Supreme Court dismisses lawsuit challenging Iowa Juvenile Home closure

DES MOINES - The Iowa Supreme Court ruled unanimously Friday to dismiss a lawsuit challenging the 2014 closure of the Iowa Juvenile Home in Toledo by Gov. Terry Branstad and officials of the state Department of Human Services.

The justices overturned a district judge's decision last year in issuing an order for the governor to re-open the juvenile home, which the Branstad administration defunded while citing safety issues, educational deficiencies and other concerns for the children being cared at the Toledo facility.

'We believe this case is likewise moot,” wrote Justice Edward Mansfield in the 21-page decision reversing the lower-court ruling and ordering that the case brought by four Democratic state legislators and the head of the largest state employees' union be dismissed.

'The plaintiffs did not seek any monetary relief, only a declaratory judgment and a court order barring the closure of the IJH. During the 2014 legislative session, the legislature decided to close the IJH,” Mansfield stated in the unanimous opinion. 'Our resolution of the present case will not affect that outcome.”

In bringing the lawsuit, Danny Homan, president of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) Council 61, and two current and two-now former lawmakers raised a legal question of whether Branstad abused his power by side-stepping the Legislature's role in appropriating state funds to the juvenile home.

Attorneys representing the governor and DHS Director Charles Palmer argued the state acted in the best interest of the children in shuttering the facility in January 2014 and the district court decision to grant a temporary injunction prohibiting state officials from closing the Toledo facility should be reversed and vacated.

'The plaintiffs did not seek any monetary relief, only a declaratory judgment and a court order barring the closure of the IJH. During the 2014 legislative session, the legislature decided to close the IJH,” Mansfield stated in the unanimous opinion. 'Our resolution of the present case will not affect that outcome.”

In deciding the case Friday, the Supreme Court justices noted that the Iowa General Assembly 'clearly could have kept this case alive if it had appropriated funds for the continued operation of the IJH during the 2014 legislative session (and if necessary, overridden the governor's veto). Instead, the legislative branch, in effect, acquiesced in the executive branch's action while the case was pending.”

The justices went on to say: 'We recognize the decision to close the IJH was a controversial one, with effects not only on the youth who lived there but also on the individuals in Toledo and surrounding communities who worked there.

'Yet we owe great respect to the two other co-equal branches of government,” according to the Supreme Court decision. 'Part of that respect involves not telling them what they can and cannot do unless the answer is likely to matter in this or a future case. For all the reasons stated, we conclude the temporary injunction should be vacated and the underlying action dismissed as moot.”

Branstad announced Dec. 9, 2013, he would shutter the facility after an investigation led to concerns about the treatment of youths there. The institution closed Jan. 15, 2014.

Because of the legal limbo of the facility, it has not been used since it closed its doors. Maintenance and security is being funded by the state for the 27 acres that make up the juvenile home's buildings and grounds in Toledo.

Branstad spokesman Jimmy Centers issued a statement Friday indicating that the top priority of the governor and his administration has been 'has always been the health, safety and education of the girls formerly served at the Iowa Juvenile Home.

'The facts show delinquent girls and girls classified as Children in Need of Assistance (CINA) are being more effectively and accountably served by the private system now in place. Gov. Branstad is committed to ensuring Iowa responsibly meets the needs of delinquent youth in Iowa in both private and public capacities,” Centers said in his statement.

'We respect the Iowa Supreme Court's decision upholding the actions taken to better serve Iowa's youth,” he added. 'In 2014, Gov. Branstad and the Iowa Legislature, in bipartisan fashion, agreed in moving the system forward by serving troubled youth in licensed and accredited facilities. Today, that action was upheld. Now that the lawsuit is settled, we look forward to working with the Toledo-area community to find a sufficient use for the campus facilities.”

Current legislators who were plaintiffs in the action said Friday the court decision highlights Branstad's 'abuse of power” and failure by legislative Republicans, who hold majority control in the Iowa House, to stand up for Iowa children and their families.

'Time and time again, we've watched this governor overstep his constitutional authority and put Iowa's most vulnerable citizens in peril,” House Democratic leader Mark Smith of Marshalltown said in a statement. 'Closing the Juvenile Home in Toledo was a disservice for troubled girls who need support and critical services. I won't stop fighting to guarantee that girls in Iowa have access to the same treatment options as boys.”

State Sen. Steve Sodders, D-State Center, said majority Democrats in the Iowa Senate last year voted to continue state funding to operate the facility. 'When House Republicans refused to join that effort, they opened the door for Gov. Branstad to illegally stop providing essential services to families in desperate circumstances,” Sodders said in a statement. 'In order to protect the social safety net we all depend on, Iowans need a governor and a House majority that will stand up for Iowa values.”