Advocacy group calls Southwest Key settlement ‘first step,’ concerns remain
Oct 26, 2018, 3:01 PM | Updated: 3:03 pm
(Photo by Griselda Zetino)
(Photo by Griselda Zetino)
PHOENIX — A group advocating for migrant children said it’s “very pleased” with a recent settlement that requires Southwest Key shelters to temporarily stop accepting minors and to close two of its facilities, but it added that more needs to be done.
Esther Duran Lam, a member of the Uncage and Reunite Families Coalition, said at a press conference Friday at the Arizona State Capitol that the settlement is “merely just the first step.”
“Not all of our demands have been met – and one of the most important ones is that the children still do not have 24/7 monitoring,” she said.
“Another one is that the community has not been involved,” she added. “We the citizens want to be involved to ensure that the children are being kept safe.”
On Wednesday, Southwest Key reached a settlement with the Arizona Department of Health Services. Under the settlement, Southwest Key must stop accepting migrant children at all of its facilities in Arizona until the state health department lifts the suspension.
It also stated Southwest Key must pay a $73,000 fine and employ a third-party health care consultant.
The settlement came after Southwest Key failed to meet a Sept. 14 deadline to go through the background check clearance of more than 2,000 employees. The deadline was set due to reports of children being abused by shelter staff.
Myron Scott, an attorney with the Uncage and Reunite Families Coalition, said the settlement agreement “includes some of the strongest measures” taken by the state Department of Health Services to address ongoing problems at Southwest Key.
“Yet it still fails to implement enforceable day-to-day measures to identify and deter abuse and mistreatment of children in Southwest Key centers,” he said.
Scott said they’d like to see a citizens oversight board created to monitor the facilities and to require Southwest Key to implement any recommendations made by the third-party health care consultant.
He added his group would also like to see changes in state law to give the Arizona Department of Health Services more authority over all facilities housing migrant children across the state and to make clear the department can make unannounced visits.
