Scott looks to lawmakers for Woodside solution

Gov. Phil Scott is responding to a federal lawsuit against Vermont's only juvenile rehabilitation center.

Disability Rights Vermont is suing Woodside Juvenile Rehabilitation Center. It says conditions for kids there are "physically and emotionally harmful." It accuses the center of holding kids in dangerous restraints and long-term isolation without enough mental and physical health treatment. The lawsuit asks the center to make new policies to end these practices.

The governor says he hopes the legal battle leads to improvement.

"I brought the group to my office, probably over the past couple months, trying to figure out what do we want Woodside to look like? What do we need and how do we get there? So, I believe that we have a good group working on that. We're working with the Legislature, as well, to determine how to provide the services we need for Vermont and doing it in a way that fits Vermont's size and our pocketbooks as well," said Scott, R-Vermont.

Scott says he expects this issue to be resolved during the next legislative session.