Wayne County Juvenile Detention Center could lose license after new investigation
WAYNE COUNTY, Mich. (CBS DETROIT) - The Wayne County Juvenile Center is one step closer to losing its license, according to a Michigan Department of Health and Human Resources investigation.
The state has plans to downgrade the facility's status for a second time, documents show.
This comes from a state investigation blaming staffing failures on a 12-year-old being assaulted by other children at the facility, documents show.
Top leaders knew about the dangerous conditions, but did nothing, according to the investigation.
A spokesperson for the MDHHS released the following statement:
The downgrade would place the center on what's called a "second provisional license" that would last six months, according to the investigation. This would extend, issue a full license, refuse, or renew it.
The jail is overseen by the Wayne County executive's office.
CBS Detroit reached out to Wayne County Juvenile Center for comment and received the following statement:
"Wayne County is extremely dismayed by the State's notice to place the license for the Wayne County Juvenile Detention Facility in a second provision status and is exploring all appellate options. The Juvenile Detention Facility was placed on a first provisional status in November 2023, while the current investigation findings arise from an incident that occurred in September 2023. As the State is well aware, a corrective action plan was immediately implemented after the incident. Regardless, the licensing status of the Juvenile Detention Facility should not be impacted by the State's inability to complete investigations in a timely manner."