County to Seek Juvenile Hall Funds : Measure J: Should the initiative pass, some of the revenue is expected to go toward expanding overcrowded facilities.

SANTA ANA —  After hearing from county probation officials that overcrowding is as much of a concern in Juvenile Hall as it is in the county’s adult jail system, the Board of Supervisors agreed Tuesday to seek Measure J funds to expand juvenile facilities.

Voters will go the polls May 14 to decide on Measure J, the half-cent sales tax initiative to raise funds for construction and operation of new criminal justice facilities.

An independent agency, the Orange County Regional Justice Facilities Commission, which voted to put the measure on the ballot, must choose which projects will be funded should Measure J pass.

Supervisors decided last week that funding for a new jail in Gypsum Canyon near Anaheim Hills is their No. 1 priority. However, county probation officials said Tuesday that overcrowding at juvenile facilities is a critical problem too.

In 1990, for example, Juvenile Hall, the only one of the four facilities secure enough to house minors who have committed serious felonies, was filled beyond capacity every day of the year. Its peak population was 416 inmates, but it was designed for only 314, according to Dr. Michael Schumacher, chief probation officer.

“The three less secure facilities also house youths who are considered a threat to the community,” Schumacher said. “Many have been involved in violent acts and major thefts, and the majority are gang members and have drug-related problems.”

The combined capacity of the four facilities is 624 beds, Schumacher said. In 1987, the county was sued by the San Francisco Youth Law Center and the American Civil Liberties Union regarding the overcrowding issue and other conditions at juvenile facilities.

“Although the county prevailed in 32 of 35 issues presented in court, overcrowding continues to be a high-profile issue subject to future litigation,” Schumacher told the supervisors in a report.

In order to ease the overcrowding problem, the Probation Department has instituted a number of programs, including early release of some offenders and releasing juveniles arrested on misdemeanor charges. Also, more youths have been added to the electronic surveillance program, in which officials keep track of offenders at home through an electronic device worn around the ankle.

The county’s jails for adults, which hold about 4,400 inmates in a system designed for 3,203, has had to institute many of the same type of programs to relieve overcrowding. Sheriff Brad Gates, who has led the drive for Measure J, wants funds to build a new jail because he is under increasing pressure to keep the population of his jails down while at the same time keeping violent criminals in jail.

If Measure J is approved by voters, Gates wants some of the revenue to be used to build a 6,700-bed regional adult facility in Gypsum Canyon, which could cost about $1 billion to acquire the property from its owner, the Irvine Co., and to construct the jail.

Probation Department officials estimate that they will need 160 more beds by the year 1995, at a cost of $100,000 to $160,000 per bed, depending on the level of security and whether they are added to existing facilities or new ones.

In his report, Schumacher said that a 60-bed expansion of Juvenile Hall already under way is costing the county $6.5 million to construct, with operation expected to cost an additional $1.5 million annually. The expansion is scheduled for completion in May.