One day in 1992, under the relentless Nevada desert sun, Paul Choy was being hassled, harassed and taunted in order, purportedly, to build his character and straighten him out. Finally, in reckless desperation, he tried to defend himself. That was just the signal his tormentors, called "coaches," needed to put their "restraint techniques" to the test. They were ready, waiting and thorough.
... After all, you can't allow dangerous, uncontrollable young delinquents to be mouthing off and threatening people, can you? When they say they can't take it anymore--they all say that--they're faking it. They're mostly a pack of liars and manipulators who never had any discipline. And, if you know your business, you don't relax your hold until they calm down and start cooperating. They aren't in boot camp to be mollycoddled, ya know, but to learn discipline, right?...
That was the scene, more or less, at a place prophetically called Rite of Passage. The last I heard, Paul Choy had indeed become very cooperative and was celebrating his 16th birthday in a hospital bed, brain dead and on life support. His was the first such case to come to my attention.
I've lost count of the number of children killed by asphyxiation in custodial settings. Yes, I said "asphyxiation." I know the preferred euphemism here is "restraint." But out of respect for the victims and respect for the English language, I'll stick with the other word.
After the event, there was the predictable mad scramble to rationalize it. This explanation emerged: Paul was too frail a boy for that particular camp. He didn't have the "athletic ability." He should have been sent somewhere more suitable. His "accident" was the result of an unfortunate, but innocent, bureaucratic oversight. The authorities miscalculated when they sent a puny, little Asian kid to a camp designed for tough young thugs who are inured to being knocked around--ones who would benefit from being marched and exercised to exhaustion and could safely bounce back from almost any amount of mistreatment. The camp staff were only doing their job. The camp management was only following time-tested procedures. One boot camp apologist characterized Paul's demise as part of the "the window of loss," as though he were an egg in a large shipment of eggs to market. One must expect some breakage, particularly among the ones with prior defects. It's the price of doing business. Presumably, the "window of loss" is a small window, and the few who fall through it don't detract from the larger picture.
:cry: :cry: :cry: If one is prepared to accept such a rationalization, how then is one to integrate into this already sad picture the possibility that Paul had been raped not long before he was killed? Is sexual assault also covered by the window-of-loss theory? Those attending him in the hospital discovered recent trauma consistent with forced anal penetration. Granted, life at Rite of Passage was not intended to be a bed of roses, but at least it should have been safe in bed, considering that the boys' sleeping quarters were shared by their no-nonsense coaches.
Whenever the subject of youths dying violently in custodial settings breaks in the news, which is becoming more frequent as larger numbers of them are funneled into that industry, there is a call for better training of staff. One rarely hears the recommendation for more stringent vetting of applicants for staff positions. That would be unduly accusatory. The mere suggestion that there are people employed in such places who shouldn't be there, who are unfit to be entrusted with the power of life and death over the powerless, would shift the focus of attention onto politically dangerous territory. It could be the first step toward opening a debate over the very essence of youth boot camps and the like, their stated purpose and purported efficacy. It is far safer to leave an engine that is running -- and running well -- alone. Tinker with peripherals, if you must, such as better training for current staff, but don't challenge the fundamentals. Surely no one can reasonably object to better training. Every sensible employee welcomes additional training to help improve job skills. And just think of the exciting new employment :cry: opportunities for those who will be the trainers. Everybody wins. Hopefully, those who are unsuited to youth work will be weeded out, or will gracefully weed themselves out during the training process. This is wishful thinking. In fact, there is not a shred of evidence to suggest that sadists, bullies, molesters or would-be child-killers are that easily diverted or that they can benefit from in-service training, except, perhaps, to improve their ability to do their dirty work undetected. Also, having been duly trained and certified gives kid keepers an extra measure of deniability in the event of an "accident." And it's an extra measure of cheap good insurance for management. It is interesting to note that developers of so-called restraint procedures prescribe frequent periodic "refresher" courses for staff. Does the science of restraint change that often? Or is this a tacit recognition that its users are itching to restrain somebody, and then are prone to forgetfulness during the thralldom of execution?
Offshore facilities serving the "troubled youth" market typically operate in places where child abuse prevention laws are virtually nonexistent and recruit staff from among the locals. How thoroughly job applicants' qualifications to work in educational/therapeutic settings are assessed is anybody's guess. Employers are the sole arbiters of that standard. "Out of sight, out of mind," seems to be their unspoken motto. The financial balance sheets of these operations would change dramatically were they required to improve their criteria for hiring.
Stateside facilities typically set up in remote, inaccessible places where a laissez faire approach to child abuse prevention prevails and where they can easily isolate inmates from all outside contact, even from contact with their families. Isolation, they say, is essential to the success of the program. That's true, but not in the way they intend. It is hard to imagine a more favorable environment for custodial institutions staffed by people with few, if any, marketable peacetime skills. And one can easily anticipate how the owners would balk at having their operations opened to outside scrutiny or if they were required to meet minimum standards for the respect of their charges' human rights.
The purported benefits to those who pass through the camps remain entirely the stuff of myth and wishful thinking. Some studies have been done, and to date no one has been able to document that boot camp graduates fare better for the experience. As for the self-serving anecdotal "evidence" touted by the industry's enthusiasts and shareholders, it must set every skeptic's bullshit alarm bells ringing. My reading of the evidence suggests that the camps' clientele are nothing more than grist for a very profitable mill. The old-style reform school, but with "training" substituted for flogging, and phony "tough love" jargon substituted for the blunt (but more honest) cruelties of the original model, is enjoying a heady revival these days. It's a seller's market and business is booming. There's just one minor nuisance: the deaths.
IN MEMORIAM
Michelle Sutton, dead at age 15, Summit Quest
Kristen Chase, dead at age 16, Challenger
Paul Choy, dead at age 16, Rite of Passage
Aaron Bacon, dead at age 16, Northstar
Dawnne Takeuchi, dead at age 18, VisionQuest
Lorenzo Johnson, dead at age 17, Arizona Boys Ranch
Carlos Ruiz, dead at age 13, VisionQuest
Mario Cano, dead at age 16, VisionQuest
John Vincent Garrison, dead at age 18, VisionQuest
Bernard Reefer, dead, VisionQuest
Robert Zimmerman, dead, VisionQuest
Charles Lucas, dead, VisionQuest
James Lamb, dead, VisionQuest
Tammy Edmiston, dead, VisionQuest
Leon Anger, dead, VisionQuest
Charles Collins, Jr., dead at age 15, Crossroads for Youth
Jamie Young, dead at age 13, Ramsey Canyon
John Avila, dead, Rocky Mountain Academy
Danny Lewis, dead at age 16, VisionQuest
Nicholas Contreras, dead at age 16, Arizona Boys Ranch
Edith Campos, dead at age 15, Desert Hills
Matt Toppi, dead at age 17, Robert Land Academy
Chirs Brown, dead at age 16, Robert Land Academy
Eric David Schibley, dead at age 17, VisionQuest
Chad Andrew Frenza, dead at age 16, Polk County Boot Camp
Robert Doyle Erwin, dead at age 15, VisionQuest
Lyle Foodroy, dead, VisionQuest
Gina Score, dead at age 14, State Training School (South Dakota)
Bryan Dale Alexander, dead at age 18, Texas Correctional Services
Michael Wiltsie, dead at age 12, Eckert Youth Alternatives
Tristan Sovern, dead at age 16, Charter Behavioral Health System
Robert Rollins, dead at age 12, Devereaux School
Andrew McClain, dead at age 11, Elmcrest Psychiatric Hospital
Anthony Haynes, dead at age 14, American Buffalo Soldiers Boot Camp
Ian August, dead at age 14, Skyline Journey
Charles "Chase" Moody, dead at age 17, The Brown School (CEDU affiliated)
...and counting.
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