TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) Sedgwick County officials say they will close a ranch for troubled boys if the state does not provide more financial help.
County officials told south-central lawmakers on Thursday that the county can’t afford to keep the Judge James V. Riddel Boys Ranch at Lake Afton open past next year. The home offers rehabilitation programs for boys considered at high or moderate risk of reoffending.
The Wichita Eagle reports the state pays $126 a day for each boy at the ranch. County officials say the actual cost is $201 per boy.
The county says the ranch’s graduates have a low rate of recidivism because of programs offered there. They contend it would cost the state more in the long run to house juveniles at facilities more geared toward incarceration.
