Challenges In MD Dept of Juvenile Services Could Prompt More Reform Legislation

A recent report from an independent auditing unit continues to shine a light on challenges facing new leadership at the Maryland Department of Juvenile Services (DJS). 

A report in late July, from the Juvenile Justice Monitoring Unit (JJMU) in the newly established Office of the Correctional Ombudsman (OCO) outlines concerns at facilities run by the Department of Juvenile Services (DJS). The report is one of the first major projects of the recently established OCO following the passage of SB 134 during the 2024 legislative session. The provisions of the bill included the movement of the JJMU from the Office of the Attorney General (OAG) to the OCO.

Of the concerns highlighted, violations stemmed from a number of areas including:

  • sexual abuse
  • drugs and contraband
  • personnel
  • living conditions
  • education

The report had previously been stalled due to requested information from DJS not being transferred to the OCO until the appointment of the new DJS Secretary. From the report:

Even though several of the items had already been requested multiple times, it was not until the new
secretary was appointed and still weeks later June 27, 2025, that OCO finally received all the information requested.

The report also recommended the reconsideration of the employment of individuals in seven current positions at the agency.

The broad state of juvenile justice in Maryland also involves oversight by the Governor’s Office of Crime Prevention and Policy (GOCPP), where compliance specialists have taken an all the above approach for tackling a continuum of concerns across the youth justice system in Maryland. One problematic component is the continued and prolonged detention of youth in adult facilities. Local and state officials agree this is not suitable and should be changed, but ongoing capacity issues at DJS facilities has continued to stall legislative changes that would ban the placement of juveniles in adult detention centers.

These spacing challenges held up a MACo supported bill, HB 1107, during the 2025 legislative session which would have prohibited the housing of juveniles in local adult detention centers. During the deliberation for HB 1107 the number of impacted juveniles was between 40 and 50, which is not an insurmountable number, particularly if the audit necessitates significant renovations and policy changes. Due to the severity of some of the findings from the recent report, any mandated improvements at DJS could lead to some expanded capacity or repurposing of existing space for the housing of juveniles charged as adults.