Dallas County’s new interim juvenile department chief has begun to right the ship.

For more than a year, the juvenile department has been plagued with allegations of deplorable conditions and mistreatment of children in its youth lockup. It also has been criticized for not properly handling the cases of juvenile offenders, sometimes keeping low-risk children locked up much longer than they should be. Findings of a state investigation into some of the worst allegations are expected soon.

But at a recent meeting of the Dallas County Juvenile Board, interim director Mike Griffiths offered some refreshing good news.

Griffiths, who led the department between 1995 and 2010, said he had begun fixing up the Dr. Jerome McNeil Jr. Detention Center, buying new furniture, cleaning and painting. He also said he planned to bring back in October plans for a thorough, third-party review of the entire juvenile justice system to lay bare where breakdowns are occurring. Such a review is critical to restoring the community’s trust in the department, Griffiths rightly noted.

Now it’s up to the Juvenile Board, with the support of the Dallas County Commissioners Court, to keep this positive momentum going. The board must not only welcome an outside review, as we recommended last month, but also resist the urge to be defensive, as it has in the past. The board also must commit to hiring a permanent director with a strong record of working in a large juvenile justice system and who can tackle the particular problems facing Dallas County.

Those problems are numerous. A March 2023 report by the group Evident Change, sought by Dallas County District Attorney John Creuzot, who was concerned about recidivism, found that juveniles were being held in detention for months longer than national standards recommend. That led him to believe that rather than rehabilitating juveniles, the county’s system was turning them into hardened criminals.

Then, a June 2023 investigation by this newspaper found that some juveniles were locked in their cells for 23 hours a day while others complained of filthy conditions, insufficient food and lack of medical care.

The Texas Juvenile Justice Department has since launched two inquiries into the neglect allegations, including one begun in July 2023 and another following a surprise inspection at the detention facility this summer. The latter led to the sudden resignation of Dallas County Juvenile Department director Darryl Beatty and Griffiths’ appointment.

Since taking over the helm, Griffiths has gotten strong reviews from top county officials. Creuzot, a former district court judge, told us he has known Griffiths for decades and supports his plan for a third-party review.

But while Griffiths is clearly the right person to chart a new course for the juvenile department, at 72 he is understandably eager to get back to retirement in Chicago. The Juvenile Board must humbly accept any criticism coming its way and rely on these lessons to help find an able director. It won’t be smooth sailing, but it must follow this better map.

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Dallas police released dash-camera video Monday of the fatal shooting after the pursuit of the man police say targeted and killed one officer and injured two others on Thursday.

Dallas Police Chief Eddie Garcia said Friday that Corey Cobb-Bey, 30, intentionally set out to shoot police when he killed officer Darron Burks sitting in his patrol car at an Oak Cliff community center between calls. He also wounded two others who arrived at the scene to check on Burks.

The late-night attack set off a highway chase that ended with officers fatally shooting the suspect.

The video released Monday shows the moment Cobb-Bey pulled over on Interstate 35E in Lewisville and got out of his white Buick. The video from the cruiser includes audio — someone on the police radio said, “Felony stop, use caution.”

“Use caution, he’s looking back, he’s still in the car, coming out with a weapon,” the voice can be heard as the suspect is seen walking back toward officers. “Hands are up.”

The angle of the dash cam shows an officer taking a defensive position behind his cruiser’s door.

“Drop the gun,” officers can be heard yelling at Bey multiple times as he walks away and then back toward officers.

Dallas police edited the footage pausing it and zooming in on the weapon.

Cobb-Bey does not appear to aim directly at police but continues walking toward officers.

Dallas police blurred the video at the moment officers opened fire shooting several rounds at Cobb-Bey.

“Roll EMS, roll EMS, we’ve got shots fired,” someone calls out over the police radio as the footage ends.

Six officers fired at Cobb-Bey, who died at the scene after being hit multiple times, police said. No officers were injured.

Police recovered two shotguns at the Lewisville site and two handguns at the Oak Cliff shooting scene. Garcia said Cobb-Bey had legally obtained the guns. One of the shotguns is shown in the video released by Dallas police on Monday.

Deputy Police Chief William Griffith said in the video released Monday by Dallas Police that the investigation shows the attack was “premeditated” after investigators collected evidence on social media.

Griffith said that Cobb-Bey recorded his encounter with Burks on a cell phone. The police department will not be releasing that video.

Senior Corporal Jamie Farmer, who was the first officer to arrive on the scene in Oak Cliff was shot in the leg and was treated and released from the hospital Monday.

Senior Corporal Karissa David was the second officer to respond to the scene of Burks’ shooting, she was shot in the face. Garcia said Friday she was in critical but stable condition.

Public visitation for Burks is planned for Friday from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. and Saturday from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. followed by the funeral service at 11 a.m. Saturday at Watermark Church on LBJ Freeway in Dallas.

Flags around the city have been flying at half-staff in honor of Burks.