The Rome Police Department was dispatched to the Rome YCD on Saturday in response to a riot at the facility,
Officers said that upon arrival, they made contact with the DJJ Officer who advised that about 8-15 juveniles were in a pod and were fighting and breaking things.
The Officer advised that there was a staff member still in the pod that could be in danger and that they could not secure his exit without opening another pod with another 5-7 Juveniles.
The Officer was able to provide surveillance footage where they were able to observe multiple juveniles breaking a table into individual poles that could be used as a weapon.
Police said that they were able to observe 2 juveniles actively kicking a door in an attempt to break in. Officers also were able to observe the Officer on the second floor, as well as one juvenile holding a pole and running up the stairs toward the Officer, but did not make contact with him.
Rome Police said that they were forced to wait in the lobby for backup as they were advised multiple times to stand down by RYDC “commissioner”, and not make entry until authorized personnel arrived. Police said that “the commissioner” told police to stand down and let her “go talk to my kids.”
The “commissioner” and at least two other employees went into the first out-of-control pod, taking the keys with them and allowing the doors to close behind them, leaving police with no known way to provide assistance should it be needed.
After a few minutes, the “commissioner” and her employees came out of the pod and said officers could enter. As police were stacking at the door, the inmate observed them and all went into their dorms, closing the doors behind, ceasing any further problems from the first pod.
As officers approached the second pod, they armed themselves with a ballistic shield and Pepperball launcher. From the exterior of the pod, police said that they could see two males moving toward the upper level. The “commissioner” told us again not to carry weapons into the pods.
As the guard opened the door, police pointed their Pepperball at one of the males and began ordering them back to their dorms. Both began moving toward their dorms. Police proceeded to focus on one male as they made their way upstairs and the suspect sat down at his dorm door and stated that was his room.
Officers remained in place at the top of the stairs while still maintaining a safe distance from the male who had become cooperative. At the same time, officers heard other officers yelling at another male before firing one less-lethal projectile. Both males entered their rooms and were secured for the night.
A Floyd County Police report added that after speaking with several of the officers who arrived first at the RYDC all had the same account about how they were not allowed to react to an exigent circumstance of a DJJ Officer locked in a cell block with assaultive juvenile inmates.
He added, “On top of that, juvenile inmates that had broken a table and were making metal weapons to further assault said officers. It was advised that once the initial officers arrived on the scene they were held by DJJ staff in the lobby, stating they could not be let in until they had approval from a higher power. This was even the case once Facility manager Beatrice Whittington, arrived on scene, and had confessed that this was probably an exigent circumstance given that one of her officers was in immediate danger of being severely hurt or even killed.”
Because of the ages of the suspects, they were not available to be released.
