The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors will consider a motion Tuesday directing the Probation Department to expand contact visits at juvenile facilities and eliminate a requirement for prior approval by the chief probation officer.
The motion by Supervisors Janice Hahn and Holly Mitchell seeks to implement Assembly Bill 1646, known as the Hug Act, which Gov. Gavin Newsom signed Sept. 27 and takes effect Jan. 1, 2027.
The law makes appropriate physical contact during in-person visits a legal right for incarcerated youth across California, according to the motion.
“We have a long way to go to fix our juvenile system, but establishing the right of these young people to hug their loved ones is one small way we can bring some humanity back in,” Hahn said when she announced the proposal last week. “Safety has to be our priority, but there should be room for kids to be able to hug their moms.”
Probation officials reported in March that they were working to allow contact visits with prior approval from the chief probation officer on designated, pre-scheduled days. The motion says youth at county facilities still do not have regular access to contact visits.
The proposal would direct the chief probation officer to revise the department’s visitation policy so contact visits no longer require prior approval and the new policy is ready for implementation by Jan. 1.
It would also require the department to create and distribute materials informing parents and youth of their right to physical contact and stating that contact cannot be restricted as a disciplinary consequence.
The department would be directed to progressively increase in-person contact visits at all county juvenile facilities for the rest of the year and submit a written compliance plan to the board within 60 days.
The plan would have to include procedures for youth who do not want to participate in a contact visit, assurance that declining a visit will not affect future visits and standards for any temporary restrictions based on specific and significant safety or security concerns.
The motion also calls for two written reports, prepared in consultation with the Probation Oversight Commission, on the status and effects of contact visits. The first would be due July 1, 2027, and the second Jan. 1, 2028.
The reports would include visitation participation at each facility, feedback from youth and families and the number and basis of any restrictions on contact.
The legislation originated with youth incarcerated at Los Padrinos Juvenile Hall in Downey, who asked to be able to hug their families hello and goodbye during visits, according to the motion. Assemblyman Isaac Bryan, D-Los Angeles, developed the bill with the youth.
The motion says families have given positive feedback about the contact visits already offered on some pre-scheduled days.
“The best thing about the Mother’s Day visit was hugging my son, praying with him, and giving him mama kisses,” one parent said, according to the motion.
“Keep doing it. It helps the kids feel more love,” another parent said.