LA County probation officer charged with bringing drugs into Sylmar juvenile hall
Author: Jason Henry
Summary:
Michael Angelo Solis, a deputy probation officer in Los Angeles County, has been charged with bringing Xanax into Barry J. Nidorf Juvenile Hall and working with a youth to sell it. Surveillance footage and recorded phone calls reportedly captured Solis handing off pills and receiving payments. One youth was found with over 100 Xanax pills.
The drug trafficking allegedly began just days after 18-year-old Bryan Diaz died of a fentanyl overdose at the same facility in May 2023. The incident followed a broader pattern of security failures at LA juvenile halls, including drugs being smuggled in via drones and fake food deliveries.
Despite early suspicions from two other probation officers who tried to raise concerns, Solis remained employed for months while the whistleblowers were placed on leave. He was only arrested in June 2025 after an internal affairs investigation.
The arrest comes amid growing scrutiny of LA’s juvenile detention system. Officials recently approved a $2.7 million settlement in a separate case where staff failed to intervene in a violent assault. County supervisors are now demanding stricter oversight of facility surveillance footage.
Solis faces up to three years in prison if convicted. The investigation remains ongoing.