In 2018, the state Legislature enacted House Bill 6160, which permits individuals convicted in adult court for crimes they committed under the age of 18 to instead be housed in juvenile rehabilitation until they reach 25.

However, Sen. John Braun, R-Centralia, wrote in a news release that this approach has “created a host of serious problems that endanger residents and staff and undermine the state’s duty to provide rehabilitation services.” Senate Bill 5277 sponsored by Braun would repeal the 2018 state law.

One of the most notable examples is Green Hill School, where last year it was reported that inmates physically assaulted each other and employees, while staff has also been arrested for alleged misconduct. Late last year, then-Gov. Jay Inslee sent additional staff to handle overcrowding, which was attributed as one of the causes for violence.

Braun told The Center Square that “it’s hard for them to ignore. It’s a mess down there. I’ve led the alarm that … there are real problems there, and for the better part of the year the governor and DCYF [Washington Department of Children, Youth, & Families] tried to downplay those. We’re a long way from solving it.”

He added that “We have created an unsafe situation. It’s going to lead to long-term harm to the staff and to residents, likely to lead to long-term tort liability for the state.”

According to information obtained by The Center Square, a whistleblower from Green Hill School warned in 2024 that “since the end of last summer, things are progressively getting worse. Nearly every day there are instances where the majority of a living unit refuses to go into their rooms ‘cells’ when program closes. This by our policy definition is a riot situation.”

“I am concerned that eventually those incarcerated here are going to take over the facility,” the whistleblower said. “Myself and others are very concerned that if things continue the way they are, someone is going to get badly hurt if not worse. The high majority of those incarcerated here will be releasing to our communities in the upcoming years and at this rate they will be worse than when they came in. The purpose of this facility is to do the opposite.”

In a separate communication obtained by The Center Square, the whistleblower said there have been repeated instances where the amount of drug activity has forced Green Hill School employees to receive medical treatment or be sent home. 

The presence of drug activity was corroborated by another whistleblower, who in a phone message obtained by The Center Square also said that there had been instances of video footage of assaults on staff being deleted.

“Things are very, very odd there,” the whistleblower stated. “That’s the simplest way I can put it.”

The Center Square granted anonymity to the whistleblowers over their fears of retaliation.

When asked about the whistleblowers’ statements, Braun said “they were consistent with other allegations and anecdotal reporting we’ve heard, frankly, for a few years. It’s disturbingly frequent for me to be out in the community and someone says, ‘Hey, can I talk to you for a minute? I used to work there. It’s generally anonymous and anecdotal sometimes. It’s very disturbing and there’s a lot of work that needs to be done to make things right.”

Braun’s other legislation includes Senate Bill 5274, which would require DCYF to create a pilot program for Green Hill School staff to wear body cameras by January 2026.

Senate Bill 5276 seeks to reimburse local law enforcement, at the expense of DCYF and the Department of Corrections, for responding to crimes committed in juvenile-reform facilities.

The last bill, Senate Bill 5278, would make numerous policy changes within DCYF regarding how it operates the juvenile justice facilities and handles cases of misconduct by both staff and inmates.