Nashville juvenile detention center operator withdraws, prompting emergency contract

A new administration company has taken over from embattled Youth Opportunity at the Davidson County Juvenile Detention Center.

Youth Opportunity Investments, and its affiliate Youth Opportunities of America, came under fire for conditions at the downtown facility, most notably after four teens escaped custody in 2019. 

The new company, Rite of Passage, took over the facility on July 1.

YOI's troubled facilities have been the target of censure and lawsuits both in Tennessee and nationwide. In Nashville, the company acknowledged multiple policy failures that led to the escapes and fired staff after the incident.

Even after the outcry over the Youth Opportunity's policies, Metro picked the company for a new multimillion-dollar contract to run from 2021-2026.

But in May, Youth Opportunity informed Juvenile Court Judge Sheila Calloway that the company would be terminating its contract early, citing a mismatch in goals.

"Our employees are fearful for their safety, our work is wrongfully demeaned, our reputation is tarnished, and our operations yield little or no net income. We have invested all of the financial resources available to fund Judge Sheila’s dream because we support the dream," chief legal officer Gary Sallee wrote in a June 1 email to the court obtained by The Tennessean. "We support her concept. We can no longer pay for the dream."

Youth Opportunity Investments did not return a message Thursday asking for more details about why employees were fearful.

Sallee also said the children sent to the Nashville center are "much more dangerous than in our other facilities."

Calloway disputes Sallee's characterization of the facility.

'Every child has the ability'

"It is imperative we put the proper resources in place to support all of the youth in our custody — even those who are perceived as ‘dangerous,'" Calloway said in an emailed statement to The Tennessean.

“I believe every child has the ability and capability to be rehabilitated, no matter how serious their crime. But we must provide the appropriate resources and treatment efforts in order for them to be successful."

Calloway, who is running unopposed for reelection in the upcoming Aug. 4 race, has sounded the alarm about conditions at the facility in recent years.

Last year, she told the Metro Council how sewage leaked into her courtroom and human waste covered the floors of offices and boiler rooms in the building.

Raw sewage explosions, she called them.

Although elements of the project to build a new Juvenile Detention Center have been approved by the council, and Mayor John Cooper supports the plan, the scope and funding of the full project remain unclear.

The current facility, opened in 1994, sits on the hottest property in town — right next to the Nissan Stadium campus on the East Bank.

"There must be detention staff members who believe children can be redeemed, that they can learn positive behaviors and that their young brains are still malleable which allows them to change. If we treat youth in ways that reflect these beliefs, and we teach them positive behaviors, the brain science proves they can have positive outcomes," Calloway told The Tennessean.

Rite of Passage taking over

Rite of Passage is not without its own checkered history.

News reports since 2015 — and even as far back as the 1980s in California — note similar issues of alleged abuse and lack of oversight that led to injuries and escapes.

Last year, an ROP-run facility in Colorado was shut down over allegations of illicit drugs, runaways, and poor supervision.

Multiple job listings for positions at the Nashville facility have been posted on online job boards, including for an assistant program director of safety and security, case workers, and transportation officers.

The new contract was first reported by Axios Nashville.

The new, short-term contract is expected to cost more than $9.6 million through the end of 2023.

Executed Contract 6516822 by USA TODAY Network on Scribd

Reach reporter Mariah Timms at mtimms@tennessean.com or 615-259-8344 and on Twitter @MariahTimms. 

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Embattled Youth Opportunity pulls out of Juvenile Detention Center