RELATED: Fights lead to 9 juvenile arrests at Adriel group home in Logan Co.
Then last week nine youths at the home were arrested for a fight that resulted in property damage.
Adriel has been criticized by community members in past years for the number of calls to police and runaways, Oelker said, but the relationship has been better since President and CEO Todd Hanes took over in 2015. That's why the recent spike in calls is a concern, the chief said.
“This large of a scale is the first time we’ve had anything like this in some time,” Oelker said.
The group home is for children ages 6 to 21 with behavior problems, Hanes said. It’s one step down from a juvenile detention center, he said.
“None of our facilities lock from the inside,” Hanes said, and by law employees can’t restrain children. “We don’t feel like force is going to make a lasting change in a child.”
Hanes made several changes when he took over to improve behavior on the campus and the relationship with neighbors.
He formed an advisory council with community members, he said, including Oelker and the Logan County sheriff. Staff members now receive more training, he said, and most are required to have two- or four-year degrees.
He also increased salaries for employees, he said.
DETAILS: Police calls to youth center nearly double
“That’s all contributed to a financial loss at our group home,” he said, “but the reality is, it’s the right thing to do.”
The campus also has a more in-depth process to determine if a child will be accepted into the program, Hanes said, that can include a pre-acceptance interview.
“The No. 1 belief here is that all kids can learn and all kids can change,” he said.
But the holidays are a difficult time for all residents at the home, he said, and may be the reason students acted out.
“Our kids would rather be home,” Hanes said. “Our kids would rather be anywhere except a group home during the holiday season.”
The violence also may have been caused because of new residents, he said.
“We always see an increase of behavior from those new arrivals,” he said.
Adriel accepted eight new residents before the holidays. Some of them were emergency placements, he said, who didn’t go through the facility’s checks before acceptance.
The recent spike in arrests concerns Oelker and some neighbors.
“We’re hoping that it was a one time thing,” Oelker said.
Neighbor and village council member Branda Coy wishes campus officials had a greater ability to restrain and discipline children.
If they did, she said, the police wouldn’t need to be called as often and she would feel safer in the community.
West Liberty Police responded to 145 calls on campus in 2015, Oelker said and 358 calls in 2016. That increase last year is probably due to more children on campus in 2016.
Hanes said he’ll continue to work with police and the community to build a relationship of support.
“The reality is someone has to do this work,” he said, “and we need to stick with it.”
One of the girls who stole a staff member’s car has since turned herself in to the Montgomery County Juvenile Detention Center, Oelker said. The other girl and the stolen car still haven’t been found. Neither girl will be permitted to return to campus, Hanes said.
Two of the teens involved in the fight also won’t be allowed to return, he said.
Staying with the story
The Springfield News-Sun has followed the relationship between the community and Adriel for more than two years, including digging into the number of police calls there and the hiring of new leaders.
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