Gov. Scott Walker now wants to close Lincoln Hills teen prison more quickly than he had proposed

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

MADISON - Amid Democratic criticism, GOP Gov. Scott Walker is moving up his plans to close Wisconsin's problem-wracked teen prison by urging the Legislature to adopt his proposal this spring rather than 18 months from now.

It is the second time in less than two weeks that Walker has embraced a Democratic approach to dealing with Lincoln Hills School for Boys, the juvenile prison north of Wausau that has sparked a criminal investigation and multiple civil rights lawsuits.

This month, Walker announced he wanted to convert Lincoln Hills to an adult prison, open five regional teen lockups around the state and expand a mental health facility in Madison so it could provide treatment to female teen inmates along with the males it already serves.

Walker initially said he wanted the Legislature to adopt the $80 million plan in the summer of 2019 as part of the state budget. Democrats — who are in the minority in both houses — said they were glad Walker was adopting an approach they have long championed but contended he should move faster.

Now, Walker wants to do just that.

In a Monday statement, Walker said he was calling for the Legislature — which plans to wrap up its session for the year as early as March — to pass his plan in 2018.

Lincoln Hills School is seen in this 2015 photo.

Walker also announced his administration would issue a request for services by early next week to find architects and engineers to design the new lockups. The firm or firms will be selected by February, he said.

“Both Republicans and Democrats collaborated on this plan and agreed it offers the best way forward," Walker said in a statement. "Together, we can move this through the Legislature to improve juvenile corrections and treatment through transitioning to smaller, more regional corrections facilities and focusing on mental health and trauma-informed care.”

Walker made the announcement as he gears up for his re-election bid this fall and prepares to deliver his “state of the state” address to the Legislature on Jan. 24.

How Republicans who control the Legislature will react remains unclear. They said they backed his plan when he first announced it, but have been noncommittal about putting it on a fast track when Democrats have suggested it.

“I have to be honest and say I’m not in a rush,” Assembly Speaker Robin Vos (R-Rochester) said last week before Walker said he wanted to move quickly on his plan.

“I would like us to do it in a way that gets the right answer as quickly as we can, but I don’t want to rush to judgment until we’ve had time to really study it and understand what all the possibilities are.”

TIMELINE: How the Lincoln Hills crisis unfolded

In a series of reports over the past two years, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel found teen inmates had been injured at the prison, including one who had to have parts of two toes amputated after a guard slammed a door on his foot. Officials at Lincoln Hills trained staff improperly; failed to preserve video evidence; didn't document serious incidents; and often ignored their duty to report matters to parents and police.

Walker's office was first notified of problems at the prison in 2012 by a Racine County judge, but little was done at the time. In his statement, Walker highlighted changes his administration has made over the past two years, including giving workers far more training and equipping them with body cameras.

In 2015, a sweeping criminal probe began of Lincoln Hills and its sister facility on the same grounds, Copper Lake School for Girls. That FBI-led investigation is ongoing, and last month federal prosecutors notified two former guards they could be charged over allegations they broke a 16-year-old inmate's arm and left him naked in a cell for hours. The inmate said in a civil rights lawsuit that he wasn't taken to a doctor for a week.

Other lawsuits over conditions are pending, including one filed last year by inmates represented by the American Civil Liberties Union of Wisconsin. A federal judge found in that case that inmates' rights were likely being violated and ordered the state to scale back its use of solitary confinement and pepper spray.

Under Walker's plan, the state would borrow $80 million to build five regional lockups that could hold three dozen teen inmates each. Together, the five lockups would cost about $25 million a year to operate and employ about 250 workers, according to the Department of Corrections.

It is likely three of the new facilities would be in southeastern Wisconsin, where most inmates come from. The others would be in northern, western or central Wisconsin, according to the governor's office.

Separately, the state would expand Mendota Juvenile Treatment Center in Madison, which houses 29 male inmates with the most significant mental health needs. The expansion would allow a dozen or more additional boys to stay there and would allow it for the first time to accommodate girls.

Meanwhile, Lincoln Hills would be turned into a medium-security adult prison that could provide treatment for drug and alcohol abuse. Lincoln Hills was built to hold more than 500 juvenile inmates, but parts of the prison have not been used in recent years and it is not clear how many adults it could hold.

Workers at Lincoln Hills would have the option to continue working there after it becomes an adult prison or transfer to one of the new juvenile facilities. The total number of jobs at Lincoln Hills — now 313 — would likely increase when it becomes an adult prison, said Department of Corrections spokesman Tristan Cook.

Walker's plan mirrors legislation proposed by Rep. Evan Goyke (D-Milwaukee), who has said he would be pushing this spring to make progress on the idea.

Moving quickly on Lincoln Hills would help Walker blunt criticism of his administration's handling of problems there as he runs for re-election this fall.

With ongoing litigation and a criminal investigation, the teen prison is likely to stay in the news in 2018. In addition, Walker's former corrections secretary, Ed Wall, plans to publish a book this summer critical of his time working for Walker.

Problems at the facility are costing taxpayers. In 2016, the state paid $300,000 to the inmate who had two toes partially amputated. In addition, taxpayers have spent more than $240,000 to a private law firm to defend state officials against lawsuits over conditions at Lincoln Hills and Copper Lake.

Costs could grow significantly. One former inmate who is suing the state was severely brain damaged after she attempted suicide at Copper Lake. Providing her care for the rest of her life is expected to cost millions of dollars and she is seeking to recover at least some of that.