South Carolina
On April 14, 2022, the DOJ filed a complaint against the South Carolina Department of Juvenile Justice for depriving youth confined in the Broad River Road Complex facility of their constitutional rights. The complaint highlights Fourteenth Amendment violations, namely that the Department of Juvenile Justice “(i) failed to reasonably protect children from youth-on-youth violence; and…
On April 14, 2022, the DOJ released its investigation findings of South Carolina Department of Juvenile Justice’s Broad River Road Complex. The investigation finds “, that there is reasonable cause to believe, based on the totality of the conditions, practices, and incidents, that: (1) the conditions at the Broad River Road Complex (BRRC), South Carolina’s…
On April 14, 2022, the DOJ entered into a settlement agreement with the South Carolina Department of Juvenile Justice to remedy conditions that violated young people’s constitutional rights at the Broad River Road Complex facility. The settlement agreement includes provisions that the Department “shall, at all times, provide youth at BRRC with safe living conditions,”…
On September 14, 2020, the DOJ filed a statement of interest involving young people between the ages of 11 and 16 subject to “a broad range of unconstitutional conditions, including unsanitary and unsafe conditions, use of excessive force, overcrowding, lack of recreation and programming, inadequate health and mental health care, and inadequate educational services.” The…
[South Carolina] Department of Juvenile Justice’s Broad River Road Complex: Notice and Investigation
On February 5, 2020, the DOJ sent notice to the Governor of South Carolina regarding the alleged conditions they have reasonable cause to believe violate the U.S. Constitution at the Broad River Road Complex juvenile facility. The notice states, in part, “After carefully reviewing the evidence, we conclude that there is reasonable cause to believe…
This pleading addresses the reasonable Black person standard. Click here to read the opinion.
Click here to see the brief.
On November 28, 2016, the DOJ filed a Statement of Interest in response to a lawsuit filed in South Carolina, challenging two state statutes as void for vagueness in violation of the Due Process Clause. The lawsuit alleged that the vague language in the statute resulted in the criminalization of common youthful behavior, racial disparities,…
The Supreme Court of South Carolina held that individuals sentenced to juvenile life without parole were entitled to resentencing hearings to present evidence about youthfulness, following the U.S. Supreme Court decision, Miller v. Alabama. The court stated in relevant part: “Miller is clear that it is the failure of a sentencing court to consider the…
