A Texas judge has delayed his ruling on whether the Dallas County Commissioners Court can subpoena documents pertaining to the county juvenile department’s alleged poor treatment of its underage inmates.
The Dallas County Juvenile Department (DCJD) is facing allegations that more than 100 juveniles have been subjected unnecessarily to solitary confinement, sometimes without being fed or given necessary medical care.
The Texas Juvenile Justice Department’s (TJJD) Office of the Inspector General opened an investigation into the DCJD concerning these accusations, as previously reported by The Dallas Express.
In May, Dallas County Commissioner Andrew Sommerman spearheaded the efforts of the commissioners court to obtain “observation sheets” from the DCJD that record the whereabouts of children in custody throughout the day.
Commissioners subpoenaed the DCJD for the documents in May and were subsequently sued by the department, with attorneys claiming commissioners lacked a legal standing to subpoena “confidential” information.
The future of the case lies with State District Judge Eric Moyé, who has now postponed his ruling for at least 21 days, awaiting more information from investigators.
“We don’t know what TJJD is looking for,” he said during a hearing on Monday, per The Dallas Morning News.
“If they’re looking at the same thing, obviously, we’ve got one set of issues on which to engage,” he continued. “If what you’re looking at is something totally different, there may be no reason to prevent the commissioners court proceeding with this investigation.”
In a statement to The Dallas Express, DCJD Executive Director Darryl Beatty said, “We respect the Judge’s ruling and we look forward to the resolution of the matter.”
After Monday’s hearing, Sommerman said he takes no issue with Moyé’s delaying his ruling.
“I don’t mind the delay,” he said. “Looks like, 21 days from now, we’re going to have the judge make a ruling. We hope we’ll know more about what TJJD is doing and see if they’re looking at the same sort of stuff that we want to see.”
Brian Hail, a DCJD attorney, suggested to Moyé that commissioners wait until the state investigation is complete before embarking on a probe of their own. However, he previously told DMN that any local investigation should be led by the juvenile board that oversees the DCJD rather than the commissioners court.
Sommerman challenged Hail’s assertion that the commissioners lacked legal standing to see the documents, arguing that because the commissioners court approves the DCJD’s budget, it has a right to view the department’s records. Furthermore, both Sommerman and Dallas County Judge Clay Jenkins serve on the juvenile board.
“We, the commissioners court, are the ones who make the financial decisions, not the TJJD,” he said. “So, as a result, it’s important for us to get this information for financial reasons.”
Commissioner John Wiley Price, who served on the juvenile board before Sommerman, agreed with Moyé’s decision to delay his ruling. However, he also maintained that the county commissioners are not entitled to view DCJD documents.
“Looking at operational sheets is not a budget issue,” Price said. He was the only commissioner to vote against the subpoena.
