Author Topic: Sheriff recommends death be identified a homicide - Sagewalk  (Read 27049 times)

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Joel

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« Reply #75 on: April 01, 2010, 12:47:55 PM »
Edited: Wednesday, October 06, 2010
« Last Edit: October 07, 2010, 08:49:17 AM by Joel »

Offline Froderik

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Re: Sheriff recommends death be identified a homicide - Sagewalk
« Reply #76 on: April 01, 2010, 01:09:12 PM »
It's good to witness more people speaking out about cases of abuse and the overall abusive nature of these places. Of course then you have those who will attempt to hide and argue against the truth...
« Last Edit: December 31, 1969, 07:00:00 PM by Guest »

Offline Ursus

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Troubled Teen's Death: Possible Homicide Charges
« Reply #77 on: April 01, 2010, 02:34:19 PM »
According to this blog entry from earlier today, Sergey was wearing an 80-lb. backpack. Is this a typo? I seem to remember previous accounts putting it at 40-50 lbs. Perhaps it is usually 40-50 lbs., but having to carry the water for everyone made it substantially heavier...

    At 10:30 AM, in 80-degree temperatures, a group of staff and students began hiking in a wilderness area managed by the Bureau of Land Management. As the newest student in the group, Sergey took the lead and was required to carry an 80-pound backpack that included water for the entire group. An hour into the hike, Sergey began acting strangely. At first he began staggering, then he drifted off course and eventually started falling down. It didn't occur to any of the staff members that this could be a telltale sign of a health emergency. Instead, the counselors assumed that Sergey was being disobedient and scolded him for his behavior. By 12:30 PM, Sergey appeared confused, started spitting and eventually reached the point of "shutdown." The staff monitored Sergey's fluctuating vital signs, but failed to call medical staff. Sergey vomited twice -- once with signs of blood. One staff member told investigators that he "wasn't overly concerned, because students in the program were always vomiting, though [he] didn't know why."[/list]

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    mom logic
    Troubled Teen's Death: Possible Homicide Charges
    Thursday, April 1, 2010
    filed under: gina kaysen fernandes


    The Aspen Education Group has come under fire for the deaths of two teens at its treatment camps -- and momlogic is on the scene.

    Gina Kaysen Fernandes: momlogic's investigative reporting on the troubled-teen industry helped jumpstart a homicide investigation involving one of the nation's largest treatment providers for kids in crisis. The Lake County Sheriff's department has recommended that the District Attorney file manslaughter charges against an Oregon wilderness camp and its parent company, Aspen Education Group.

    The pending charges stem from the death of 16-year-old Sergey Blashchishen, who collapsed and died during his first day at SageWalk Wilderness Camp. Investigators say that the circumstances surrounding Sergey's death are strikingly similar to what happened to Matthew Meyer, who died at an Aspen Education-owned camp in Texas. momlogic covered Matthew's story last year, revealing how inadequately trained and ill-equipped counselors failed to recognize the teen's dire condition until it was too late.



    The lead investigator -- who combed through evidence surrounding Sergey's death -- believes that momlogic's story helped connect the dots. "Matthew's case plays a very significant role in this investigation," says Sheriff's Deputy Chuck Pore. "The article initiated a process of researching what happened to Sergey."

    The Sheriff's Department's investigation has revealed that while hiking in extreme heat, both Matthew and Sergey complained of exhaustion and feeling dizzy. Despite evidence of overheating, the boys' conditions were dismissed and brushed off by staff members. When each child passed out from heat exhaustion, the staff was slow to contact emergency medical personnel. Both teens died of a severe form of heatstroke known as "hyperthermia."

    During the summer of 2009, Sergey had lost his way after dropping out of high school, experimenting with drugs and having a few run-ins with police. The son of Russian immigrants realized that he wanted more out of life, and hoped that a behavioral treatment program would prepare him for the military. The teen's mother, Lyudmila Blashchishena, found positive feedback online about SageWalk Wilderness Camp. The program had gained notoriety by being featured in the ABC reality show, "Brat Camp."

    On August 27, Sergey left his Portland, Ore., home with two escorts, who transported him to the SageWalk compound. Sergey never got the chance to say goodbye to his family. According to investigators, what happened over the next 24 hours was a series of critical mistakes by staff members -- which led to Sergey's senseless death.

    At 10:30 AM, in 80-degree temperatures, a group of staff and students began hiking in a wilderness area managed by the Bureau of Land Management. As the newest student in the group, Sergey took the lead and was required to carry an 80-pound backpack that included water for the entire group. An hour into the hike, Sergey began acting strangely. At first he began staggering, then he drifted off course and eventually started falling down. It didn't occur to any of the staff members that this could be a telltale sign of a health emergency. Instead, the counselors assumed that Sergey was being disobedient and scolded him for his behavior. By 12:30 PM, Sergey appeared confused, started spitting and eventually reached the point of "shutdown." The staff monitored Sergey's fluctuating vital signs, but failed to call medical staff. Sergey vomited twice -- once with signs of blood. One staff member told investigators that he "wasn't overly concerned, because students in the program were always vomiting, though [he] didn't know why."

    Eventually, the school nurse got involved and told the counselors to "keep doing what they [were] doing." Suddenly, Sergey began thrashing his arms around in the air and yelling. Sergey's breathing became shallow, rapidly dropping off. Then he no longer had a pulse. The staffers began CPR and called the nurse, who told a field manager to call 911. It took nearly an hour for medics to arrive. Twenty-five minutes later, Sergey was pronounced dead.

    Deputy Pore contends that SageWalk and the Aspen Education Group approved or knowingly tolerated practices at the camp that allowed employees to ignore the physical complaints of students, and that resulted in the death of Sergey Blashchishen.

    The Aspen Education Group denies any wrongdoing, and stands behind its staffing procedures. Mark Dorenfeld, Senior Vice President of the Western Division of Aspen Education Group, issued the following statement to momlogic:

    "SageWalk Wilderness School strongly disagrees with the conclusions of the Sheriff's Office, particularly in the absence of a full report by the State Medical Examiner. We continue to be greatly saddened by this tragic accident and again wish to extend our deepest sympathies to the family and friends of this young man. We continue to await the results of the State Medical Examiner's report. We expect that, once all the facts are known, they will demonstrate that we acted carefully and responsibly, and we will be fully vindicated."

    News of the potential criminal charges is bittersweet for Matthew's mother, Crystal Manganaro, who received an out-of-court settlement in her civil lawsuit against Aspen Education. "The ripple-effect is working," says Manganaro. "There's going to be a big tidal wave on them. They have to be accountable for their actions."

    Deputy Pore says that this case is the first of its kind in his 20-year law-enforcement career. "Making criminal charges against a corporation is new ground for me," he says. But he admits that it's unlikely that any individual employee will go to prison. A decision by the D.A.'s office is not expected for some time. "Although the entire issue is so sad for so many," says Deputy Pore, "I am hoping there will be some good to come from all of this."

    Gina Kaysen Fernandes is an award-winning documentary producer and a former TV news producer/writer. She lives in Los Angeles with her husband and son.


    © 2010 GNH Productions, Inc.
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    Offline Anne Bonney

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    Re: Sheriff recommends death be identified a homicide - Sagewalk
    « Reply #78 on: April 01, 2010, 02:46:31 PM »
    Was Northstar Expeditions an Aspen program?  I think that was where Aaron Bacon died, similarly.
    « Last Edit: December 31, 1969, 07:00:00 PM by Guest »
    traight, St. Pete, early 80s
    AA is a cult http://www.orange-papers.org/orange-cult.html

    The more boring a child is, the more the parents, when showing off the child, receive adulation for being good parents-- because they have a tame child-creature in their house.  ~~  Frank Zappa

    Offline Ursus

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    Re: Sheriff recommends death be identified a homicide - Sagewalk
    « Reply #79 on: April 01, 2010, 03:59:58 PM »
    Quote from: "Anne Bonney"
    Was Northstar Expeditions an Aspen program?  I think that was where Aaron Bacon died, similarly.
    Aspen does have a program called Northstar Center (Bend, Oregon) but it's a young adult transition program.

    North Star Expeditions, where Aaron Bacon died, was based out of Escalante, Utah, and was owned and operated by William and Pattie Henry. Their son Eric also worked there. According to an old article from The Oregonian:

      William and Pattie Henry have a history of involvement with troubled programs, said Lee, the Utah prosecutor. In 1990, the two were employed at the Challenger Foundation, where a 16-year-old girl died of hyperthermia and dehydration.

      After Challenger folded following the unsuccessful prosecution of its owner, Steve Cartisano, William and Pattie Henry co-founded North Star Expeditions, also of southern Utah.

      Like Challenger, North Star adopted William Henry's tough approach to dealing with its students, Lee said.

      "I think that Bill Henry . . . built an atmosphere where the kids were worthless and not to be trusted," he said.

      And that, said Lee, was conducive to abuse.
      [/list]

      Ironically, or perhaps not so ironically, there is a connection between North Star Expeditions and SageWalk although it isn't through ownership. It's by way of personnel.

      Eric Henry, despite being charged with child abuse and neglect in connection with Bacon's 1994 death at NSE, and having "signed a Dec. 11, 1996, diversion agreement ... in which prosecution was deferred if he refrained from involvement in similar programs for pay and obeyed all laws for nine months," was -- just six months later -- working at SageWalk (where Sergey Blashchishen just died).

      Although he was subsequently fired from SageWalk, both he and his mother were soon working at yet another nearby wilderness program, Obsidian Trails.
      « Last Edit: December 31, 1969, 07:00:00 PM by Guest »
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      Offline Anne Bonney

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      Re: Sheriff recommends death be identified a homicide - Sagewalk
      « Reply #80 on: April 01, 2010, 04:11:34 PM »
      Quote from: "Ursus"
      Quote from: "Anne Bonney"
      Was Northstar Expeditions an Aspen program?  I think that was where Aaron Bacon died, similarly.
      Aspen does have a program called Northstar Center (Bend, Oregon) but it's a young adult transition program.

      North Star Expeditions, where Aaron Bacon died, was based out of Escalante, Utah, and was owned and operated by William and Pattie Henry. Their son Eric also worked there. According to an old article from The Oregonian:

        William and Pattie Henry have a history of involvement with troubled programs, said Lee, the Utah prosecutor. In 1990, the two were employed at the Challenger Foundation, where a 16-year-old girl died of hyperthermia and dehydration.

        After Challenger folded following the unsuccessful prosecution of its owner, Steve Cartisano, William and Pattie Henry co-founded North Star Expeditions, also of southern Utah.

        Like Challenger, North Star adopted William Henry's tough approach to dealing with its students, Lee said.

        "I think that Bill Henry . . . built an atmosphere where the kids were worthless and not to be trusted," he said.

        And that, said Lee, was conducive to abuse.
        [/list]

        Ironically, or perhaps not so ironically, there is a connection between North Star Expeditions and SageWalk although it isn't through ownership. It's by way of personnel.

        Eric Henry, despite being charged with child abuse and neglect in connection with Bacon's 1994 death at NSE, and having "signed a Dec. 11, 1996, diversion agreement ... in which prosecution was deferred if he refrained from involvement in similar programs for pay and obeyed all laws for nine months," was -- just six months later -- working at SageWalk (where Sergey Blashchishen just died).

        Although he was subsequently fired from SageWalk, both he and his mother were soon working at yet another nearby wilderness program, Obsidian Trails.


        Ursus, you are the man!    :-*   :notworthy:


        And, in yet another incredible "coincidence", Obsidian Trails killed a kid as well.  Restrained to death.

        http://www.nospank.net/n-g82.htm

        September 20, 2000

        Charge in Wilderness School Death
        The Associated Press

        LAKEVIEW, Ore. (AP) - A counselor at a wilderness school for troubled youth has been charged in the death of a student who apparently stopped breathing when the counselor sat on him to restrain him, authorities said Wednesday.

        Charles Matthew Sharp, 22, was arrested Monday and charged with criminally negligent homicide.

        ``There is a potential for more serious charges and potentially more people may be charged,'' said Lake County District Attorney David Schutt.

        William H. ``Eddie'' Lee, 15, died Monday. Autopsy results were not immediately available.

        The district attorney gave this account of the evening's events:

        Lee had been camping in a remote area for 10 days with a small group from Obsidian Trails Outdoor School. On Monday, Lee became defiant and disruptive, though not violent, and Sharp and a female counselor forced him to the ground.

        Lee's face was in the dirt and Sharp was on top of him while the female counselor held his arm. A second female counselor noticed what was happening and ran over to hold a leg.

        After struggling for 5 to 15 minutes, Lee went limp and the counselors noticed he wasn't breathing.

        One of the women attempted CPR and the other used a cell phone to call 911.

        ``The account from the girl who started CPR was that she had to get mud out of his nose and mouth,'' Schutt said. ``He was in soft, pumicy dust. He was slobbering, which turned that stuff to mud.''

        Gregory Bodenhamer, the school's director, said he was confident Sharp would be vindicated. He said Sharp and all field instructors were trained in first-aid and restraining uncooperative youth.

        ``What happened does not make sense to me. I don't know how doing what they did would have caused Eddie's death,'' Bodenhamer said. ``We are very upset with what happened. We are very concerned with Eddie's family.''

        Meanwhile, the U.S. Bureau of Land Management revoked Obsidian Trails' permit to operate in the district. It was one of four wilderness schools for troubled youth operating there.

        The bureau had told Obsidian Trails to improve security after two students ran away from camp last December and held a rancher and his wife at knifepoint before stealing their car.
        « Last Edit: December 31, 1969, 07:00:00 PM by Guest »
        traight, St. Pete, early 80s
        AA is a cult http://www.orange-papers.org/orange-cult.html

        The more boring a child is, the more the parents, when showing off the child, receive adulation for being good parents-- because they have a tame child-creature in their house.  ~~  Frank Zappa

        Joel

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        Edited: Wednesday, October 06, 2010
        « Reply #81 on: April 01, 2010, 04:59:59 PM »
        Edited: Wednesday, October 06, 2010
        « Last Edit: October 07, 2010, 08:50:53 AM by Joel »

        Offline Whooter

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        Re: Sheriff recommends death be identified a homicide - Sagewalk
        « Reply #82 on: April 01, 2010, 05:27:19 PM »
        Quote from: "Joel"
        Whooter you have no relevant work experience with children in wilderness camps, were not a survivor, or any other life experience to base your opinions on.

        What qualifications does a poster need here on fornits to have an opinion, Joel?  You screwed up wilderness 101 by breaking your ankle (not something to brag about).  Then you turn around and bad mouth the very people who carried you off the mountain and got you medical help(wtf?).  So your opinion on wilderness isn’t relevant and you proved yourself to be an ingrate.  Then you tried your hand at working for a program (trying to emulate the same people that saved your butt) but you couldn’t handle that job.  If you hated them so much why did you want to join them?  So you don’t have any relevant experience as a staff person either because you failed there. You have no experience as a program parent.  So I am not sure what you can contribute here.

        Quote
        You are talking partly about "what staff need to do" yet you cannot provide effective strategies per when a child is "faking it." If you can provide solutions without posting a link or any other resources, or any other internet resources, I'm all ears.

        So you like posts with no links to back up a person’s word?  Hmm….. interesting.  Looks like you will have to keep your ears closed then.

        Quote
        This is another example when staff focus on what they "perceive as a misbehavior" rather than the root cause of the said problem. In this case, a life was lost. Whooter you spoke earlier about children faking it, how would you handle the situation before the child died? Think long and hard about giving me a vague answer.

        This seems to be the struggle from what I have read.  How does s person distinguish between a behavior problem and a life threatening issue.  Apparently there were 2 EMT’s that were with Sergey. So there were trained people on site.   If behavior and medical issues could easily be separated then these childrens lives would have been spared.  I think we can all agree that they didn’t want Sergey to die (although I guess I should speak for everyone here).  So the solution must be in better training or a change in existing procedure.

        This investigation seems to be more detailed then the previous ones so hopefully they will be able to come up with some solutions.



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        Joel

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        « Reply #83 on: April 01, 2010, 05:37:55 PM »
        Edited: Wednesday, October 06, 2010
        « Last Edit: October 07, 2010, 08:52:37 AM by Joel »

        Joel

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        Edited: Wednesday, October 06, 2010
        « Reply #84 on: April 01, 2010, 05:50:27 PM »
        Edited: Wednesday, October 06, 2010
        « Last Edit: October 07, 2010, 08:53:34 AM by Joel »

        Offline Whooter

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        Re: Sheriff recommends death be identified a homicide - Sagewalk
        « Reply #85 on: April 01, 2010, 06:25:04 PM »
        Here, I did answer your post.  maybe you missed it:
        Quote from: "Joel"
        Whooter you have no relevant work experience with children in wilderness camps, were not a survivor, or any other life experience to base your opinions on.  You are talking partly about "what staff need to do" yet you cannot provide effective strategies per when a child is "faking it."  If you can provide solutions without posting a link or any other internet resources, I'm all ears.[/color][/i]

        What qualifications does a poster need here on fornits to have an opinion, Joel? You screwed up wilderness 101 by breaking your ankle (not something to brag about). Then you turn around and bad mouth the very people who carried you off the mountain and got you medical help(wtf?). So your opinion on wilderness isn’t relevant and you proved yourself to be an ingrate. Then you tried your hand at working for a program (trying to emulate the same people that saved your butt) but you couldn’t handle that job. If you hated them so much why did you want to join them? So you don’t have any relevant experience as a staff person either because you failed there. You have no experience as a program parent. So I am not sure what you can contribute here.



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        « Last Edit: December 31, 1969, 07:00:00 PM by Guest »

        Joel

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        « Reply #86 on: April 01, 2010, 06:43:21 PM »
        Edited: Wednesday, October 06, 2010
        « Last Edit: October 07, 2010, 08:53:57 AM by Joel »

        Offline Whooter

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        Re: Sheriff recommends death be identified a homicide - Sagewalk
        « Reply #87 on: April 01, 2010, 06:46:15 PM »
        Quote from: "Joel"
        Quote
        So you like posts with no links to back up a person’s word? Hmm….. interesting. Looks like you will have to keep your ears closed then.

        You were called on your lack of knowledge of the TTI and failed to produce.  This is something fornits members have known for years. You talk like an ed con, former staffer, current staffer, someone associated with not for profit organizations helping teens does or someone associated with for profit organizations helping teens does.  Quit blowing smoke up everyone's ass or leave this website.  I, including many others, don't tolerate industry trolls who defend abusive programs.  Whooter there is also a part of me that thinks you feel guilty for placing your child in a program, your son (which I'm inclined to think this is the case)/daughter that made a mistake which could not be taken back, therefor you feel the need to defend programs instead of dealing with your guilt.   [/i]
        You may be right, who knows.

        And you hate programs because you had to be taken off the mountain and were humiliated because you screwed up.  Then you tried to prove yourself a man by going back to wilderness as a staff person but couldnt hack that either and they canned your ass.  So you failed on both counts and now feel compelled to blame them for your life and your failures.

        See, anyone can speculate, Joel.

        So have you defined who is allowed to post here and what qualifications people need?  Get back to us when you have that defined.



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        Joel

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        « Reply #88 on: April 01, 2010, 06:53:35 PM »
        Edited: Wednesday, October 06, 2010
        « Last Edit: October 07, 2010, 08:54:21 AM by Joel »

        Offline Whooter

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        Re: Sheriff recommends death be identified a homicide - Sagewalk
        « Reply #89 on: April 01, 2010, 07:06:29 PM »
        Quote from: "Joel"
        Quote
        Then you tried your hand at working for a program (trying to emulate the same people that saved your butt) but you couldn’t handle that job.


        I left EYA after 3 years of service where most wilderness counselors left within a year.  It was time to move on and I don't look at is " not being able to handle the job. "  Many wilderness counselors at EYA move on after their two year mark to do something else.  Nice try on the ankle diversion tactic Whooter!  These sneaky tactics don't fly with me and I'll continue to call you on them.  [/i]
        [/color]

        3 years doesnt make a career, so as a career move it was a failure.  Most people would see it that way, Joel.  Now why dont you be honest with everyone.  Tell us the story again of when you asked to be upgraded and wanted a pay raise and they brought out the various complaints against you by the children in your care of alleged abuse, inappropriate contacts and that coupled with your over all ineffectiveness.  You had no choice but to quit or speak to the authorities. We both know they were being kind and you got off easy.

        So you see your past is just as transparent as mine is, Joel.



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