MANCHESTER, N.H.- A new report conducted by the New Hampshire Attorney General’s office says the Sununu Youth Services Center is operating within legal boundaries, but major reforms are still needed.
According to the 56-page report the center is facing “significant operation challenges and dysfunction that are perpetuating instability for staff and youth” but officials at the Attorney General’s office were quick to note that they didn’t find evidence to support claims of abuse of children on site.
With that, officials investigating the matter made several recommendations including restructuring leadership, hiring a bureau chief with more experience managing secure facilities for juveniles, increasing staffing levels, expanding de-escalation training and exploring the use of body-worn cameras for staff.
Following the release of the report Governor Kelly Ayotte has responded by ordering the state’s Department of Health and Human Services to being the process to implement some of the recommendations including steps to needed to address the staff shortages and using body cameras on site.
