Nurses sue KY juvenile justice agency, say they reported ‘inhumane’ conditions

Former nurses at the Kentucky Department of Juvenile Justice say they suffered whistle-blower retaliation for reporting the “inhumane and dangerous” mistreatment of youths last year.

In a lawsuit filed this week in Franklin Circuit Court, Nina Burton and Joanne Alvarado said they tried to provide compassionate medical care for youths held at the state’s juvenile detention facility in Adair County, and especially for a 17-year-old girl with worsening mental health who was locked in isolation for extended periods.

However, the facility’s administration and some of its security staff harassed the medical staff for wanting to give proper health care and safe living conditions to the youths, creating “a toxic cocktail where violence was not only predictable, but inevitable,” according to the suit.

Medical staff were bullied, belittled and cursed at by adult colleagues once they reported mistreatment of youths up the chain of command, the nurses said. Their concerns fell on deaf ears within state government, and once word spread that they were complaining, other employees at the facility became hostile, the nurses said.

The youths were treated even worse, they said.

“Emotionally troubled and at-risk youth were frequently locked down 24 hours a day, not fed, not provided counseling or treatment; denied education, religious services and programming; and often kept in unsanitary and barely livable conditions,” the nurses said in their suit.

On Nov. 11, a riot erupted at the facility after a youth worker opened the door of a youth’s cell to give him toilet paper and was attacked by the youth, according to DJJ records. With that worker’s keys now available, additional youths were freed from their cells, which led to more assaults on staff and other youths and the gang rape of a teenage girl housed in the facility, according to DJJ records.

Kentucky State Police finally entered the facility and restored order.

The suit names the Kentucky Justice and Public Safety Cabinet, which oversees DJJ, as the defendant.

The cabinet had not been served with the lawsuit by Friday and could not comment on it, said spokeswoman Morgan Hall.

However, Hall added, “DJJ strives to protect and serve both the employees and the youth ordered to state custody. Positive changes are being made to better meet today’s challenges within DJJ, and the governor has developed a solid, aggressive plan to improve the juvenile justice system.”

On Thursday, state lawmakers called for an outside investigation and leadership changes at DJJ, which has been plagued with assaults, escapes and riots at many of its facilities,. Gov. Andy Beshear said he would welcome a fair review of DJJ, but he added that he stands behind DJJ Commissioner Vicki Reed, whom he appointed in 2021.

In their suit, Burton and Alvarado said they felt pressured to quit last year because the hostile work environment made their jobs “nigh impossible.” They are suing the state for compensation, lost pay and damages.

Among the internal DJJ messages they included in their lawsuit is a sympathetic email sent July 30 by DJJ nurse administrator Deborah Curry to Burton.

Around this time, Burton and several other nurses were arguing with security staff over how the 17-year-old girl locked in isolation should be treated, according to state records.

The girl was naked and soiled, seemingly catatonic, going many days without bathing, the nurses said. One of the security staff would end up with a disciplinary sanction for excessive or inappropriate use of force as a result of a nurse’s complaint about his behavior toward the girl, according to state records.

“I also recognize the bullying type atmosphere you are having to work in which makes your job that much more challenging,” Curry wrote to Burton. “I hate it terribly and will continue to advocate for change on behalf of you, the other nurses and the youth.”