(a) The Woodside Juvenile Rehabilitation Center in the town of Essex shall be operated by the Department for Children and Families as a residential treatment facility that provides in-patient psychiatric, mental health, and substance abuse services in a secure setting for adolescents who have been adjudicated or charged with a delinquency or criminal act.

(b) The total capacity of the facility shall not exceed 30 beds.

(c) The purpose or capacity of the Woodside Juvenile Rehabilitation Center shall not be altered except by act of the General Assembly following a study recommending any change of use by the Agency of Human Services.

(d) No person who has reached his or her 18th birthday may be placed at Woodside. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, a person under 18 years of age may be placed at Woodside, provided that he or she meets the admissions criteria for treatment as established by the Department for Children and Families. Any person already placed at Woodside may voluntarily continue receiving treatment at Woodside beyond his or her 18th birthday, provided that he or she continues to meet the criteria established by the Department for continued treatment. The Commissioner shall ensure that a child placed at Woodside has the same or equivalent due process rights as a child placed at Woodside in its previous role as a detention facility. (Added 1993, No. 233 (Adj. Sess.), § 77, eff. June 21, 1994; amended 2001, No. 142 (Adj. Sess.), § 118h, eff. June 21, 2002; 2003, No. 145 (Adj. Sess.), § 3; 2011, No. 3, § 97, eff. Feb. 17, 2011; 2017, No. 201 (Adj. Sess.), § 11.)