Worker at detention facility disciplined for video of girl who was charged in Mount Vernon killing
An employee at Westchester County’s juvenile detention center was disciplined after taking video of the arrival of a 15-year-old girl charged in the fatal stabbing of another teenager in Mount Vernon.
The video was taken from inside Woodfield Cottage in Valhalla as a Westchester County police officer led the handcuffed girl to the facility. It was posted on social media with a derogatory term for the girl, but it is not clear if the employee posted it or sent it to someone else who did.
The girl was charged with manslaughter in the April 8 stabbing death of a rival cheerleader, 16-year-old Kayla Green.
Woodfield Cottage is run by Children’s Village, the Dobbs Ferry-based social services agency for at-risk youth, under a $73 million contract with the Westchester Department of Probation.
“Everybody was upset,” said Rocco Pozzi, the probation commissioner. “These people are juveniles. Whatever they’ve done ... there are still confidentiality issues.”
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Pozzi said the female employee was no longer at Woodfield Cottage but referred questions about how she was disciplined to organization officials.
A spokesman for Children’s Village, Peter Sobel, initially declined to comment but the following day sent out a statement, saying he could not divulge specifics about the incident or the employee but they wanted to “let folks know that this situation was taken seriously and has been addressed."
"The Children's Village took immediate action in this case," Sobel said. "We have strict protocols in place to protect the privacy and safety of young people in our care, and that is our priority. This incident was investigated, the breach addressed, and the employee appropriately disciplined. The incident was immediately reported to the proper oversight agencies."
He would not elaborate on how the employee was disciplined.
Jeannine Smith, a spokeswoman for the state Office of Children and Family Services, said Wednesday that Children's Village reported the incident to OCFS and to the Justice Center for the Protection of People with Special Needs within 24 hours, as required.
It was unclear whether the video was taken on April 9 following the defendant's initial arraignment in City Court, or two days later after she appeared in Westchester County Court.
Green, a captain of the Mount Vernon High School junior varsity cheerleading team, was stabbed during a melee in downtown Mount Vernon. The defendant was a rival from a private cheerleading squad that Green had previously been on.
Green’s best friend, Mainece Simpson, was also stabbed but survived.
The 15-year-old is charged with first-degree manslaughter, second-degree assault and first-degree attempted assault.
As a grand jury was hearing evidence in the case, relatives and supporters of Green and Simpson demanded last week that the charges be upgraded to murder and attempted murder.
Twitter: @jonbandler
This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: Kayla Green's accused killer videotaped by detention center employee
