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CENTRALIA — Senate Republican Leader John Braun, R-Centralia, issued the following statement today in response to reports that staff at Green Hill School in Chehalis recorded sexual acts with inmates in custody:

“The reports coming out of Green Hill School are appalling. Instead of rehabilitating inmates housed at the facility, some staff have been sexually exploiting them – and recording it.

“Arrests have already been made, which is a necessary first step — but it does not address the deeper breakdowns that allowed this to happen.

“The ‘JR-to-25’ policy expanded the juvenile-justice population without considering the resources or safeguards necessary to manage it responsibly. Mixing adult offenders with younger residents has created dangerous overcrowding and a volatile work environment. That instability has driven out qualified staff, invited misconduct, and put both youth and employees in harm’s way.

“I am calling for the immediate release of all investigation findings, the termination of any remaining implicated employees, and a 30-day corrective-action plan from DCYF that includes clear benchmarks for staffing, training, supervision, and oversight.

“The Legislature must also conduct bipartisan public hearings to examine not just these criminal acts, but the policies that created this environment. The facility is not meeting its mission and it’s costing the state three times as much to operate.

“Those in state custody are there to be rehabilitated, not used for the sexual gratification of staff who have shown they have no business working in the system. Accountability must be swift, transparency must be complete, and the culture at Green Hill must change from the top down.”

“I’ve proposed solutions to address this ongoing problem, none of which have made it out of the Democratic-controlled Legislature despite bipartisan support.”

During the 2025 legislative session, Braun sponsored legislation (Senate Bill 5278) that would have improved conditions at the state’s largest juvenile institutions – Green Hill School and Echo Glen, near Snoqualmie –by allowing them to send some of the inmates over 18 years of age to adult facilities operated by the Department of Corrections. The Senate passed the bill, but House Democrats killed it at the request of Sen. Claire Wilson, a King County Democrat whose own bill on juvenile justice lacked support.

Braun said he will urge the Senate Human Services and Ways and Means committees to coordinate hearings on the Green Hill failures, as well as the statewide effects of the JR-to-25 expansion on safety, staffing, and rehabilitation outcomes.

 

Background

• Two Green Hill School staff have been arrested and charged with custodial sexual misconduct; at least one has entered a guilty plea.
• In July 2024, DCYF suspended new intakes at Green Hill School and Echo Glen Children’s Center amid escalating safety and staffing problems.
• The JR-to-25 policy allows some offenders to remain in juvenile facilities until age 25, leading to overcrowding and increased incidents of violence and assault.
• Media and oversight reports have documented at least 21 criminal referrals involving Green Hill staff since 2024.