(Richmond, IN)--After five years of sanctions from the state’s Department of Child Services, Wernle Youth and Family Treatment Center announced over the weekend that it will cease to have residential placements next month.  In the statement, Wernle blames the post-pandemic labor market for an inability to maintain required ratios between staff and residents.  In reality, though, Wernle’s issues began before Covid.  The state had requested a corrective plan of action based on numerous fights, calls for police service, and runaways in the fall of 2019.  The following spring, DCS cited what it called "a serious lack of administrative intervention” and a “failure to comply” when it restricted the number of youth referrals.  Wernle was again placed on probation this past November as the number of juvenile residents continued to decline.  That number was down to either one or two Monday morning.  Wernle’s weekend statement said that it will continue to provide outpatient service while evaluating its workforce and determining how many employees it can retain.