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Rutherford County, Tennessee
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===Juvenile justice and jail=== {{see also|Rutherford County, Tennessee juvenile arrest and incarceration scandal}} In 2000, Rutherford County created the post of Juvenile Court Judge to oversee the county's juvenile justice procedures.<ref name="black_children_jailed_2021_10_08_propublica_org" /><ref name="judge_jailed_minors_bogus_charges_2021_10_12_pbs_org" /> As part of the $23 million development of the county jail, in 2008, a juvenile detention center (JDC) was added.<ref name="black_children_jailed_2021_10_08_propublica_org" /><ref name="work_begins_2007_02_16_murfreesboropost_com" /> Some county officials allegedly viewed the juvenile jail as a for-profit business.<ref name="jail_promo_video_2021_10_07_propublica_on_youtube" /><ref name="work_begins_2007_02_16_murfreesboropost_com" /> At a public meeting, JDC director Lynn Duke stated that, “If we have empty beds, we will fill them with a paying customer" and "We get a lot of business” A county commissioner added, that "Hey, it’s a business. Generating revenue."<ref>[https://www.prisonlegalnews.org/news/2022/may/1/11-million-settlement-reached-tennessee-suit-alleging-false-arrest-and-false-imprisonment-minors/#:~:text=Duke%20publicly%20stated%2C%20%E2%80%9CIf%20we,Generating%20revenue.%E2%80%9D "$11 Million Settlement Reached in Tennessee Suit Alleging False Arrest and False Imprisonment of Minors"] Edward Lyon, ''Prison Legal News'', May 1, 2022. Retrieved July 18, 2022.</ref> The county then solicited other counties in Tennessee and surrounding states to send detained youth to the Rutherford County juvenile jail for incarceration, at $175 per day per child, and said that over 20 Tennessee counties had contracted with Rutherford's juvenile jail.<ref name="jail_promo_video_2021_10_07_propublica_on_youtube">[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=igoy0sq4noQ "What Can the Rutherford County Juvenile Detention Center Do For You?"] (video, with text annotations), government of Rutherfound County, Tennessee, obtained by [[ProPublica]] and posted October 7, 2021, retrieved October 12, 2021.</ref><ref name=JDCvideo/> The county released a marketing video, "What Can the Rutherford County Juvenile Detention Center Do For You?” featuring images of children in black-and-white striped prison uniforms, and narrated by Juvenile Court Judge [[Donna Scott Davenport]], to solicit business for the JDC. As of 2021, 39 Tennessee counties were contracting with Rutherford County to incarcerate youth, along with the U.S. Marshals Service.<ref name=JDCvideo>[https://www.propublica.org/article/we-reported-on-a-county-that-has-jailed-kids-for-a-crime-that-doesnt-exist-readers-reacted "We Reported on a County That Has Jailed Kids for a Crime That Doesn’t Exist. Readers Reacted."] Brooke Stephenson, [[ProPublica]], October 15, 2022. Retrieved July 17, 2022.</ref> It is alleged that in subsequent years, the singular Rutherford County juvenile judge and local authorities, including the county's Juvenile Detention Center director Lynn Duke, colluded in the arrest and incarceration of hundreds of children, some as young as seven years old, on various misdemeanor charges, including schoolyard fights, truancy and cursing. All arrested children were jailed in the detention center, pending adjudication and assessment.<ref name="judge_jailed_minors_bogus_charges_2021_10_12_pbs_org" /><ref name="rutherford_county_judge_2021_10_11_wkrn_com">{{cite news |last=Harris |first=Gerald |date=October 11, 2021 |title=Rutherford Co. judge, who illegally jailed Black children using fake law, faces renewed criticism |url=https://www.wkrn.com/news/rutherford-county-judge-who-illegally-jailed-black-children-using-fake-law-faces-renewed-criticism/ |work=[[WKRN-TV]] |location=Nashville |access-date=October 12, 2021}}</ref><ref name="judge_faces_criticism_2021_10_14_abcnews_go_com">[https://abcnews.go.com/US/judge-faces-criticism-report-black-children-illegally-jailed/story?id=80536288 "Judge faces criticism following report that Black children were illegally jailed in Tennessee county,"] October 14, 2021, [[ABC News (United States)|ABC News]], retrieved October 15, 2021</ref> In 2021, journalists reported that children were being incarcerated in the county's juvenile jail at a rate ten times higher than the state's average,<ref name="sickening_2021_10_12_tennesseelookout_com">{{cite news |last= |first= |date=October 12, 2021 |title=Sickening: Systemic abuse in Rutherford County calls for action |url=https://tennesseelookout.com/2021/10/12/editors-column-sickening-systemic-abuse-in-rutherford-county-calls-for-action/ |work=[[Tennessee Lookout]] |location= |access-date=October 12, 2021}}</ref><ref name="black_children_jailed_2021_10_08_propublica_org">{{cite news |last1=Knight |first1=Meribah |last2=Armstrong |first2=Ken |date=October 8, 2021 |title=Black Children Were Jailed for a Crime That Doesn't Exist. Almost Nothing Happened to the Adults in Charge |url=https://www.propublica.org/article/black-children-were-jailed-for-a-crime-that-doesnt-exist |work=[[ProPublica]] |access-date=October 12, 2021}}</ref><ref name="judge_jailed_minors_bogus_charges_2021_10_12_pbs_org">{{cite news |last= |first= |date=October 12, 2021 |title=Tennessee judge jailed minors on bogus charges following playground fights, cursing |url=https://www.pbs.org/newshour/show/tennessee-judge-jailed-minors-on-bogus-charges-following-playground-fights-cursing |work=[[PBS Newshour]] |access-date=October 12, 2021}}</ref><ref name="new_report_2021_10_09_msbnc_com">{{cite news |last= |first= |date=October 9, 2021 |title=New report shows Rutherford County, Tennessee's juvenile justice system has a staggering history of jailing children |url=https://www.msnbc.com/american-voices/watch/new-report-shows-rutherford-county-tennessee-s-juvenile-justice-system-has-a-staggering-history-of-jailing-children-123178565695 |work=[[MSNBC]] |access-date=October 12, 2021}}</ref><ref name="judge_faces_criticism_2021_10_14_abcnews_go_com" /> and that some children were arrested and jailed for alleged violations of non-existent laws.<ref name="black_children_jailed_2021_10_08_propublica_org" /><ref name="judge_faces_criticism_2021_10_14_abcnews_go_com" /><ref name="tennessee_county_2021_10_08_forbes">{{cite news |last= |first= |date=October 8, 2021 |title=Tennessee County Reportedly Illegally Jailed Hundreds of Children Charging Some-with Crimes that Don't Exist |url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/nicholasreimann/2021/10/08/tennessee-county-reportedly-illegally-jailed-hundreds-of-children-charging-some-with-crimes-that-dont-exist/?sh=4ba5271c7468 |work=[[Forbes]] |location= |access-date=October 12, 2021}}</ref> [[Class action]] federal lawsuits resulted in the county ending solitary confinement of children in custody.<ref name="black_children_jailed_2021_10_08_propublica_org" /> In May 2017, a federal court said that children were being illegally detained in Rutherford County, and ordered the county to stop using its "filter" system because it "departs drastically" from ordinary juvenile detention standards.<ref name="black_children_jailed_2021_10_08_propublica_org" /><ref name="judge_faces_criticism_2021_10_14_abcnews_go_com" /> In June 2021, Rutherford County settled with plaintiffs in a class action lawsuit, agreeing to payments of up to $11 million, to up to 1,450 potential claimants for wrongful arrest or incarceration, but denying any wrongdoing.<ref name="black_children_jailed_2021_10_08_propublica_org" /><ref name="minors_settlement_2021_09 _29_dnj_com">[https://www.dnj.com/story/news/2021/09/29/former-minors-illegally-incarcerated-can-get-cut-settlement/5897244001/ "Illegally jailed as minors, 1,450 eligible in $11M settlement from Rutherford County,"] September 29, 2021, updated October 18, 2021, Murfreesboro ''[[Daily News Journal]],'' retrieved October 27, 2021</ref> The settlement amount was amended to $5.1 million in December 2021.<ref>[https://eu.dnj.com/in-depth/news/2022/06/23/rutherford-county-ignored-2004-study-showing-too-many-kids-jailed/8853391002/ "Rutherford County officials rejected 2004 study showing they jailed too many children"] Scott Broden, ''Daily News Journal,'' June 23, 2022. Retrieved August 10, 2022.</ref> The settlement was subsequently denied by the county's insurer, Lloyd's of London, which wrote that the county was aware of its illegal juvenile detention practices prior to its coverage by the insurer, but "concealed or misrepresented material facts" to obtain the policy, which voided the policy; the county filed a federal lawsuit against the insurer in December 2022.<ref>[https://wpln.org/post/rutherford-county-is-back-in-court-over-juvenile-arrests-now-fighting-insurer-to-cover-its-payouts/ "Rutherford County is back in court over juvenile arrests, now fighting insurer to cover its payouts"] Meribah Knight, December 1, 2022. Retrieved December 22, 2022.</ref> In August 2022, Republican Juvenile Court nominee Travis Lampley won the judgeship, stating the goals of restoring confidence in the juvenile court, and pledged "to uphold the integrity of the family unit", while the Rutherford County Commission is assembling a new Juvenile Detention Board to "oversee incarceration operations", including juvenile detention staff, who report to Judge Davenport.<ref>[https://www.dnj.com/story/news/2022/08/04/travis-lampley-andrae-crismon-rutherford-juvenile-court-judge-race/10184017002/ "Travis Lampley wins Rutherford County Juvenile Court judge race"] Scott Broden, ''Daily News Journal,'' August 4, 2021. Retrieved August 10, 2022.</ref>
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