Why

May 31, 2003

 Daniel Matthews, 17 years-old

  

Justice Officials Admit Errors Led to Fatal Fight  [SOUTH PINELLAS Edition] CURTIS KRUEGER. St. Petersburg Times. St. Petersburg, Fla.: Oct 9, 2003. pg. 1.B  Full artical = http://www.caica.org/NEWS%20DEATHS%20daniel%2011.htm For the first time, the Department of Juvenile Justice has admitted it made mistakes that led to a fatal fight between two inmates at the Pinellas Juvenile Detention Center. Juvenile Justice Secretary Bill Bankhead said Wednesday it was clear the staff had erred in the Pinellas case   Some lawmakers expressed frustration at the state's handling of the Pinellas and Miami cases, and in the department's explanations. "It just seems like they neglected to do things that are very important to secure the safety of our children," said state Rep. Gus Bilirakis, R-Palm Harbor. "The department has this philosophy of just circling wagons and of trying to minimize the damage instead of just confronting the situation and dealing with it," said Rep. Gustavo "Gus" Barreiro, chairman of the Select Committee on Juvenile Detention Facilities. Department policy says two detention workers should be present when an occupied cell is opened. "It should not have happened," Assistant Juvenile Justice Secretary Larry Lumpee said. Elswick, the trainee, should not have been working at the JDC. He had failed to pass his certification test, missing a passing score by one point. New workers have up to 180 days to pass the test, but Elswick had worked 241 days without passing it.

                                            

http://www.baynews9.com/content/36/2006/2/18/144668.html

 DJJ OIG  Annual Report 2004 

http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/13138064.htm

http://www.sptimes.com/2005/11/12/State/Missing_tapes_hinder_.shtml

May- 22 -05 Inmates fatal fisticuffs could cost tax payers           

http://www.tampatrib.com/News/MGBHNOLTZ8E.html

May -17 -05 Mother sues state agency                    http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/sptimes/841305901.html?MAC=eb6027e13ea8bce76f30d61daea08b8f&did=841305901&FMT=FT&FMTS=FT&date=May+18%2C+2005&author=CHRIS+TISCH&printformat=&desc=Mother+sues+state+agency%2C+juvenile+facility+over+death

	Oct 9, 2003:Justice officials admit errors led to fatal fight St. Petersburg Times
	August 9, 2003: Report: Guard's error opened cell doors St. Petersburg Times
	July 7, 2003: Teen not charged in fatal fistfight St. Petersburg Times
	June 15, 2003: Detention often a terrible option... St. Petersburg Times
	June  5, 2003: Protesters rally at juvenile center St. Petersburg Times
	June 4, 2003: Charges sought in deadly jail fight St. Petersburg Times
	June 3, 2003: Video details fatal jail fight St. Petersburg Times
	June 2, 2003: Message from DJJ Secretary Bankhead Dept. of Juvenile Justice
	June 2, 2003: Sent to jail for help, teen killed St. Petersburg Times
	http://justice4kids.org/Documents/OctCommittee.htm The State of Juvenile Justice with host Frank Kopczynski

http://www.sptimes.com/2003/09/29/Northpinellas/Juvenile_detention_de.shtml                    

Youth crime detention is protest targethttp://www.sptimes.com/2003/09/20/Northpinellas/Youth_crime_detention.shtml

 

The marchers say that juvenile detention centers should aim for rehabilitation and not incarceration.

By CURTIS KRUEGER, Times Staff Writer
Published September 20, 2003

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LARGO - The parents of a boy who was killed in Pinellas County's Juvenile Detention Center joined a demonstration Friday calling for reforms in the way Florida handles youths charged with crimes.

More than two dozen protesters outside the Mary Grizzle State Office Building on Ulmerton Road said Florida needs better training for detention workers, improved mental health services and an approach that looks for ways to rehabilitate youths without locking them up.

Diana Matthews, whose son Danny died in the detention center after a fight with another inmate in May, said detention workers "need to be trained properly. They don't have the people there, they're understaffed, they don't have the counseling skills."

As she and her husband Bob have sought more information about their son's death, and why no one was charged in connection with the killing, "they've given us a lot of lies, they've changed their stories constantly," she said.

Bob and Diana Matthews, who live just north of St. Petersburg, said they had never attended a protest before.

Bruce Wright, pastor of the Refuge/Solid Rock Church in St. Petersburg, said he spoke recently to a parent of an 8-year-old who was taken to the Juvenile Detention Center for striking a teacher in a class for emotionally handicapped students. He said that was an example of the system punishing children who really need mental health treatment.

Erika Doman of St. Petersburg, whose granddaughter was beaten in a separate Largo juvenile program, resulting in the arrests of two employees, also attended the demonstration to demand improvements to the system.

Florida Department of Juvenile Justice spokeswoman Catherine Arnold said "we have made great strides in enhancing the professionalism of our employees," including requiring detention workers and probation officers to complete a certification process.

She said prevention is one of four key missions of the department, which distributes thousands of dollars worth of prevention grants to community groups in targeted areas.

=================================================================

"The department has this philosophy of just circling wagons and of trying to minimize the damage instead of just confronting the situation and dealing with it," said Rep. Gustavo "Gus" Barreiro, chairman of the Select Committee on Juvenile Detention Facilities.

 

Mistakes resulted in fatal fight

Proceedings are under way against officers involved in incident at the Pinellas Juvenile Detention Center.

By CURTIS KRUEGER, Times Staff Writer
Published October 9, 2003

---

CLEARWATER - For the first time, the Department of Juvenile Justice has admitted it made mistakes that led to a fatal fight between two inmates at the Pinellas Juvenile Detention Center.

The department this week began proceedings to fire one senior detention officer and suspend an assistant superintendent for five days in connection with the fight that killed Daniel "Danny" Matthews, 17.

The agency's staff violated three procedures at the time of the fight, by failing to adequately supervise youths, failing to properly monitor one of the department's own employees and opening cell doors incorrectly, according to a new report prepared by the department's inspector general.

The report was another blow to the state-run agency that operates detention centers, which are essentially jails for juveniles, and residential rehabilitation centers for youths who have broken the law.

A criminal investigation in Miami is looking into the case of a 17-year-old detention inmate who died of a burst appendix even though he had reportedly complained of stomach pain. Staff members did not call 911 in that case.

Juvenile Justice Secretary Bill Bankhead said Wednesday it was clear the staff had erred in the Pinellas case, but he said his agency had made great strides overall in increasing the professionalism of its staff.

"It's a little (disappointing) to us that these situations would happen after we have worked so hard to improve the training of the department," he said.

Bankhead was in Clearwater attending a legislative committee hearing looking into safety at Florida's juvenile detention centers.

Some lawmakers expressed frustration at the state's handling of the Pinellas and Miami cases, and in the department's explanations.

"It just seems like they neglected to do things that are very important to secure the safety of our children," said state Rep. Gus Bilirakis, R-Palm Harbor.

"The department has this philosophy of just circling wagons and of trying to minimize the damage instead of just confronting the situation and dealing with it," said Rep. Gustavo "Gus" Barreiro, chairman of the Select Committee on Juvenile Detention Facilities.

The new report on Matthews' death in May pointed to three violations of procedures, one of which had been previously disclosed in a sheriff's report:

A trainee detention worker's decision to open two cell doors by using electronic controls. This allowed the two youths, Matthews and Louis Lauro, to confront each other and fight. The trainee, David Elswick, told investigators he thought he was opening doors for a group of inmates who were returning to their cells, not trying to get out.

Department policy says two detention workers should be present when an occupied cell is opened.

"It should not have happened," Assistant Juvenile Justice Secretary Larry Lumpee said.

Elswick, the trainee, should not have been working at the JDC. He had failed to pass his certification test, missing a passing score by one point. New workers have up to 180 days to pass the test, but Elswick had worked 241 days without passing it.

This oversight led to the five-day suspension of Assistant Superintendent Maureen Honan, who oversees training, and who has an otherwise spotless record, juvenile justice officials said.

Senior detention officer James Hull stayed behind in a JDC classroom putting away board games while a group of youths left and walked down a hallway to their cells. Under department procedures, he should have followed the youths. "This contributed to Elswick's confusion" when he opened the cell doors, the report says.

Matthews' mother, Diana, appeared at Wednesday's hearing and said afterwards she wasn't satisfied with the department's actions.

"Five-day suspension for my son's life?" she said.

"I would like to see some guards being punished a lot more than what they were," said Gerald Spence-Matthews, Daniel Matthews' brother. "If people were trained the right way, then my brother wouldn't be passed away right now."

At the legislative hearing in Clearwater, lawmakers heard from parents and advocates who said inmates sometimes don't receive proper medical care, and sometimes face violence from fellow inmates or overzealous guards. Two former employees said youths sometimes have been placed in confinement naked, a procedure designed for suicidal youths. But one said the practice was occasionally used as discipline.

Other speakers urged the department to provide more mental health services for youths in detention.

 

 

 

 

                                                                      

 

 

There are many things in these news articals that are not true.

 

HERALD WATCHDOG

Lost lockup tapes called coverup

Questions are being raised as to why surveillance tapes in state juvenile facilities continue to be so unreliable, years after concern was raised about them in several cases involving the deaths of inmates.

By CAROL MARBIN MILLER

cmarbin@herald.com

Omar Paisley, Danny Matthews, Shawn Smith and a now a 16-year-old named Robert.

Three children who are dead; a fourth who was allegedly raped.

All of their deaths or abuse happened in a state juvenile detention center. And in each case, one of the most crucial pieces of evidence was missing: the jail's surveillance tapes.

Lawmakers, child advocates, parents and agency critics are demanding to know why critical investigations at state juvenile detention centers have been hampered by either faulty videotape equipment or theft.

The latest case involves a 16-year-old severely mentally retarded boy, who allegedly was raped twice last summer by another inmate. That inmate, a 17-year-old accused sex offender, had been ordered by guards to change the younger boy's diapers.

An internal probe is underway by the state Department of Juvenile Justice into the disappearance of surveillance tapes that may have shed light on what happened to the boy. They were reported missing from a cabinet where they were stored at the Tallahassee juvenile detention center. The facility's superintendent, who has since been fired, told authorities the cabinet had been broken into twice.

An inspector general report, released Wednesday, also said the lockup's superintendent, Linda Edwards-Ellis ''did not report the alleged break-in, initiate an investigation, or request an inventory'' to determine which tapes were missing.

`MAJOR COVERUP'

Cathy Corry, a Clearwater-based juvenile-justice watchdog who maintains a website, Justice4Kids, said she has received dozens of calls or posts from parents complaining that officials could not confirm abuse allegations against their children because surveillance equipment didn't work.

''Talk about a major coverup,'' said state Rep. Gustavo ''Gus'' Barreiro, a Miami Republican and the agency's most persistent critic. ``These people should play the lottery.''

Tom Denham, DJJ's spokesman in Tallahassee, said the agency has made significant strides in improving its surveillance equipment in recent years.

''We are attempting to move to more modern video systems that don't require tapes,'' Denham said. ``We can only do that as funding permits.''

Denham pointed out that in Miami, for example, DJJ has installed a new $400,000 digital surveillance system that does not rely on tapes.

SYSTEM HAS WORKED

Besides, he said, police and prosecutors have successfully prosecuted youths for violent acts in detention centers using video equipment that did work properly.

``It's not like every time we have an incident the tapes go missing.''

But critics still question why the tapes and the equipment continue to be so unreliable, years after concerns were raised about them in several high-profile cases involving the deaths of young inmates.

Omar Paisley, a 17-year-old Opa-locka youth, died in June 2003 at the Miami-Dade Juvenile Detention Center after pleading with nurses and detention officers for three days for medical attention. He succumbed to a ruptured appendix, a condition that seldom results in death unless left untreated.

''During our investigation, we longed for a dispassionate, objective recording of the days preceding Omar Paisley's death,'' the grand jury wrote in the Omar case.

``However, we learned in the course of our investigation that although cameras were installed in the (lockup) nearly ten years ago, most were not working at the time of Omar's death.''

Advocates say they continue to hear that tapes aren't available.

''I got pretty sick of hearing that the videotape was lost, or the videotape didn't exist, or area in question wasn't covered by the videotape,'' said Corry.

``If I ever did hear there was a videotape, the parent wasn't allowed to see it. They were always told there would be other juveniles on the tape, as if the parent didn't see other juveniles when they went to see their child at the facility.''

SUICIDE CASE

Surveillance tapes would have also helped the investigation into the death of Shawn Smith, 13, who hanged himself at the Volusia County juvenile detention center, in October 2001. Classified as a high-risk for suicide because he was being bullied by another inmate, the youth was supposed to be under close watch by officers.

Tapes would have shown whether Shawn was being observed every five minutes as required, Barreiro said. And Daniel ''Danny'' Matthews was 17 when he died in May 2003 after a fight with another detainee at the the Pinellas County lockup.

Agency officials later acknowledged responsibility for Danny's death as guards had mistakenly opened cell doors for the two youths, knowing they had been spoiling for a fight.

RECENT CASE

In the latest case, Robert, who just turned 16, was ordered detained at the Tallahassee lockup in May after a juvenile judge grew tired of releasing him back to two elderly relatives, a grandmother and great-aunt, whom he had been accused of mistreating on four occasions.

At the heart of the DJJ internal investigation into Robert's alleged rape was a conflict between the testimony of youths detained at the center -- 10 of whom were interviewed -- and DJJ officers. The Inspector General report concluded the inmates' testimony was more credible than that of the guards.

Four detained youths told investigators they saw the inmate, Lee Donton, enter Robert's room, and saw a guard ''confiscate'' Donton's boxer shorts following an incident investigators believe occurred on June 8.

''It seems coincidental the missing videotapes for this [living area] are dated June 8, 2005,'' the report states. 'The missing videotapes cast doubt on staffs' stories.''

Seven employees, including Edwards-Ellis, have been fired as a result of the case, and five other employees were either demoted or disciplined.

 

 

 

Missing Tapes Hinder Juvenile Center Probe The lost surveillance camera footage could have shown whether a male inmate was raped. By Associated Press Published November 12, 2005   TALLAHASSEE - An investigation into missing surveillance tapes at a Department of Juvenile Justice detention center has some critics suggesting there is a pattern of coverups. The tapes were discovered missing as police began investigating the alleged rape of a severely retarded 15-year-old male. It's not the first time critical evidence was unavailable during similar investigations. Surveillance tapes also were missing, nonexistent or of such poor quality as to be useless after the deaths of three  youths in custody: Omar Paisley, Daniel Matthews and Shawn Smith. Cathy Corry, a Clearwater juvenile justice watchdog, said she has received dozens of complaints from parents that officials could not confirm abuse allegations against their children because surveillance equipment didn't work. "I got pretty sick of hearing that the videotape was lost, or the videotape didn't exist, or (the) area in question wasn't covered by the videotape," Corry told the Miami Herald. In the latest case, the department's inspector general is investigating a break-in into the cabinet where tapes are stored. Detention center superintendent Linda Edwards-Ellis was aware of the break-in, but didn't report it or start an investigation,  according to the report. She was fired this week. Tom Denham, a department spokesman, said the agency is "attempting to move to more modern video systems that don't require tapes. We can only do that as funding permits." Denham said tapes have helped prosecutors in other cases. "It's not like every time we have an incident the tapes go missing." Paisley, 17, died of a ruptured appendix in June 2003 at the Miami-Dade Juvenile Detention Center. He had pleaded for medical attention for three days. The grand jury investigating the death said it "longed for" a recording of the days leading to the death, but most of the 10-year-old video cameras in the facility didn't work. There were no tapes available after Smith, 13, hanged himself in a Volusia County center in 2001. Guards were supposed to be closely watching the youth. Matthews, 17, died in May 2003 in a fight with another detainee in Pinellas County. Although a video camera was running at the time, it did not provide a clear image of what happened, the Pinellas-Pasco State Attorney's Office said

State of Florida

Department of Juvenile Justice

2004 Annual Report

http://www.djj.state.fl.us/DJJServices/inspectorgeneral/OIG%20Annual%20Report%202004.pdf

An Advocate for Juvenile Justice

Saturday, February 18, 2006

People across the state are talking about a videotape showing guards at a Panama City juvenile detention boot camp restraining a 14-year-old just prior to his death.

The Florida Department of Law Enforcement tape, which was released Friday, shows Martin Anderson surrounded by several guards. Some people believe the guards struck Anderson, possibly contributing to his death, but a county medical examiner concluded Anderson died from a pre-existing medical condition.

When Dianna Matthews saw the video, her thoughts turned to her son.

"Seeing my son all over again and worse," Matthews said.

In May of 2003, 17-year-old Danny Matthews was being held at the Pinellas Regional Juvenile Detention Center. According to an internal investigation, a trainee detention worker mistakenly opened Matthews and another inmate's cells. Once out, the two boys fought and Matthews was killed.

 

Since her son's death, Matthews has become an advocate for juvenile detention center reform.

"We don't have enough staff, " Matthews said. "We don't have enough blankets, we don't have enough mental health. We don't have enough training."

Matthews is working closely with justiceforkids.org, an advocate for youth and parents who have to deal with any aspect of the juvenile system.

"They put these staff out to be handling these kids when they are not completely trained for all aspects of the duty," volunteer Cathy Corry said.

Corry and Matthews are applauding the Department of Justice for investigating Anderson's death. As a mother still recovering from her son's death, Matthew's heart is going out to Anderson's mother.

"She doesn't even know," Matthews said. "She hasn't even felt the pain that is going to hit her."

The Florida Department of Juvenile Justice's response to the boot camp said, "The law enforcement investigation is ongoing and DJJ continues to fully support their efforts. The videotape and medical examiner report will be thoroughly reviewed by DJJ staff and will be used as a part of DJJ's ongoing inspector investigation into our boot camp programs."

Mother Sues State Agency, Juvenile Facility Over Death [SOUTH PINELLAS Edition]

CHRIS TISCH. St. Petersburg Times. St. Petersburg, Fla.: May 18, 2005. pg. 3.B

Abstract (Document Summary)

Daniel "Danny" Matthews died after a May 31, 2003, fight at the facility, which is located near the 49th Street criminal justice complex in the Largo area. Prosecutors decided not to charge the boy who hit him, 16-year-old Louis Lauro, because he and Matthews were aggressive toward each other. Matthews' death, along with another boy's death in a Miami detention center, helped spark legislative committee hearings into safety at Florida's juvenile detention centers. The report on Matthews' death found that a trainee detention worker opened two cell doors by using electronic controls. This allowed Matthews and Lauro, who had been verbally sparring with each other all day, to confront each other and fight.

Full Text (408   words)

Copyright Times Publishing Co. May 18, 2005 The mother of a 17-year-old boy who died after a fight with another inmate at the Pinellas Juvenile Detention Center filed a lawsuit Tuesday against the Florida Department of Juvenile Justice and the boy who hit her son. Daniel "Danny" Matthews died after a May 31, 2003, fight at the facility, which is located near the 49th Street criminal justice complex in the Largo area. Prosecutors decided not to charge the boy who hit him, 16-year-old Louis Lauro, because he and Matthews were aggressive toward each other. However, DJJ officials admitted a number of errors that led to the fight. The agency failed to adequately supervise youths, failed to properly monitor one of the department's own employees and opened cell doors incorrectly, according to a report released in October 2003. That same month, DJJ began proceedings to fire one senior detention officer and suspend an assistant superintendent for five days in connection with the fight. Matthews' death, along with another boy's death in a Miami detention center, helped spark legislative committee hearings into safety at Florida's juvenile detention centers. The report on Matthews' death found that a trainee detention worker opened two cell doors by using electronic controls. This allowed Matthews and Lauro, who had been verbally sparring with each other all day, to confront each other and fight. The trainee, David Elswick, told investigators he thought he was opening doors for a group of inmates who were returning to their cells. Department policy says two detention workers should be present when an occupied cell is opened. But another detention worker had stayed behind in a classroom to pick up board games when the doors were opened. Matthews fell to the floor after Lauro punched him. He later died at the hospital from blunt trauma to the head, though the Pinellas- Pasco medical examiner was unable to say if the punch or the fall killed him. Elswick, who also is named as a defendant in the lawsuit, should not have been working at the Juvenile Detention Center. He had failed to pass his certification test, missing a passing score by one point. New workers have up to 180 days to pass the test, but Elswick had worked 241 days without passing it, the report states. He resigned a month after the fatal fight. A DJJ spokesman said Tuesday the agency had not been served with the lawsuit, which seeks damages of more than $15,000, and could not comment.

Justice Officials Admit Errors Led to Fatal Fight  [SOUTH PINELLAS Edition]

CURTIS KRUEGER. St. Petersburg Times. St. Petersburg, Fla.: Oct 9, 2003. pg. 1.B

Abstract (Document Summary)

A trainee detention worker's decision to open two cell doors by using electronic controls. This allowed the two youths, Matthews and Louis Lauro, to confront each other and fight. The trainee, David Elswick, told investigators he thought he was opening doors for a group of inmates who were returning to their cells, not trying to get out. Senior detention officer James Hull stayed behind in a JDC classroom putting away board games while a group of youths left and walked down a hallway to their cells. Under department procedures, he should have followed the youths. "This contributed to Elswick's confusion" when he opened the cell doors, the report says. At the legislative hearing in Clearwater, lawmakers heard from parents and advocates who said inmates sometimes don't receive proper medical care, and sometimes face violence from fellow inmates or overzealous guards. Two former employees said youths sometimes have been placed in confinement naked, a procedure designed for suicidal youths. But one said the practice was occasionally used as discipline.

Full Text (729   words)

Copyright Times Publishing Co. Oct 9, 2003 For the first time, the Department of Juvenile Justice has admitted it made mistakes that led to a fatal fight between two inmates at the Pinellas Juvenile Detention Center. The department this week began proceedings to fire one senior detention officer and suspend an assistant superintendent for five days in connection with the fight that killed Daniel "Danny" Matthews, 17. The agency's staff violated three procedures at the time of the fight, by failing to adequately supervise youths, failing to properly monitor one of the department's own employees and opening cell doors incorrectly, according to a new report prepared by the department's inspector general. The report was another blow to the state-run agency that operates detention centers, which are essentially jails for juveniles, and residential rehabilitation centers for youths who have broken the law. A criminal investigation in Miami is looking into the case of a 17-year-old detention inmate who died of a burst appendix even though he had reportedly complained of stomach pain. Staff members did not call 911 in that case. Juvenile Justice Secretary Bill Bankhead said Wednesday it was clear the staff had erred in the Pinellas case, but he said his agency had made great strides overall in increasing the professionalism of its staff. "It's a little (disappointing) to us that these situations would happen after we have worked so hard to improve the training of the department," he said. Bankhead was in Clearwater attending a legislative committee hearing looking into safety at Florida's juvenile detention centers. Some lawmakers expressed frustration at the state's handling of the Pinellas and Miami cases, and in the department's explanations. "It just seems like they neglected to do things that are very important to secure the safety of our children," said state Rep. Gus Bilirakis, R-Palm Harbor. "The department has this philosophy of just circling wagons and of trying to minimize the damage instead of just confronting the situation and dealing with it," said Rep. Gustavo "Gus" Barreiro, chairman of the Select Committee on Juvenile Detention Facilities. The new report on Matthews' death in May pointed to three violations of procedures, one of which had been previously disclosed in a sheriff's report: A trainee detention worker's decision to open two cell doors by using electronic controls. This allowed the two youths, Matthews and Louis Lauro, to confront each other and fight. The trainee, David Elswick, told investigators he thought he was opening doors for a group of inmates who were returning to their cells, not trying to get out. Department policy says two detention workers should be present when an occupied cell is opened. "It should not have happened," Assistant Juvenile Justice Secretary Larry Lumpee said. Elswick, the trainee, should not have been working at the JDC. He had failed to pass his certification test, missing a passing score by one point. New workers have up to 180 days to pass the test, but Elswick had worked 241 days without passing it. This oversight led to the five-day suspension of Assistant Superintendent Maureen Honan, who oversees training, and who has an otherwise spotless record, juvenile justice officials said. Senior detention officer James Hull stayed behind in a JDC classroom putting away board games while a group of youths left and walked down a hallway to their cells. Under department procedures, he should have followed the youths. "This contributed to Elswick's confusion" when he opened the cell doors, the report says. Matthews' mother, Diana, appeared at Wednesday's hearing and said afterwards she wasn't satisfied with the department's actions. "Five-day suspension for my son's life?" she said. "I would like to see some guards being punished a lot more than what they were," said Gerald Spence-Matthews, Daniel Matthews' brother. "If people were trained the right way, then my brother wouldn't be passed away right now." At the legislative hearing in Clearwater, lawmakers heard from parents and advocates who said inmates sometimes don't receive proper medical care, and sometimes face violence from fellow inmates or overzealous guards. Two former employees said youths sometimes have been placed in confinement naked, a procedure designed for suicidal youths. But one said the practice was occasionally used as discipline. Other speakers urged the department to provide more mental health services for youths in detention. [Illustration] Caption: Louis Lauro; Daniel "Danny" Matthews; State Rep. Gus Bilirakis ran (CITY & STATE, METRO & STATE); Photo: PHOTO, (3)

Report: Guard's Error Opened Cell Doors

Former detention officer David Elswick says his mistake enabled two juvenile inmates to fight, resulting in one's death.

By CURTIS KRUEGER, Times Staff Writer
© St. Petersburg Times
published August 9, 2003
 

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LARGO - An officer in training at Pinellas County's Juvenile Detention Center said he "accidentally unlocked" the cell doors of two youths in May, allowing them to meet for a deadly fight.

Detention Officer David Elswick, who has since resigned, told Pinellas sheriff's investigators he unlocked rooms 14 and 16 by pressing buttons on an electronic control panel, according to a sheriff's report released this week. Afterward, 16-year-old Louis Lauro came out of his cell, approached the cell of fellow inmate Danny Matthews, and hit him.

Matthews, 17, fell and went unconscious after what most witnesses said was two punches from Lauro. Matthews was pronounced dead at a hospital.

Elswick did not explain exactly what caused him to open the two doors accidentally, but he "stated that it was "common' for officers to hit the wrong button which would unlock the wrong door," according to the sheriff's report.

Since the May 31 fight, detention center officers have stopped using the electronic control panel to let youths out of their cells. Now, officers must walk to individual doors and unlock them with keys, said Catherine Arnold, spokeswoman for the state Department of Juvenile Justice.

This week the Pinellas-Pasco State Attorney's office decided not to charge Lauro with a crime, because he and Matthews had threatened each other all day, and had essentially agreed to fight each other. Prosecutors considered it a case of "mutual combat," with each party equally responsible.

The sheriff's report on the closed investigation, released at the request of the St. Petersburg Times, raises questions about inmate supervision at the detention center, a jail for youths that is operated by the state Department of Juvenile Justice.

Elswick could not be reached for comment Friday. His mistaken opening of the cell doors after the 8 p.m. lockdown released Lauro and Matthews into a hallway, where they began their brief and fatal fight.

Elswick told investigators no one told him to open rooms 14 and 16, and he did not further explain how such an accident would have occurred.

But some of the more than two dozen inmates interviewed for the report raised the possibility it might have been more than a random accident. Some youths said a fellow inmate had called out and asked for rooms 14 and 16 to be opened. Others said inmates had been plotting to push buttons on the control panel themselves, when officers weren't looking, to release the two youths apparently primed for a fight.

Told about the report, Gregory Perenich, attorney for the Matthews family, said "it seems very curious that these particular cell doors are opened when these are the two young men that are bantering back and forth."

Lauro himself said in a taped statement he was surprised when his door "popped" - opened partway after the officer pushed an electronic button. He said he had not been trying to get out. But he did say he had earlier heard about a plan by other inmates to get the cell doors open.

Lauro said Matthews "was talking trash, and I heard them talking about how they're going to get the doors popped open."

He said another inmate "was telling them to have room 14 and 16 doors popped open."

No one quoted in the report - inmates or officers - suggested that JDC staff opened the cell doors intentionally.

Arnold, of the Department of Juvenile Justice, denied that the episode pointed to a lack of proper training at the JDC, which is in the Largo area and houses about 120 youths, most of them awaiting court dates on juvenile charges. She said a recent review rated training procedures at 93 out of 100, which she said was "exceptional."

She said Elswick, who was being paid a $22,809 annual salary, resigned in June after narrowly failing a state certification test. He had worked for the agency since October of 2002.

The rancor between Lauro and Matthews had been building for at least a day, with each reportedly threatening to fight the other. But the two barely knew each other; Lauro didn't even know Matthews' name.

Lauro had been lying on his bunk in his underwear at the time his cell door popped open. When it opened, he thought of the rumors that someone was going to try to get the doors opened, and "I wasn't going to let them come to my room and go into my room or do something," he told investigators.

He wrapped a sheet around himself and walked into the hallway to Matthews' cell. Matthews also came out of his cell, with a sheet draped around him. Matthews had a roommate in his cell who was not involved in the fight.

Lauro said Matthews "scratched me or something and that's when I hit him," the report said.

As Detectives Misty Manning and Kurt Romanosky talked to Lauro on June 1, the day after the fight, Lauro needed to know something: "If you can answer one question, is the kid all right?'

"No," Manning said.

"Is he alive?"

"No."

Later, Lauro said, "I'm sorry for what I did. . . . I didn't want to hurt the kid."

- Curtis Krueger can be reached at 727 893-8232 or at krueger@sptimes.com

Teen Not Charged in Fatal Fistfight

Two boys fought at a juvenile detention center and one died. Prosecutors say the teenagers were equally responsible.

By CURTIS KRUEGER, Times Staff Writer
© St. Petersburg Times
published August 7, 2003
 

---

LARGO - A 16-year-old youth will not be charged with a crime for his role in a deadly fight at the Pinellas Juvenile Detention Center, prosecutors have decided.

In the brief fight two months ago inside the detention center, Louis Lauro hit 17-year-old Danny Matthews a couple of times after a day of trash-talking. Matthews fell to the floor and was pronounced dead at a hospital shortly afterward.

The Pinellas County Sheriff's Office had recommended charging Lauro with manslaughter. The Pinellas-Pasco State Attorney's Office disagreed this week and chose not to file charges because the two youths essentially had agreed to fight.

"They both had expressed a desire to fight each other, and it evolved into a mutual combat situation," Chief Assistant State Attorney Bruce Bartlett said. "One party was no more responsible than the other party."

Bartlett said testimony from other inmates showed the two teenagers had clashed in some sort of altercation earlier and had threatened each other repeatedly on May 31, the day of the fight. He said there was "a plan by both parties to kind of determine who was the tougher of the two."

Also, the Pinellas-Pasco Medical Examiner's Office said Wednesday it had been unable to determine whether Matthews had died because of a punch to the head or from hitting his head on something as he fell. The cause of death was blunt trauma to the head.

Matthews' father, Robert, said he felt "devastation" after hearing the news that no charges would be filed. "I couldn't believe it."

Robert Matthews said he is most frustrated at the Department of Juvenile Justice workers who were supervising the youths in the detention center. "I said right from the start, I blame the people more that were supposed to watch them than I blame that kid," he said.

But deciding not to charge Lauro with any crime didn't seem right to him either. "You've still got be held accountable for what you did," Matthews said.

Melba Zirkle, who is Lauro's grandmother, said she felt relieved. But she added: "There is no win in this incident here. There was no win on either part of this. It's a tragedy, and I'm sorry it happened. But I'm glad my grandson is getting some mental relief."

She said the incident "has bothered my grandson the whole time. It's a hard thing, I'm glad it's over for him. I'm again, sorry for the parents of Danny and his family."

Matthews was in the JDC on a charge of domestic aggravated battery. His mother said he had pushed her across the table and bruised her arm, and she had pressed charges hoping he would get mental health and drug treatment. Lauro was facing violation of probation on charges of battery, disorderly conduct and criminal mischief. Lauro is now housed in a different juvenile facility, Zirkle said.

The detention center is a 120-person jail in the Largo area used primarily for inmates younger than 18 facing juvenile charges. Most stay 21 days or less. The facility, near the county criminal justice complex on 49th Street, is operated by the state Department of Juvenile Justice.

DJJ spokeswoman Catherine Arnold would not comment about whether having inmates engaged in "mutual combat" showed that youths were not properly supervised. A separate investigation into detention workers' conduct is under way by the DJJ inspector general's office.

In particular, investigators are expected to look into how the two youths got out of their cells to begin the fight. Some witnesses have said another inmate asked a detention worker to open the cell doors, which allowed the two to clash.

Cathy Corry, a Clearwater activist who runs the Web site www.justice4kids.org said "someone in the Department of Juvenile Justice should be held accountable for what appears to be negligence on their part in opening those doors when they knew that those two youths were having verbal altercations."

Although a video camera was running in the detention center at the time of the fight, it did not provide a clear image of what happened, Bartlett said.

Asked whether sheriff's officials were disappointed in the state attorney's decision, Detective Tim Goodman said "any time you do an investigation, and especially if there's a death investigation, I'm sure there's some disappointment."

 

 

 

                                                                                           

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