Another buried study at OJJDP: First, suicide study, now DMC.

Page 46 of the Oversight and Reform Committee hearing with Flores last year:

Rep.Diane Watson:

I am concerned that you say very little about
integrating minorities, disproportionate minority contact and
improving juvenile detention and the correction centers. Too
many of our youth, African American youth and Hispanic youth
in our city end up in lockups.

I want you to explain to me why you haven't set as a
priority and you have--well, I say you didn't share that with
your staff. You just came up with this set, as I understand.
So how do you explain veering off and putting your own targets in place rather than the criteria of DOJ?

Mr. FLORES. Ma'am, Congresswoman, I would first say a
couple things. Gangs are an incredibly high priority for the
Department and for my office. In Los Angeles, we have had a
long-term relationship with the mayor's office since my
tenure to really focus on gangs. In fact, it has been so
successful it was the model that was recommended by Connie
Rice for the mayor's office to adopt. The last that I know
is that the mayor's office is in the process of funding, to
the tune of $150 million, more or less, the in essence
replication- -

Rep. Diane WATSON. Can I just interrupt you? I am looking at
the list, and I am sure you have that list, and it says
disproportionate minority contact and improved juvenile
detention and correction centers. I made reference to it
when I opened. I don't see it on your list of priorities. I
don't know what you put in place. You said you worked with
the mayor. Is that the mayor of Los Angeles?

Mr. FLORES. Yes, ma'am.

Rep. Diane WATSON. Okay. Well, I don't see it reflected in
your priorities. I am looking at, on the other side of this
paper, your priorities. I think you have the same list that
I have. So can you explain why there is not an emphasis, or
are you referring to something that was already there? These
are different priorities.

It is my only hope that the AG Eric Holder investigates further into former OJJDP Administrator J. Robert Flores into what other studies that Flores buried or covered up that prevented rehabilitation for juveniles in his six years of tenure.

Youth Today exposed last week news of OJJDP's buried suicide study during the Flores years. Now, under Flores' leadership, a report on Disproportionate Minority Contact was buried. By the way, Disproportionate Minority Contact (DMC) refers to the disproportionate number of minority youth who come into contact with the juvenile justice system.

Youth Today:

OJJDP contracted for Center for Children's Law and Policy (CCLP) Executive Director Mark Soler and his DMC policy director Lisa Garry to write a report on Disproportionate Minority Contact, which was supposed to be part of the most recent DMC Technical Assistance Manual, published in 2006. While the report was mostly instructive rather than revelatory - it focused on how to start DMC work in local communities and how to help move public opinion toward progressive DMC positions - sources tell us it included a section on addressing DMC issues with public officials.

When it was not included in the manual, sources say, the authors were told by OJJDP that it would become its own separate bulletin or report.

OJJDP doesn't provide an explanation on why this report was buried.

Click here to read on the Juvenile Justice scandal on Justice League blog.