going to let that go, until the employees are recognized and somebody starts to take action,” Felzkowski told DOC leadership who addressed the committee. “You need to address the situation with the employees.”

Like the press release noted above, the Department Secretary Jared Hoy and Lincoln Hills Superintendent Klint Trevino assured lawmakers that they hear and meet their staff’s concerns.

The details of the monitor’s report suggest otherwise.

Please read the full Dairyland Sentinel story.