Coronavirus Hits Youth Corrections Centers

The Dispatch recently reported that the Swanson Youth Center here in Monroe allegedly received five teens from the New Orleans area, with many who were said to have had high temperatures upon arrival at the facility. There has not been any information shared with the community confirming this allegation involving any of the teens at the facility. One of the symptoms of COVID-19 is a high temperature. There have been several teen deaths attributed to COVID-19, which would raise concerns about the teen population when they are held in correctional centers. According to unconfirmed rumors, now two teens at Swanson has tested positive for COVID-19. In conjunction with other media reports, there are at least a dozen positive cases of COVID-19 in the state's youth centers. That information came from the Office of Juvenile Justice. Of the two teens allegedly at Swanson, one is from Bridge City (New Orleans area) and another from Colombia. There is a Swanson center operating out of Colombia. In addition to Monroe and Colombia, two centers operate in Bunkie and Bridge City, respectively. Louisiana is grappling on how to treat an increasing amount of coronavirus cases that are threatening to overwhelm the state's resources in a "not if, but when" scenario, if things don't soon change. Louisiana and New York City are being epicenters of just how bad the outcome of the virus could be when this is all over. Not only are prisons ripe for violence, but during this medical calamity that this nation now faces, they are also ripe for rampant disease and death. Recently an inmate died in the Federal Correctional Center in Oakdale, LA, from the coronavirus. We are told that conditions are "under control", that inmates and staff are being properly treated. With the weight of the federal government and its oversight, citizens can only hope that things are as they should be. The Office of Juvenile Justice said that several changes are being made. Those changes include screening and temperature checks for those entering the facility. Personal protective equipment (PPE) and social distancing learning are in place for the protection of the facility's staff and youth.