Portsmouth sheriff calling for temporary solution to reduce long-distance transport of juveniles

PORTSMOUTH — These days, Portsmouth sheriff’s deputies are travelling as long as 15 hours and as far as Tennessee to transport the city’s juvenile inmates to court from housing facilities.

Portsmouth previously had an agreement to house its youth charged with crimes with Chesapeake Juvenile Services, which had been holding minors for other localities for more than 30 years. But a decision last spring to begin holding only Chesapeake’s juvenile inmates meant Portsmouth’s youth no longer had a dedicated place to go.

It’s since put a strain on the Portsmouth Sheriff’s Office to make sure those youth have a place to stay, even if that means housing them out-of-state. Portsmouth Sheriff Michael Moore is calling for a more immediate solution.

“You’re not only dealing with that distance, but you’re dealing with the issues with the weather. You’re dealing with the issues of transporting someone, taking them away from their family, the attorney — and if they’re on the medical care — medical provider,” Moore said. “Taking them seven hours one way, away from their home base. You sit down and think about it, it really is kind of inhumane, to be honest with you.”

Portsmouth has an agreement to use up to seven beds at a facility in Williamsburg, but Moore said those are always filled. To find empty beds, deputies have been transporting youth to facilities in Northern Virginia, and lately, Moore said they’ve traveled as far as Bristol, Tennessee.

“That’s a 15-hour round trip for the deputies,” Moore said. “And it has to be a minimum of two deputies that make that trip.”

At a Jan. 23 City Council meeting, council members called for a work session or special meeting to discuss the city’s short-term and long-term options and allow weigh-in from council members and other leaders, such as Chief Judge Diane Griffin with the Portsmouth Juvenile and Domestic Relations District Court.

Council member Vernon Tillage and Vice Mayor Lisa Lucas-Burke referenced a meeting held late last year with Griffin, Police Chief Stephen Jenkins and the city’s Department of Behavioral Health to discuss options, noting that council needs to discuss the issue as a body.

“At the end of the day, it’s not the court’s responsibility,” Tillage said. “It’s not the sheriff’s responsibility. It’s not the police department’s responsibility. It is the responsibility of the city.”

Moore also expressed frustration with not being kept in the loop with ongoing discussions, telling The Virginian-Pilot he’s talked with council members and urged them to get more clarity on a short-term fix because the current situation isn’t sustainable or safe.

In October, the board that oversees the Hampton Roads Regional Jail voted to close it by April 1 and have inmates return to their respective cities. Portsmouth leaders have indicated there are ongoing discussions about converting the regional jail into a new Portsmouth City Jail that would replace the city’s current aging waterfront facility.

“What is the plan moving forward? We can’t wait on the possibility of being able to obtain the regional jail and using part of facility to house juveniles. We need something done right now,” Moore said. “And what we’re doing right now just isn’t feasible.”

Interim City Manager Mimi Terry said the city has a couple short-term solutions in the works, which include increasing the budget for current transportation services while also securing extra bed space. Moore told The Pilot he’d ideally like to arrange an agreement with Chesapeake, noting that even one overnight stay, for example, can be helpful in getting juveniles to and from their court appearances.

“Short term, we’re increasing the budget so they can continue to transport our youth. Short term, we’re in the process of securing a facility,” Terry said during the Jan. 23 council meeting. “Long term, we will have a youth juvenile detention facility for our kids at home in Portsmouth.”

Terry estimated that to build a juvenile detention facility, it would cost about $180,000 per bed and added that such facilities are required to provide mental health and education services. Terry said the city has already requested licensure from the state to be able to house juveniles in the city, and noted that renovating a facility would cost just as much as building a new one.

“Right now the city of Portsmouth in the short-term does not have an opportunity to say, ‘I want that building and I’m going to convert it into a youth facility,'” Terry said. “That’s not possible because right now we are trying to secure a facility that will be able to address all of our needs.”

Moore said the deputies primarily transporting youth are part-time employees, many of whom are retired. Last month, City Council authorized the sheriff’s department to give part-time and grant-funded employees stipends like the $6,500 supplements full-time sworn deputies received following City Council approval in October. Following the Jan. 23 meeting, about eight grant employees, who typically handle pre-trial services, will receive a one-time $6,500 stipend, while around 16 or so part-time employees will receive a one-time $2,000 stipend.

“Those part-time employees, we rely heavily on,” Moore said. “Without the part-time employees, we would be in dire straits as far as being able to carry out that function.”

Natalie Anderson, 757-732-1133, natalie.anderson@virginiamedia.com