A Superior Court judge has essentially told the state to do its job, siding with Atlantic County in its effort to get the New Jersey Juvenile Justice Commission to be responsible for placements of youth from other counties when its own juvenile detention center is overcrowded.
The origins of the conditions resulted from consolidation in the number of counties operating these centers, a move that made sense when it occurred. Placements in counties like Gloucester were in sharp decline, making it wasteful to keep so many facilities open. Currently, there are only seven, in Camden, Bergen, Essex, Middlesex, Morris and Ocean counties, along with Atlantic.
In 2009, for example, when Gloucester County shut its juvenile center at the county’s Clarksboro complex in East Greenwich Township, its average census was just 10 residents per day. The county contracted with Camden County, whose center was larger and better equipped with services. There was sufficient room at the time for Gloucester’s placements in Camden County’s 49-bed facility at Lakeland, Gloucester Township.
