DCYF downplays youth overdoses at Green Hill school as fentanyl floods in

LEWIS COUNTY, Wash. - Police reports obtained by FOX 13 News reveal multiple drug overdoses inside the Green Hill youth detention center in Lewis County this month, despite DCYF adding a new body scanner, increasing searches, and giving staff extra training to keep contraband out.

In one of the documented cases, Chehalis Police rushed to Green Hill on Jan. 14 for a patient who was suffering from a suspected fentanyl overdose. Investigators documented that Connor Strange, 18, received six doses of Narcan that day to keep him alive.

During the investigation, two employees told police that Strange’s overdose was the fifth that week. Police were called out the next day for yet another overdose – that time, an inmate received "over 10 doses of Narcan," according to Chehalis Police records. However, when FOX 13 asked DCYF about these accounts, officials seemed to under-report the number of incidents, saying in a statement: "Administrators count four drug incidents among youth, not five."

Around this time, records show drugs being smuggled into the secure facility with little effort on the part of the supplier.

On Jan. 23, an unknown person threw a small container over the fence at Green Hill that had more than 200 fentanyl pills inside, which staff described as a regular occurrence in statements to police.

"This was a larger issue that was not being addressed appropriately," an investigator wrote, summarizing comments by two employees. Workers explained to police, it’s not the only way drugs are coming into Green Hill. As an investigator wrote, "I was told they believe the contraband is not only coming in by being thrown over the fence but possibly being smuggled in by a staff member or members."

This month, a 42-year-old worker was arrested for bringing marijuana into the facility. He is not the first to be arrested, but employees tell FOX 13 that they suspect more workers are still helping residents obtain drugs.

Contraband smuggling is so prevalent that workers tell FOX 13 residents don't have a chance of beating addiction on the campus because drugs are so easily obtained. One former counselor, who spoke on the condition of anonymity for fear of professional retaliation, told FOX 13 it was a shock to realize that co-workers were keeping residents hooked.

"'Can the staff really do this?'" the counselor remembers asking herself. "They can, and they will unless they're stopped. If the staff continues to do what they’re doing, nobody will be able to break that cycle."

Green Hill’s struggles have become headline news over the past year. The Joint Narcotics Enforcement Team (JNET) was so concerned about overlooked problems at the facility, they served a search warrant on Green Hill in 2023—a move deemed rare, even by those within the law enforcement field. During their search, JNET detectives obtained 140 items ranging from meth and fentanyl to weed-infused vape pens and weapons that had never been turned over to investigators.

The head of JNET told FOX 13 that many of the items would have led to a felony charge for "possession of a controlled substance while in a state correctional facility," but many charges were never filed as evidence sat inside the DCYF facility while deadlines passed.

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State officials contend that DCYF was going to cooperate with JNET and turn over the contraband, but that the warrant arrived before they could complete the task. The agency is vowing to be more accountable.

"Reforms to the way we manage our facilities are necessary," a DCYF spokesperson told FOX 13. "We are heavily emphasizing prevention, detection, intervention, and treatment with youth and staff. We continue to increase screening and search procedures, including recommendations from Chehalis PD."

Governor Inslee, who had declined a JNET request to direct the attorney general’s office to open an investigation into Green Hill, has stated that Chehalis Police are helping Green Hill strengthen protocols – he has also said that the decision by JNET to serve a search warrant on the facility was a misunderstanding.

"There is no misunderstanding, and that’s the troubling point," said Stacy Denham, who leads the JNET task force. "I think if there’s a misunderstanding, Governor Inslee has the misunderstanding along with the Attorney General’s Office that this has been corrected. Every Washingtonian should be up in arms about what’s going on here."

He's calling for a top-to-bottom investigation of the juvenile detention centers.

"Governor Inslee needs to step up and do the right thing and start investigating what they have in the protocols for Green Hill and all of DCYF," Denham says. "It’s impacting everybody from every community, anybody, coming in and out of these facilities or in this case: Green Hill."