Documents Describe Episodes Of Graphic Violence At Wisconsin Youth Prison

Graphic details of violent incidents at the Lincoln Hills and Copper Lake school for juvenile offenders are emerging as a state and federal investigation continues. Meanwhile, Gov. Scott Walker is dismissing criticism that he was slow to act after being notified of reports of abuse at the facility.

Records obtained by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reveal a list of abuses at the facility allegedly committed by staff against youth who are held there. The list includes broken bones and sexual assault.

The documents include a description of a Nov. 29 incident in which a counselor slammed a metal door on an inmate’s foot so hard that some of his toes had to be amputated.

Mark Towne, a retired prison warden who as three family members working at the school, described another incident as a mini-riot.

“At one point in time, they had up to 60 youth that refused to go into their rooms breaking all the windows in a housing unit where they literally had to be removed from that housing unit to do all the repairs,” Towne said. “That should could cause a lockdown. That should cause the administration put the brakes on. Red flags are flying. What do we have going on here?”

According to public records obtained by state news media, the governor’s office was told several times over the last year about allegations of staff and youth injuries at the northern Wisconsin school. Walker was asked Friday if his presidential bid that ended in September distracted him from dealing with the problems earlier.

“No, not whatsoever. The bottom line is I don’t go through every piece of constituent mail,” Walker said. “I don’t go through every email.I get thousands of those. The information that was originally brought in was brought in 2014 when I was a candidate for governor, not for any other office out there.”

He added that his administration originally thought the problems involved a limited number of individuals, and that immediate action had been taken.

Officials with the union representing prison staff argue new rules restricting the use of segregation to discipline youth make it harder to keep order at the school. But juvenile justice experts say reforms are needed in the way the state manages young offenders.

Jim Moeser, a former state administrator of juvenile corrections now with the Wisconsin Council on Children and Families, said the new rules have worked in other states to reduce the number of teens who end up in adult prison.

“Treating them certain ways is more likely to get better results so less confrontational, less prison-like, less physical restraint, those kinds of things,” said Moeser.

The reports of abuse have also prompted officials in Milwaukee to call on court officials to stop sending Milwaukee youth there until the investigation in completed.

Milwaukee County Supervisor Deanna Alexander said she and others in county government felt it was time to speak out.

“We’re concerned and we want to see action,” Alexander said. “I think that it will gain their attention and help the people to have the power to create sentencing alternatives, or to identify other locations to deal with our youth in need of corrections.”

There are at least 100 Milwaukee County youth held at the school now. County court officials said there are alternative programs for teen lawbreakers in the county but they would need to be expanded if the county were to stop sending youth to Lincoln Hills and Copper Lake.

A Lincoln County judge will hear more testimony on violence at the school on Monday.