A riot that broke out at a juvenile hall in Downey led to the injury of staff members and at least one person escaping.
According to a statement from the Los Angeles County Probation Department, the “major disturbance” occurred at Los Padrinos Juvenile Hall around 8 p.m. Friday night.
“[During the riot] youth assaulted staff, and one youth was able to exit the secure perimeter of the facility,” the L.A. County Probation Department said. “[They were] immediately apprehended by Probation Special Enforcement Operations officers. All youth are accounted for.”
Nearby residents were told to stay away from the facility and lock their windows and doors during the chaos.
Following the riot, Interim Probation Chief Guillermo Viera Rosa said he will ask the county to accelerate the hiring of Safety and Security Specialists, a new job classification that will allow the hiring of off-duty or retired peace officers for external security purposes.
“The safe operations of Los Padrinos ultimately comes down to having the appropriate level of officers and staff on every shift, day in and day out,” said Viera Rosa. “This new classification will help us reach that level by using trained and experienced peace officers in support of our Probation staff. This will allow us to increase our overall staffing so that we can provide the programming that our youth deserve.”
A previous lockdown of the facility was lifted Saturday night after visiting hours were canceled all day.
“Probation staff notified family and caregivers in advance of the cancellation, with those who showed up at the facility were allowed to call their loved ones from the Los Padrinos reception area,” authorities said.
The events that led up to the riot remain under investigation.
