Workers at the Maryland Department of Juvenile Services are pleading with leadership to take action amid threats to their safety and the safety of incarcerated teens, emails leaked to FOX45 show.

An administrator at the Backbone Mountain Youth Center said in an email sent Sunday that he was worried about his staff and youth safety due to ongoing violent incidents. He wrote that the Garrett County facility needs immediate attention from the top.

“I wanted to write this email, on the morale of the camp and also the morale of the youth,” wrote the DJS administrator. FOX45 is not naming the man to protect his privacy.

Backbone Mountain is one of two long-term state placement centers designated by the court system to offer treatment and rehabilitation services for convicted juvenile offenders. According to the Maryland State Archives, Backbone Mountain is permitted to house up to 28 male juveniles who typically participate in programs lasting between six to nine months.

State records indicate the juvenile center offers education for incarcerated young people while also providing counseling and medical treatment services before integrating them back into the public.

The Backbone Mountain administrator said unrest at the facility is creating a dangerous environment for both the staff and the detained teens.

“I don’t know what more staff can do at this time and also the youth who are trying to do their time and go home,” the DJS administrator wrote. “We have youth who do not feel safe and also some staff feel the same way.

“We have youth who can spit on staff, assault staff, get in fights … every single day and nothing happens for them to get out of here. I feel that we have kids who cannot go back to the group because of their safety,” the DJS administrator added.

A spokesperson for AFSCME Maryland Council 3, the labor union representing DJS workers, told FOX45 Thursday it has been raising concerns that the increase in violence in state facilities is directly linked to understaffing.

“This staffing crisis has persisted for years, and it’s the staff and the youth they take care of who bears the brunt of the consequences of understaffing,” AFSCME said. “Data from October 2024 shows an 11.4% vacancy rate at DJS, but this number very likely underestimates the true number of staff needed to successfully resource a facility.”

AFSCME told FOX45 that DJS staff is routinely being rotated between various facilities because of alarming shortages.

“Rehabilitative programs and opportunities are being cut without enough staff to run them, directly impacting the youth,” AFSCME said. “Everyone in these facilities will continue to be in danger unless DJS and state leaders prioritize additional resources and staffing.”

An email from Backbone Mountain’s administrator echoed the union’s concern.

“I always thought whenever kids are in our care, our first priority is to make sure they are safe,” the DJS administrator wrote. “But this department does not get it, meaning [the department] does not care about staff safety of the youth, or the staff at our facility.”

“Staff feel it, there will be another group disturbance and I tell you what, I’ve been in two of them and pretty sure a lot of other staff as well and it is not pretty at all,” the DJS administrator added.

The latest report from the Juvenile Justice Monitoring Unit shows that both of the state’s long-term juvenile facilities, including Backbone Mountain, have seen increases in youth fights and assaults, alleged assaults of youth on staff and physical restraints of youth by staff.

The report added that the two facilities experienced a combined 460% increase in reported suicidal ideations, or instances of youth reporting they were considering death or suicide.

After receiving no apparent response from senior DJS leadership, the Backbone Mountain administrator wrote a follow-up email on Monday saying that another facility staff member had been assaulted since his initial plea.

“To go along with the last email I sent yesterday, extra staff had to be called in because we had staff assaulted again,” the DJS administrator wrote. “We are getting [to] a point where the youth do not care about the consequences that we can implement at the camp.”

“Staff should not have to come in and worry [whether] or not they are going to be spit, bit and hit because this youth no longer cares about anything,” the DJS administrator added.

Backbone Mountain’s resident advisor supervisor forwarded the email to senior DJS leadership, including Adina Levi, who is DJS Secretary Vincent Schiraldi’s deputy secretary of residential services.

“This is an email that I received from a GLM at Backbone Mountain Youth Center who is very concerned about the wellbeing for his staff and the youth who are doing their best as fast as possible,” the DJS resident advisor supervisor wrote. “Right now we have 4 youth that are separated because they are in danger of being assault if they go to a group and there are staff who are calling out because they don’t feel supported and are getting burnt out dealing with the stress.”

“Any help with this issue would be appreciated,” the DJS resident advisor supervisor added.

Denise Henderson, who was recently appointed by Gov. Wes Moore to the state’s Commission on Juvenile Justice Reform and Emerging Best Practices, forwarded the email chain to an AFSCME representative, the superintendent of Backbone Mountain and others, including Levi.

“There needs to be a meeting scheduled to address these issues immediately,” Henderson wrote.

Henderson did not immediately respond to email requests for comment on Thursday.

FOX45 sent questions on Thursday regarding the emails and AFSCME’s demands to DJS Secretary Schiraldi, Deputy Secretary Marc Schindler and Deputy Secretary Levi. Similar questions directed to Gov. Moore’s office about the claims included:

Are staff members and teens in danger at DJS facilities?

Is DJS achieving its federally required obligation to treat, rehabilitate and educate justice-involved youth at state facilities?

Does DJS leadership believe they have established a culture that has emboldened justice-involved youth to assault each other and staff inside DJS facilities?

Officials from DJS and the governor’s office did not respond to those questions.

Have a news tip? Contact Gary Collins at gmcollins@sbgtv.com.