CHEHALIS, Wash. — A search warrant was served at a juvenile rehabilitation and education center in Chehalis last week as part of an investigation into drug distribution at the facility.
The investigation began in 2022 when a teenage student at Green Hill School overdosed on fentanyl. He was found unresponsive in his cell and taken to a nearby hospital. According to the Joint Narcotics Enforcement Team (JNET), he survived the overdose and continued his recovery at home.
Green Hill School in Chehalis is a medium to maximum security detention facility that provides older teens sentenced to juvenile rehabilitation treatment with education and vocational training.
According to JNET, over 1,000 fentanyl pills going into the facility were intercepted by officers and four people were charged with drug crimes as part of the 2022 investigation.
“Where's the breakdown? Why aren't things being corrected? And why aren’t they being looked at?" said Chief Stacy Denham of the Centralia Police Department.
JNET is a task force that includes members of the Centralia Police Department, Chehalis Police Department, the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Washington State Department of Corrections.
JNET then initiated a new investigation in 2023 after receiving more reports of drugs in the facility. They also sent a letter to Gov. Jay Inslee in June to request a separate investigation into the facility's operating procedures by the Washington State Attorney General's Office.
The letter comes after police discovered that on Jan. 16, 2022, a student inmate texted a security staff member about getting him a gun and about the purchase of MDMA, or ecstasy, according to Denham.
Denham's letter to the state reads, “The relationship between these student inmates and a security staff member to develop to the point of purchasing illegal drugs and providing a firearm are concerning."
Denham told KING 5, "As far as I'm concerned, that is completely unacceptable. And we need to do a better job. The state of Washington needs to do a better job."
Then in June of 2022, Denham said a female staff member of Green Hill with a violent record, who was hired by Green Hill after they got out of prison, committed a drive-by shooting, according to police. But concerningly, Denham said it was with a young man who had just been released from Green Hill from the same unit she worked in. The chief told the governor’s office, “Our investigators suspect there was an intimate relationship” between them.
The request was declined in August citing recent changes to security practices, new employee training and an enhanced supervisor academy "with a focus on counseling and coaching skills."
"All we're asking is to look at those, investigate those and change those tactics, change what they're doing now, because they're obviously not working. And what we got back was a little disappointing," said Denham.
KING 5 attempted to reach the governor’s office for comment on Thursday but they responded saying they will be able to speak about the matter on Friday.
Meanwhile, the DCYF declined to respond to KING 5's request for comment Thursday.
On Aug. 17, detectives visited the facility after continued reports of drug distribution involving residents and staff. Detectives were told by staff they seized multiple fentanyl pills from residents and would quickly get them to law enforcement for testing, but detectives did not hear from them after that.
JNET announced Thursday that when they served the warrant on Aug. 31 to collect evidence for the investigation into drug distribution, they found lockers filled with contraband that staff took from residents dating back to 2017. Inside the lockers were drugs, knives, cell phones and handwritten letters detailing illegal drug transactions.
Back in March of 2021, a former guard was indicted on extortion, drug distribution and possession charges. Court records show he accepted $11,170 in payments to smuggle drugs, cell phones and other contraband to young offenders.
The investigation into drug possession and distribution at Green Hill School is ongoing. Police ask anyone with information related to the investigation to contact JNET Detective Sergeant Tracy Murphy at (360) 330-7614.