Operations at the Maryland Department of Juvenile Services will be aligned with state law, acting Secretary Betsy Fox Tolentino said during an interview with FOX45 News .
It’s not clear if that wasn’t always the case under the previous secretary, Vincent Schiraldi, who wrote an op-ed published in The Baltimore Sun Thursday explaining his departure from the agency. Tolentino said she’s going “dig in” and see where some tweaks may need to be made to ensure the agency is following “all the rules that are set out for us in a way that gets the best outcomes for our young people.”
“What I bring is a renewed focus to our operations, ensuring that our operations align with our Maryland laws and statutory framework, ensuring our operations get the best outcomes for our young people and ensuring that we are in a position to support public safety,” Tolentino said during the interview Wednesday.
Tolentino’s appointment was effective June 11 after Gov. Wes Moore demanded Schiraldi’s resignation following months of frustration from prosecutors, community members and law enforcement leaders around Maryland.
Schiraldi was controversial from the start. His confirmation process was filled with questions about his views on juvenile justice, including a now-decade-old op-ed published in The Washington Post where Schiraldi expressed the idea that young people up to the age of 25 shouldn’t be in the adult criminal justice system.
“One of the things that is different about me is the time I’ve spent here at the Maryland Department of Juvenile Services. I worked there for 11 years prior to coming back,” Tolentino said during her interview with FOX45 News.
After she left DJS, she worked for the nonprofit Roca, which works to prevent violence among high-risk youth.
“For the past three years, I’ve worked around the country helping frontline staff see how to do the work differently,” she said.
While Tolentino said she is different from her predecessor, FOX45 News found a 2022 presentation where she talked about detention and the negative outcomes that can result from unnecessary detention of young people.
“Detention has a negative impact on community safety,” Tolentino said in the 2022 virtual presentation. “When you’re incarcerating young people who don’t need to be there, they’re more likely to continue that delinquent behavior.”
Those comments mirror what Schiraldi has said in the past. Asked how she will be different from him if those are her views, she said she believes there are appropriate times for detention.
“Our statutory framework tells us when to use detention when there’s a risk to public safety, when there’s a risk to the young person’s safety or when there’s some thought that they may not show up for court. If we use it as we are supposed to, that’s one thing,” she said. “If we are using it for young people who are not appropriate for detention, that’s when we get the outcomes that we don’t want to see.”
When it comes to those detention decisions, several state’s attorneys previously said they want Tolentino to change the policy, taking DJS out the decision process. Instead, the prosecutors want a third party, like a judicial magistrate, to decide whether a young person should be held.
During a town hall with FOX45 News, top prosecutors from Baltimore City, Howard, Carroll, and Wicomico counties said they all have had examples of young people getting released before their court dates, and then not show up for court. Because of that, they said it was necessary to have DJS taken out of the detention decision process and allow another entity to make that decision.
While not committing completely, Tolentino said she would review all ideas brought to the table by stakeholders and public safety partners.
“I’ll evaluate it and see if it’s something that we can operationalize or if it’s something that you know is outside the scope of our current framework,” Tolentino said.
The prosecutors have argued they believe it’s a policy decision that can be made by the secretary.
“If they don’t show up for court dates, there’s consequences and implications that the court can levy, such as writs and warrants, but we want to make sure that we’re supporting our young people to get there. So, we’re going to dig in and see who’s not showing up, why aren’t they showing up, what strategies did we use that did that weren’t effective, and where do we need to make changes,” Tolentino explained.
Accountability remains at the center of the conversation surrounding DJS. For Tolentino, she said accountability looks like ensuring DJS follows the rules “that are set out for us.”
For the young people, she said it’s a case-by-case situation. Overall, DJS must ensure each solution is tailored to the individual, Tolentino said.
“Then design treatment interventions that help them and put them in the best position to be able to change their behaviors,” she added.
But when there are several examples of young people mocking the system, including going on social media saying they will be released after they are detained for various offenses, Tolentino acknowledged that it may be challenging to change the mindset for those juveniles.
That’s where the individualized plan comes into play, she said, “and then designing a system that has interventions that are based in what young people need so they can build skills so that they can slow down, see the possibility of doing something different and change their behaviors.”
Two weeks on the job, she said she’s not ready to put herself on a timeline for change. But she said community members should expect more communication from her and her agency. Rebuilding relationships with law enforcement, prosecutors, and the community is a focus for her as this chapter unfolds, Tolentino said.
But her focus extends beyond the community. There have been several reports showing DJS facilities are plagued with staffing shortages and severe morale problems. Tolentino said she wants the people working within DJS to know she supports them.
“It’s a priority of mine to ensure that our frontline staff have what they need so they feel equipped to do this job to really help our young people,” Tolentino said. “So, we have to take a look at where our current resources being utilized, where do we need to fill some gaps and we may need to make some shifts and we’re going to hear it from our frontline staff directly as well as our young people, families, and community.”
Under Schiraldi, DJS was an agency often shrouded in secrecy in terms of getting data and information about juvenile crime numbers, recidivism, ankle monitors, and progress for young people.
When pressed on whether she would commit to being more transparent with the public and the media, Tolentino said, “yes, absolutely.”
“As much as we possibly can,” she added.
Have a news tip? Contact Mikenzie Frost at mbfrost@sbgtv.com.
