Utah Teen dies in Colorado Wildernes Therepy Program

[TheWho]

Deborah wrote:

Oh... I don't know. Maybe it's our bias showing again. Or, the 'fact' that 44 kids would still be alive, if not for their wilderness death therapy. 60 if you add the boot camps deaths. How many were convicted? Five, six?
I hope Caleb's mother stumbles across Fornits or any of the other sites and realizes that this is not an 'isolated', 'freak' incident. Medical neglect is second only to restraint for cause of death.

How many were guilty…5 or 6 ? out of thousands… So five or 6 kids died..that is 5 or 6 too many, I agree…but how many have they saved?  Thousands that we know of…so instead of a thousands being dead we have 44.  Not all the kids can be reached.  We are now talking about a specific case and I am saying we should wait for the results of the investigation before you post these kids (counselors) names and pictures all over the internet for their family and loved ones to see…it is only fair.  You don’t know what happened or how they tried to save him or the training they received..let’s let the authorities do their jobs and not try to ruin anyone’s lives or careers because of uncontrolled hatred towards all the people trying to help these kids.
Deborah, just for the sake of their family and kids, try to give them the benefit of the doubt.  If it turns out one of the counselors caused the kids death then you can ridicule them and post their pictures, call them killers for their families and kids to see, the counselors children will have to endure ridicule from their class mates knowing the kids father was posted all over the internet and you will feel good about yourself that justice was done and you got revenge by destroying a family and causing them to move.  

But you should at least wait until the facts are in….

[Oz girl]

How is posting something that was already in the press naming any specific staff. Where are the pictures you refer to Deborah posting?

[Deborah]

Another Child Dead: When Will We Wake Up to Tough Love's Toll?
(4 comments )
READ MORE: Colorado, Utah, Martin Lee
by Maia Szalavitz

Although it hasn't yet received much coverage, yet another teenager has died under suspicious circumstances in a "wilderness program" -- this time, a 15-year-old boy who was mandated to a troubled teen program in Colorado by the state of Utah.

Caleb Jensen joins Martin Lee Anderson, Aaron Bacon, Michelle Sutton, Katie Lank, Erica Harvey, Michael Wiltsie (whose mother later killed herself and her other child), Kristen Chase, Tony Haynes, Ian August, Chase Moody, Ryan Lewis, Nick Contreras and dozens of others [warning: music plays, slow to load] who died needlessly because enforcing "tough love" was considered more important than preserving children's lives and health.

As a neuroscience journalist, I spend a lot of my time reading medical literature and marveling at what we now know about the human brain and how to help people when things go awry. Then, I look at what's actually available to people who seek or are forced into mental health and addiction treatment -- and I want to cry.

There are effective treatments for teen mental health and behavioral problems -- but they don't involve sending children away from their families to be beaten into shape by drill sergeants or exhausted into submission by forced hikes. We do know how to dramatically reduce teen misbehavior -- but it doesn't involve seeing teenagers as lying "manipulators" and ignoring their health complaints as evidence of malingering.

Virtually every death that has occurred in tough teen programs happened for essentially the same reason: the program believed that pain was "good" for kids and saw any complaints as sneaky attempts to avoid this necessary suffering. When such belief is combined with lack of oversight in remote facilities with under-trained staff, the only reason deaths are not more common is that teenagers are generally extremely healthy.

This latest death has followed the pattern I've seen in every prior case that I've covered. First, the program claims that the death is due to natural causes and was "a tragic accident." At the same time, state officials back the program and claim that it is excellent. Then, the truth begins to come out about how medical complaints were ignored and how other teens were maltreated. Only at this point are remaining youth (who have already had the trauma of seeing a peer die, aside from whatever abuse the program dishes out) removed.

If the past is any prologue, soon a history of poorly-trained staff, failures of compassion and lack of oversight will be revealed. Some parents and staff will staunchly defend the program as having been "life-saving" and will denounce those who try to improve conditions as getting in the way of a desperately-needed and healing organization.

It's a shame that the wilderness is being used as a way to abuse kids, as a way to impose harsh punishment in the name of "natural consequences." It's a shame that our mental health system -- and our courts -- don't require that treatment is proven to be safe and effective before it can be forced on people, especially children.

And it's a shame, but kids will continue to die and juvenile recidivism will remain high until we actually regulate, monitor and oversee these programs, ensuring that the treatments which are known to be safe and effective are delivered and punitive tactics known to fail are avoided.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/maia-szal ... 48540.html

[hanzomon4]

Have you read the news stories posted, they let that kid die. This is always the case with wilderness deaths. If they feel guilty good, they are. I've read (forgot were) that a death in an institution that looks after people is always due to a serious failure in the institution. Be it a restraint death, suicide, medical neglect, or an "accident" the training or mentality of the staff is highly suspect. In wilderness deaths you will probably find that staff thought that the kid was faking being sick. If programs gave a damn about the kids I wouldn't be reading about the same death year after year.

[Deborah]

Deborah wrote:

Oh... I don't know. Maybe it's our bias showing again. Or, the 'fact' that 44 kids would still be alive, if not for their wilderness death therapy. 60 if you add the boot camps deaths. How many were convicted? Five, six?
I hope Caleb's mother stumbles across Fornits or any of the other sites and realizes that this is not an 'isolated', 'freak' incident. Medical neglect is second only to restraint for cause of death.

How many were guilty…5 or 6 ? out of thousands… So five or 6 kids died..that is 5 or 6 too many, I agree…but how many have they saved?  Thousands that we know of…so instead of a thousands being dead we have 44.  Not all the kids can be reached.  We are now talking about a specific case and I am saying we should wait for the results of the investigation before you post these kids (counselors) names and pictures all over the internet for their family and loved ones to see…it is only fair.  You don’t know what happened or how they tried to save him or the training they received..let’s let the authorities do their jobs and not try to ruin anyone’s lives or careers because of uncontrolled hatred towards all the people trying to help these kids.
Deborah, just for the sake of their family and kids, try to give them the benefit of the doubt.  If it turns out one of the counselors caused the kids death then you can ridicule them and post their pictures, call them killers for their families and kids to see, the counselors children will have to endure ridicule from their class mates knowing the kids father was posted all over the internet and you will feel good about yourself that justice was done and you got revenge by destroying a family and causing them to move.  

But you should at least wait until the facts are in….

What, not proud of that position, Who?
Window of loss. Ah, yes.
Ethical, evidence-based "Therapy" doesn't subject kids to the risk of death.

Let's see, Who. Would you rather be publicly humiliated and endure the inconvenience of having to relocate, or grieve a dead child?
You sit on your side and have sympathy for the counselors and their families.
I'll sit on this side and have sympathy for the victims and their families.
Sounds like a balance to me.

Not all the kids can be reached?
Not all the kids can be reached?
Nothing to do with denying a kid oxygen to breath or water to drink or denying medical attention or allowing kids to hike in undesignated areas or force marching them in 100* temps or setting up their tent under snow-laden branches that snap and crush their skull.

[Deborah]

Caleb Jensen    
Caleb Christopher Jensen "You're my Superstar" Caleb passed away May 2, 2007 near Grand Junction, CO at the age of 15. He was born September 11, 1991 to Dawn and Joel Jensen. Caleb loved to write poetry and draw, but his all-time favorite was word-art. He was very creative and talented with words. Caleb is survived by his mother, Dawn Boyd; father, Joel Jensen; brother, Brian; sisters, Heather and Marie; grandparents, Ralph Burgess, Ella and Jerry Reese; aunts, Tabathea Lopez, Roberta Thompson, Angela Hampton, Jill Teresa, Nichole Jensen; uncle, Michael Holfeltz; great-grandpa, Ellwood Meckley; great-uncles, Jay, Cameron, and J.R. Meckley; great-aunts, Carol Galentine, Julia Dominguez; and many extended family. Funeral services will be held Wed-nesday, May 9th, 11 a.m. at Redwood Memorial Mortuary, 6500 S. Redwood Road, with a viewing one hour prior to services. A trust fund has been set up for the family at any Credit Union One in Caleb's name.
Published in the Salt Lake Tribune on 5/7/2007.  
http://www.legacy.com/saltlaketribune/O ... D=87834162

[Deborah]

Mother: My son fought to live
Last letter home before death at remote camp reveals 15-year-old's pain, hope
By Nancy Lofholm Denver Post Staff Writer
Article Last Updated: 05/16/2007 12:11:25 AM MDT

"I want my mommy." Dawn Boyd said her son Caleb Jensen's letters said he was feeling better about his life but badly wanted to come home. (Special to The Post)In a last letter to his family from a wilderness camp for troubled youths, Caleb Jensen wrote about the difficulties of surviving in the wild and added a postscript: "I want my mommy."

Caleb's mother, Dawn Boyd of Salt Lake City, received the letter from her youngest child during the week before he died of an untreated staph infection. He was participating in a court-ordered wilderness therapy program through Alternative Youth Adventures near Montrose.

The program's license to operate was suspended after the 15-year-old died May 2.

Boyd said she believes camp staff ignored her son's assertions that he was sick and needed to go home. She also believes the Utah Division of Juvenile Justice Services, which placed her son in the rough and remote program, failed to take into account his frequent problems with staph infections.

"He should have been cared for. He should be alive today," a sobbing Boyd said during a telephone conversation from her home. "I know my baby told them. He always knew when he had a staph infection."

Boyd said her son's letters from camp recently said he was feeling better about his life but badly wanted to come home, "so he could get in his SpongeBob pajama pants and his big slippers and curl up with me and his sisters to watch TV."

Caleb described a different life in camp. He wrote he had to climb mountains every day until he was exhausted. He was able to wash only twice a week using tiny amounts of water. He had to clean his dishes after meals by licking them and then using dirt to scour them.
Therapy or deprivation?

"That's not how he should have been treated - like a dog or a lizard," said his grandmother, Ella Reese of Troy, Idaho.

Caleb expressed some optimism along with the complaints. "Mom, I think I'm going to make it this time," he wrote in a letter.

Caleb died of a methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus infection. The bacterial infection traditionally is seen in hospitalized or very ill or elderly patients.

Caleb's mother said he had been treated for numerous staph infections since he was a toddler and suffered a related skin problem called impetigo. He was treated for three infections while he was in other juvenile justice programs in Utah before being sent to the camp, she said.

"When I saw my son in the casket and looked at his little face, there was a sore on each side of his mouth under the makeup. ... I knew," she said.

Actions at camp defended

Carol Sisco, a spokeswoman for the Utah Department of Human Services that oversees the juvenile justice programs, said Caleb passed a physical before he was sent to the camp March 28. She said he had a physical in the field the week before he died and a session with a therapist the day before his death. No one reported that he was ill. His mother said he did not report being ill in his last letter.
Because he wasn't allowed to write that he was sick?

Caleb's family has been unable to get much information about his death. Reese said they pieced together information that shows Caleb was sitting on his sleeping bag in the camp during a rest day on the day he died. Caleb, who had been exhibiting behavioral problems for several days before his death, told a counselor he didn't feel well and needed to go home. After the counselor moved on, Caleb slumped over. Less than 10 minutes later when a counselor checked on him, he was dead, Reese said.

Bill Palatucci, a spokesman for Community Education Centers Inc., the Roseland, N.J.-based company that created the youth camp, said complaints from troubled youths are common. "They hear a lot that youths want to go home. The staff is taught to sort through those and determine the genuine issues and the non," Palatucci said.
They're faking.

Palatucci would not reveal the amount of medical training the four camp counselors have. He said their training meets state licensing requirements.
First Aid?

Community Education Center is contesting the Colorado Department of Human Services suspension of its license to operate the camp. A hearing is expected to be scheduled within the next month. The other 26 participants in the camp have been moved to youth-detention facilities in Utah and Colorado.

Mother gets few answers

Boyd said she is working with an attorney to try to find out more about the death of a son who had been in and out of state custody "for anger issues" since she and her children moved to Salt Lake City in 2004.

She said a representative of Alternative Youth Adventures phoned her to say her son was dead more than five hours after his body was airlifted out of the remote camp. She received few details and no offers of help. A week later she received a two-paragraph letter of condolence.

It ended: "The memory of Caleb will inspire us to continue our good work on behalf of all the juveniles in our care." :rofl:

Utah human services authorities gave Boyd $1,500 to help with transporting Caleb's body to Utah and with the cost of the funeral. She has not received her son's belongings.

Sisco, of Utah's Human Services agency, said officials there can't help Boyd without more facts. "The hard part is that we don't know all the answers yet. We don't know yet if there was staff negligence or if this was something that couldn't be caught," she said.

Staff writer Nancy Lofholm can be reached at 970-256-1957 or http://www.denverpost.com:80/avalanche/ci_5904191

[Anonymous]

How many were guilty…5 or 6 ? out of thousands… So five or 6 kids died..that is 5 or 6 too many, I agree…but how many have they saved?  Thousands that we know of…so instead of a thousands being dead we have 44.  Not all the kids can be reached.

Is that you Steve? Steve Cartesano? I remember reading an interview you did once about the deaths at Challenger, and you said something like hey, so we lose a few kids once in awhile, but look at all the kids we're saving. It's a small price to pay.

Except that no kid has ever been saved by a wilderness program. Oops. But hey, there's lots of money to be made, so it's all good.

[nimdA]

Bump..

This thread is worthy of more attention.

Any Updates?

Remember Fuckers.. School is out soon.. These wilderness shit pits will be filling up to the brim.

How many will die?

[Anonymous]

Deborah wrote:

Oh... I don't know. Maybe it's our bias showing again. Or, the 'fact' that 44 kids would still be alive, if not for their wilderness death therapy. 60 if you add the boot camps deaths. How many were convicted? Five, six?
I hope Caleb's mother stumbles across Fornits or any of the other sites and realizes that this is not an 'isolated', 'freak' incident. Medical neglect is second only to restraint for cause of death.

How many were guilty…5 or 6 ? out of thousands… So five or 6 kids died..that is 5 or 6 too many, I agree…but how many have they saved?  Thousands that we know of…so instead of a thousands being dead we have 44.  Not all the kids can be reached.  We are now talking about a specific case and I am saying we should wait for the results of the investigation before you post these kids (counselors) names and pictures all over the internet for their family and loved ones to see…it is only fair.  You don’t know what happened or how they tried to save him or the training they received..let’s let the authorities do their jobs and not try to ruin anyone’s lives or careers because of uncontrolled hatred towards all the people trying to help these kids.
Deborah, just for the sake of their family and kids, try to give them the benefit of the doubt.  If it turns out one of the counselors caused the kids death then you can ridicule them and post their pictures, call them killers for their families and kids to see, the counselors children will have to endure ridicule from their class mates knowing the kids father was posted all over the internet and you will feel good about yourself that justice was done and you got revenge by destroying a family and causing them to move.  

But you should at least wait until the facts are in….

 ::blah::  :skull:

This is classic.  

There are so many things to discuss about this post.

*This is an expensive "therapy" facility.  The untrained, undereducated councelors purposefully denied medical attention.  Even though this is what they are required to do as part of this behavior modification program.  Everyone has a filter to determine what is appropriate.  

*This is not an "accident" this is a mindset.  Many children have died and been abused by the staff denying medical care.  Part of the program is inflicting pain upon the student.  The theory.. "window of loss" is real as stated in the post.  The people administering this type of behavior modification program in the industry feel these children are disposable.  If they lose a few... they are saving many.  

*The programs are able to get away with this type of abuse because some states do not agree on what is considered child abuse.  Locking a child in a box, denying food or medical care is NOT considered abuse in many states.  I spoke to someone at the licensing division and he stated to me that the abuse has to happen first.  The problem is .. the children are isolated, there is no contact with the parent, its happening out in the middle of no where.  If abuse happends.. its between the teenager and the councelor.  Who do they believe "the program".  

*I can predict what will happen with this program.  They will shut it down and they will farm out the people who currently work in the program to different programs or open a new one.  The councelors will not be held accountable for their personal actions of denying medical care.. as they were told this child is a manipulator and they just assumed he was faking...   and the owners are far removed from the kids.. they are too busy marketing to parents.. they would have nothing to do with this "accident".  They will probably not be charged with any wrong doing.  Not only will these souless people be allowed to continue with their lives they will go back to working in the industry.. smuggly.. thinking ... this child would have died anyway he was "troubled" kid.  

*Follow the money trail .. parents.... judges.  You will find these programs are not for saving youth.  Its a money making machine with a cult like following.  The dangerous mindset of behavior modification is administered by staff that does not have any creditials.  They are usually very young people in their early 20's.  They do not have any formal training or creditials.  All of the people sourrounding the death of this young boy have been criminally reckless.   It does not take a rocket scientist to determine an oozing infected sore and a child who is in severe pain needs medical attention.  These children do not learn to survive in the wilderness .. they are MADE to survive.

[Ursus]

I can predict what will happen with this program. They will shut it down and they will farm out the people who currently work in the program to different programs or open a new one. The councelors will not be held accountable for their personal actions of denying medical care.. as they were told this child is a manipulator and they just assumed he was faking... and the owners are far removed from the kids.. they are too busy marketing to parents.. they would have nothing to do with this "accident". They will probably not be charged with any wrong doing. Not only will these souless people be allowed to continue with their lives they will go back to working in the industry.. smuggly.. thinking ... this child would have died anyway he was "troubled" kid.

"The essence of obedience is that a person comes to view himself as the instrument for carrying out another person's wishes, and he therefore no longer regards himself as responsible for his actions. Once this critical shift of viewpoint has occurred, all of the essential features of obedience follow. The most far-reaching consequence is that the person feels responsible to the authority directing him but feels no responsibility for the content of the actions that the authority prescribes. Morality does not disappear -- it acquires a radically different focus: the subordinate person feels shame or pride depending on how adequately he has performed the actions called for by authority.

Language provides numerous terms to pinpoint this type of morality: loyalty, duty, discipline are all terms heavily saturated with moral meaning and refer to the degree to which a person fulfills his obligations to authority. They refer not to the "goodness" of the person per se but to the adequacy with which a subordinate fulfills his socially defined role. The most frequent defense of the individual who has performed a heinous act under command of authority is that he has simply done his duty. In asserting this defense, the individual is not introducing an alibi concocted for the moment but is reporting honestly on the psychological attitude induced by submission to authority."

from The Perils of Obedience by Stanley Milgram
http://wwf.fornits.com/viewtopic.php?t=21675

[nimdA]

You know sad fact is RW probably isn't to wrong. Lot of educating needs to be done for state officials. Sounds like a good issue to kick off a summer awareness campaign over.

[Deborah]

Post your thoughts at the Denver Post Forum
http://neighbors.denverpost.com//viewto ... ?t=5904191
A few posts

From Ex Staff

kristin
Joined: 14 May 2007
Posts: 6
Posted: Sat May 19, 2007 8:36 am    Post subject: Not for "anger issues"  

kids don't come to AYA for "anger issues." They come to AYA by court order, meaning there is a crime that occurred, and it is almost always more than once. This sounds like a tragedy. Caleb should not have ever gone to AYA, it is a place where you are outside and you are hiking and living on the bare minimum. It is awesome for the kids. They leave the program changed. They recognize their own power and capabilities, and live a life free from drugs, and usually a horrible family life. It sounds like his mother neglected to tell the courts about his infections. This could have been the action that saved his life. There are many other options for treatment centers. AYA is not the only one. Court systems generally use it when kids are about to be in more serious trouble, like commitment. This generally carries a much longer jail sentence. This sounds like a freak infection and AYA acted appropriately. Let the program have their license back.

It gets worse..... Responding to Izabelle

Obviously you don't know much about back country wilderness programs. Students are in the backcountry for 60 days. They don't ever go inside, and they don't ever have contact with the outside world. This is what gives the program power. Students learn to rely on themselves, they learn about how strong they are. In an environment that is safe from temptation. The clean there cups that way because we have to conserve water. The cups are dipped then cleaned by staff members later in the evening. AYA also deals with the issues of the particular child. Each student has a staff member assigned to them. They work on the particular students problems, which often stem from a poor home life. But also they are drugs, and running away. AYA is a different approach to treatment. An approach that teaches students about their own value. Before you knock the program it is important that you understand what goes on. This is not your typical treatment; it is another attempt to rehabilitate these kids. I did look at your website. However, I think you may have missed the mark with this child. While I recognize the growing issue, and I believe in what you are doing. You need to understand AYA. The no shower deal, they are out in the middle of no where. There are no showers. They do what the state mandates as far as bathing. The kids do get dirty... they are living OUTSIDE!!! I wish you could see the merits of a program like this. But for people who don't camp, or backpack, it would seem gross to only "shower" twice a week. But, it does work. The kids move camp every day, they are hiking through a beautiful area of our state.
Look, all I'm saying is this isn't AYA 100%. There are many places and people that let this child down. And I would appreciate it YOU would quit exploiting this case for your cause... when you don't know if the two are truly related. If you recognize, there have not been any comments from AYA in the newspaper, maybe because they are maintaining the dignity of the child, and looking into the issue before they start splashing personal information on their website. Not everything relates to your cause! I hope when all of the information comes out you take down Caleb from your website. Thanks for listening.

I just saw that you published excerpts of my thoughts on your website. I’m not an employee of AYA anymore. I am now a public school teacher, who spent time working with adjudicated youth. Just for your information.
What about crusading for more money from the government to improve the care of kids in jail? The main fact that I think you are missing is that these programs serve a need in society!!! They are programs that are attempting to rehabilitate kids so that they become high functioning adults, so they don't remain in the system as adults. The adult penal system is far less forgiving and there is almost no way out!
I would like to see more ideas on your website about what we can do to improve care. I'm not sure publishing stories of kids’ death is the best way to change the system. And going after programs that attempt to help kids is not appropriate. The system isn’t perfect, but programs that are trying to help kids aren’t the imperfection.

And Justice Smith chimes in.....

Dear CAICA,
First, I read the story about what led Isabelle to found CAICA. It seems natural to be shocked and appalled after a hearing story like this. However, let us not forget that children who are sent to behavior modification programs usually need some behavior modification. Kids I have known personally are often times manipulative and unable to take responsibility for their actions. It is possible that the boy who inspired your cause was exaggerating. I do admit that abuse occurs in institutions, but most of the argument you make against AYA is full of holes. For instance, there is reference made to children who refer to their mothers as "mommy" as being broken. Perhaps, but these kids are emotionally immature all around: teenagers who like to be read to and sung to as they drift off to sleep, children who were robbed of their childhoods. Using the term, "mommy" may indicate a "broken" child, but that child was most likely "broken" prior to arriving at AYA and by NO means indicates abuse or negligence on the part of AYA or its staff. Furthermore, most of your argument hinges upon sound bites created by the local media rather than cold-hard fact. Because you don’t know any. Because very little has been released. So far, the coroner has ruled the death “natural causes”, a DHS representative has been quoted as saying there was a staph infection, and The Denver Post reports that Caleb died of a methicillin-resistant strain of staph. A representative from DHS is not a medical official who is at liberty to rule cause of death and if staph did end Caleb’s life and it was an antibiotic resistant strain, it sounds like there may be more to the story than meets the eye. In my opinion, you are jumping to conclusions and are infringing on libel. Lastly, I feel that it is completely inappropriate to minimize Caleb’s theft charges, blaming them on being persuaded by friends. Behavior modification programs work long and hard trying to teach students to take responsibility for their actions and to realize that they are the only ones who can make change in their own lives.

[Anonymous]

Isabelle Zehnder promotes PURE who places kids in unregulated programs that have an agreement to pay PURE a fee for referrals that result in a placement.

That is a conflict of interest that should not be ignored nor minimized by persons who claim to be concerned about the safety and well-being of children.

 :flame:

[Anonymous]

Kids don't deserve no goddamn rights, cuz they ain't no better than a bunch of fuckin NIGGERS! If mine ever try to "assert their rights" I'm gonna drag 'em out to the woodshed and tear up their uppity little asses!