The director of the Oregon Youth Authority, Joe O’Leary, was fired by Gov. Tina Kotek following reports of a backlog of abuse reports within the agency. O’Leary had been with the agency since 2013 and served as director since 2018, earning an annual salary of $225,342. Jana McLellan will serve as interim director until a replacement is found.
The Oregon Department of Administrative Services is conducting a separate human resources investigation into the youth authority, although details of the inquiry are unclear. O’Leary had expressed concern in January that he may be the focus of the investigation due to allegations that he did not address reported problems with a staff member named Raymond Byrd.
The Oregon Youth Authority oversees approximately 900 youths in the state’s juvenile criminal justice system and manages nine locked facilities, including the MacLaren Youth Correctional Facility in Woodburn. This story is ongoing and will be updated as more information becomes available. Noelle Crombie, an enterprise reporter focusing on criminal justice, can be reached at 503-276-7184 or ncrombie@oregonian.com.
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