By SARA GENTZLER/Flatwater Free PressFlatwater Free Press

State leaders plan to move all boys out of Kearney’s state-run youth treatment center months after multiple allegations of sexual abuse there.

The teens would go to what’s currently a youth prison in Omaha, as part of a wider plan to shuffle in-custody kids.

State leaders assert the changes, which require legislative action, will better serve teens in the system and save the state money.

But some officials, such as the public defender in Nebraska’s largest county, say the plan raises questions, including how teens moved among various facilities will continue to receive appropriate programming.

The state’s Department of Health and Human Services operates three youth rehabilitation and treatment centers for juvenile offenders. Those are different from the state’s youth prison, which is run by the Department of Correctional Services and houses kids prosecuted as adults.

“There are a number of issues that need to be addressed before this is put into action,” said Douglas County Public Defender Tom Riley.

In October, the Flatwater Free Press reported on allegations that had surfaced in court hearings of staff sexually abusing teenagers at the Kearney center.

Initially, hearings and documents implicated four YRTC employees and involved three teenage boys. In a more recent court hearing, a Kearney administrator estimated eight to 10 boys had made allegations. Riley said his office has since learned a fifth staff member is facing accusations.

Only one of the accused employees has been charged criminally, according to court records.

“It appears to me that a systemic problem is an accurate way to describe it,” Riley said, adding that there seems to be a concerted effort “to minimize it at best and at worst hide it from the courts.”

The revelations last fall sparked an investigation from the state watchdog for child welfare.

But they didn’t motivate the state’s proposal, which was already in the works, said Lee Will, director of the state Department of Administrative Services. It was a collaboration between DHHS and Corrections, he said, which brought it to the Governor’s Office for discussion.

The move from Kearney to Omaha was part of Gov. Jim Pillen’s proposed budget adjustments released last week.

“It’s more about the overall space and youth allocation that had more to do with it … but I do think it’s going to provide safer facilities, cleaner facilities,” Will said. “So I do think it’s going to help the youth as a whole.”

Kearney — the largest of the state’s three Youth Rehabilitation and Treatment Centers — held an average of 76 boys per month in fiscal year 2025, according to a report from the Inspector General of Nebraska Child Welfare.

DHHS was looking for other options to house the growing population in Kearney, said John Meals, chief financial officer for the Department of Health and Human Services. At the same time, he said, Corrections had a large campus in Omaha that was “underutilized.”

The Kearney center — where the state plans to move the roughly one to two dozen girls housed in Hastings — currently has a licensed capacity of 142 and houses kids in barracks-style living quarters, according to a recent report. A new unit, slated to open this spring, will have 48 beds with individual rooms.

The Omaha prison has 92 rooms, Meals said. While they will be individual rooms as often as possible, there’s capacity for up to 143 beds.

The ability to use mostly individual rooms would be “significantly safer and better for both the youth and the workers,” Meals said. And, he added, it would keep the 80-90% of youth who come to Kearney from Douglas and Sarpy counties closer to their families.

Overall, Will said, the plan helps the state’s bottom line, resulting in a net gain of about $4 million a year.

It would also impact staffing. More people would be needed in Omaha, fewer in Kearney. The state would create as many opportunities as possible for people in Kearney to find jobs in Omaha, Meals said.

Justin Hubly, executive director of the Nebraska Association of Public Employees, said he hadn’t seen many details of the plan. The union represents state employees in roles including nurses and administrative support staff.

“We had no advanced notice, and there haven’t been discussions with our union formally or informally regarding any proposals to relocate youth, repurpose facilities or the potential effects on staff,” Hubly said in a text message. “Given the short staffing and high turnover at the YRTCs in recent years, we hope to be involved in discussions and planning to best serve the youth entrusted to the care of our members at these facilities.”

Moving girls into the Kearney center would require a state law change, Meals said, and there will be a line in the budget that the Legislature will have to approve.

State Sen. Brian Hardin, Health and Human Services Committee chair, said in a text message that a bill will be introduced during the 60-day legislative session that kicked off earlier this month.

If the Legislature approves, leaders said the plan would be to make the moves before the end of the year.

In the meantime, Nebraska’s child welfare watchdog, Jennifer Carter, said her office is continuing to investigate the allegations at Kearney along with the Ombudsman’s Office.

“It continues to be an all-hands-on-deck situation,” she said. “We have been reviewing tons of evidence, and we are still in that process.”

This story was originally published by Flatwater Free Press and distributed through a partnership with The Associated Press.

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