Fornits
Treatment Abuse, Behavior Modification, Thought Reform => CEDU / Brown Schools and derivatives / clones => Topic started by: Ursus on August 21, 2009, 01:25:15 PM
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This little program slipped onto the Lon's roster with nary an announcement. Wonder why? My guess is that the founder's name is more than familiar, to those both in and out of the industry... :D
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Seen N' Heard
Posted: Mar 13, 2009
OPENINGS AT HOMELINES (http://http://www.strugglingteens.com/artman/publish/SnH09_090304.shtml)
(February 10, 2009) Richard and Karen Armstrong, owners of Homelines (http://http://www.homelines.org/) in Moyie Springs, ID, have announced they currently have openings at their program, Homelines, for young men ages 18 and older, which offers vocational skills training and mentoring in a traditional home setting. For more information contact Richard Armstrong at 888-267-7797.
Copyright © 2009, Woodbury Reports, Inc.
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Breaking News
Posted: Aug 19, 2009
Homelines Program
Moyie Springs, ID
Homelines Offers Reduced Rates (http://http://www.strugglingteens.com/artman/publish/HomelinesBN_090819.shtml)
Contact:
Richard Armstrong
Owner
888-267-7797
http://www.homelines.org (http://www.homelines.org)
August 18, 2009
The Homelines Program in Moyie Springs, Idaho is currently offering a "student stimulus" package, with the reduced rate of $3500.00 for the monthly enrollment fee.
Homelines offers young men ages 18 to 25, one on one mentoring, vocational training such as log cabin building, life skills training, community involvement and the opportunity to acquire their GED.
Homelines offers a unique experience for young men to enjoy the Great Pacific Northwest and to see what North Idaho has to offer.
Please call Richard Armstrong at 888-267-7797 for more information or please visit the website at: http://www.homelines.org (http://www.homelines.org)
Copyright © 2009, Woodbury Reports, Inc.
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smells like Cedu Crap to me. ::puke::
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Oh that is TOO rich. This motherfucker drugs and rapes the shit out of a colleague, and now he has his own school?
Little bastard got out of having a record, too, cause he was tried in civil instead of criminal. But for fuck's sake, it was in the spokesman review, and that's how I found out about it. Im sure reputation defender has done its job now and has buried all of that shit in google, though.
Someone prank call him and ask him how Twila is. See how long it takes for him to hang up on you.
Here's a teen liberty archive of the article. I couldnt even find it on the spokesman's site.
(link: http://www.teenliberty.org/RMA.htm (http://www.teenliberty.org/RMA.htm) its a ways down the page)
FEDERAL JURY SIDES WITH WOMAN IN RAPE LAWSUIT
EMPLOYER ORDERED TO PAY $164,595; COUNTY HASN'T FILED
CRIMINAL CHARGES
Section: THE HANDLE
Page: B1
Author: By Susan Drumheller Staff writer
Illustration: Color Photo
Caption: Armstrong
An ``intervention specialist'' who delivers kids to private behavioral schools and camps in North Idaho was
ordered by a federal jury to pay a former employee $164,595 for allegedly drugging and raping her.
Twila Stephenson filed a lawsuit in U.S. District Court against Richard Armstrong of Bonners Ferry, Idaho,
in November 1996, accusing him of slipping drugs into her drinks, then raping her.
Armstrong runs a company called Boundary Lines, which specializes in transporting teenagers from their
homes to private schools, such as the Rocky Mountain Academy.
Stephenson worked for Armstrong as a counselor from 1993 until April 1996.
The jury deliberated for four hours after a fourday trial in Coeur d'Alene.
Jury members determined that Armstrong raped Stephenson while she was unconscious, that he caused her
to be unconscious and that the conduct was outrageous.
``We were surprised by the verdict,'' said Stanton Rines, Armstrong's attorney.
The evidence included two taped confessions, said Craig Mosman, Stephenson's attorney.
``Somebody who commits those acts ought to be in prison,'' Mosman said.
Boundary County officials never charged Armstrong, despite the fact that Mosman and Stephenson filed a
report with police and offered to provide evidence, Mosman said.
Mosman said he never discussed the case with Boundary County Prosecutor Denise Woodbury, who was
not available for comment Friday.
Stephenson has left the state and now lives and works in New Mexico, Mosman said.
She claimed she was fired after the alleged rape when she confronted Armstrong about crushing sleeping
pills into her drink after she refused to have sex with him.
All content © 1999 SPOKESMAN-REVIEW and may not be republished without permission.
Heh, that pervert was my family head in voyageurs. I still have my fulltime journal, with his scratched handwriting on the inner cover outlining what the rules were. (note: at that time, he did not know how to spell the word "feminine". But at least he knew he didnt know how to spell it.)
Oh yeah, and Twila was my family head in quest. One of my family heads raped one of my other family heads. That's some family, huh?
Also, does anyone know if this boundary county DA (denise woodbury) is related to Lon?
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Oh that is TOO rich. This motherfucker drugs and rapes the shit out of a colleague, and now he has his own school?
Little bastard got out of having a record, too, cause he was tried in civil instead of criminal. But for fuck's sake, it was in the spokesman review, and that's how I found out about it. Im sure reputation defender has done its job now and has buried all of that shit in google, though.
My thoughts exactly. Because his operation is small, and because Lon Woodbury seems to harbor a certain fondness for him, his history gets pushed under the radar.
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Jury members determined that Armstrong raped Stephenson while she was unconscious, that he caused her to be unconscious and that the conduct was outrageous.
"We were surprised by the verdict,'' said Stanton Rines, Armstrong's attorney.
The evidence included two taped confessions, said Craig Mosman, Stephenson's attorney.
"Somebody who commits those acts ought to be in prison,'' Mosman said.
Boundary County officials never charged Armstrong, despite the fact that Mosman and Stephenson filed a report with police and offered to provide evidence, Mosman said.
Mosman said he never discussed the case with Boundary County Prosecutor Denise Woodbury, who was not available for comment Friday.
Heh, that pervert was my family head in voyageurs. I still have my fulltime journal, with his scratched handwriting on the inner cover outlining what the rules were. (note: at that time, he did not know how to spell the word "feminine". But at least he knew he didnt know how to spell it.)
Oh yeah, and Twila was my family head in quest. One of my family heads raped one of my other family heads. That's some family, huh?
Also, does anyone know if this boundary county DA (denise woodbury) is related to Lon?
Lon Woodbury's wife is named Denise, and she is an attorney. Just how many practicing attorney's named Denise Woodbury are there in Idaho?
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Jury members determined that Armstrong raped Stephenson while she was unconscious, that he caused her to be unconscious and that the conduct was outrageous.
"We were surprised by the verdict,'' said Stanton Rines, Armstrong's attorney.
The evidence included two taped confessions, said Craig Mosman, Stephenson's attorney.
"Somebody who commits those acts ought to be in prison,'' Mosman said.
Boundary County officials never charged Armstrong, despite the fact that Mosman and Stephenson filed a report with police and offered to provide evidence, Mosman said.
Mosman said he never discussed the case with Boundary County Prosecutor Denise Woodbury, who was not available for comment Friday.
Heh, that pervert was my family head in voyageurs. I still have my fulltime journal, with his scratched handwriting on the inner cover outlining what the rules were. (note: at that time, he did not know how to spell the word "feminine". But at least he knew he didnt know how to spell it.)
Oh yeah, and Twila was my family head in quest. One of my family heads raped one of my other family heads. That's some family, huh?
Also, does anyone know if this boundary county DA (denise woodbury) is related to Lon?
Lon Woodbury's wife is named Denise, and she is an attorney. Just how many practicing attorney's named Denise Woodbury are there in Idaho?
Disgusting... absofuckinglutely disgusting. Nothing makes me angrier than cronyism.
unless it works in my favor, that is... hasn't yet, but I can hope.
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Programs this man has been known to be associated with:
- Rocky Mountain Academy, staff, and then later -- it would appear -- escort work for CEDU prior to going off on his own (?)
- Pathfinders Way
- Squaw Valley Academy
- Boundarylines (since 1990), a "crisis care and transport service for teenagers"
My guess is that Homelines is an outgrowth of the "interim care services" Armstrong was sometimes providing as part of Boundarylines.
Here's a curious entry on the Homelines testimonials (http://http://www.homelines.org/testimonials.html) page. Does anyone have any info re. Armstrong having worked for Obsidian Trails? Perhaps this was just a reference to the kid's ultimate destination, and Homelines was but a stop along that path...
Dear Mr. and Mrs. Armstrong -
"During this last year I have grown more than I ever thought possible... It's crazy to look back on last summer at the way I treated my parents, not to mention the way I treated myself. Going to Obsidian Trails is one of the best things that has ever happened to me. Both of you were kind and clearly had my best interest in mind. I am thankful that there are people like you to help out kids in need."[/list]
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Someone bounce this article over to ISAC and HEAL so they can get this dump posted up on their watch lists.
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HOMELINES - A Young Adult Mentoring Program (http://http://www.homelines.org/index.html)
HOMELINES offers a unique experience for today's youth that has reached a turning point. This is a one-on-one residential mentoring program for young men over 18 years of age, who are ready to work towards achieving the next level of independence.
(http://http://www.homelines.org/images/Homelines-Site_05.jpg)
The HOMELINES program integrates young adults into mainstream society by providing structure, strong role models, encouraging self-discipline, teaching vocational skills, work ethic and accountability within a traditional family.
These days many boys don’t have the benefit of a strong male mentoring tradition, which enables them to hold the torch of manhood. Today’s pressures often prevent the adult male family members from fulfilling the mentor role in the lives of the children.
Richard Armstrong, the HOMELINES director, has had a remarkable record in successfully establishing a mentor / protégé relationship with his students who have somehow missed this important tradition.
HOMELINES
Richard Armstrong - Director
P.O. Box 44
Moyie Springs, ID 83845
Phone:
888 - 267 - 7797
208 - 661 - 6121
Email: [email protected][/list][/list]
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Someone bounce this article over to ISAC and HEAL so they can get this dump posted up on their watch lists.
done and done.
Copy:
Subject: report on a new teen facility started by ex-CEDU staff.. tried in civil court for rape.
Hello,
I attended Rocky Mountain Academy and a man named Richard Armstrong was my family head in Voyageurs.
Since then, he has moved on to several other facilities, as well as had his own teen escort service.
He has now opened up a new facility called Homelines. ( http://www.homelines.org/ (http://www.homelines.org/))
Please know that in 1999, Mr. Armstrong was tried in civil court for the drugging and raping of a colleague, Twila Stephenson, while they both worked together for his escort service company. (Twila was, incidentally, my family head in quest.) I have pasted the spokesman review article below. (link is here: http://www.teenliberty.org/RMA.htm (http://www.teenliberty.org/RMA.htm) It is a little ways down the page.) I was unable to find the article on the spokesman review's website, although I can verify that it did indeed used to be there. (And is probably still on microfiche somewhere in an idaho library.)
(Inserted article here. Didnt think it bore repeating since I already posted it in this thread.)
It is also of note that the County Prosecutor mentioned in the article, Denise Woodbury, is possibly the wife of Lon Woodbury, who runs a referral service for "troubled" teens. (It is verified that the name of Lon's wife is Denise, but not confirmed whether this is the same person.) As such, it is also possible that the reason this never went to criminal court is because of cronyism. However, since Ms. Woodbury could not be reached for comment (extremely unprofessional conduct for a prosecuting attorney, IMO) it cannot be verified.
Please don't hesitate to email me if you have any questions regarding this matter.
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done and done.
:notworthy: :notworthy:
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Ive also requested the feedback from a few livejournal friends (one a lawyer, another a judge), for their opinions regarding the conduct of woodbury. There are many reasons why a DA won't go to bat, but the fact that she never commented on it to the press when asked for a comment is suspect, IMO.
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:twofinger: Eat it Richie!
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Here's what my lj judge friend said:
It could be considered a conflict of interest depending on the
relationship to the man (i.e. did they just work for the same place or
did they work closely? Does the wife have anything to do with the suspect
or is she simply aware that he worked at the same place as her
husband?)-- if they worked at say, Hewlett Packard it would be a
different situation than if they worked at Ma and Pa's Polish bakery.
And it will depend on the jurisdiction and circumstances of the
accusation before it could be moved (it would also require court
approval). Also, when I was a prosecutor we didn't actually have the
elected prosecutor review our charging decisions. Ultimately, the buck
stopped with him, but after we'd worked there for a while we took care of
our own stuff and it was occasionally reviewed by our immediate
supervisor. I would not be surprised, depending on the salaciousness,
scandal and media coverage of the story, that the prosecutor wasn't
particularly involved in the charging decision. It would make sense about
why she was not available to contact-- she'd probably need to find out
who was and ask for herself.
I also just heard back from Shelby Earnshaw at ISAAC. She said that she'll be working on something for the website right away.
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Ive also requested the feedback from a few livejournal friends (one a lawyer, another a judge), for their opinions regarding the conduct of woodbury. There are many reasons why a DA won't go to bat, but the fact that she never commented on it to the press when asked for a comment is suspect, IMO.
I'd love to hear what any of jurors thought of her due diligence in court back then. Wasn't she supposed to be prosecuting him? I'm sure she didn't want to!
But Denise wasn't the only problem. It was the endemic mindset of Boundary County. They never charged him, despite a police report! From that Spokesman-Review article posted earlier:
Boundary County officials never charged Armstrong, despite the fact that Mosman and Stephenson filed a report with police and offered to provide evidence, Mosman said.
Mosman said he never discussed the case with Boundary County Prosecutor Denise Woodbury, who was not available for comment Friday.
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I also just heard back from Shelby Earnshaw at ISAAC. She said that she'll be working on something for the website right away.
It's already up: http://www.isaccorp.org/documentsam.asp#homelines (http://www.isaccorp.org/documentsam.asp#homelines)
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Bonners Ferry and Boundary County generally are also home to the Aryan Nations, various militia groups (Ruby Ridge happened there), as well as FLDS.
http://www.rickross.com/reference/polyg ... y1103.html (http://www.rickross.com/reference/polygamy/polygamy1103.html)
Programmies fit right in!
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Actually, I believe that the neo-nazi headquarters in hayden lake were shut down. They had to relocate.
All of which has nothing to do with Richard. RMA had no association with them, except for that one employee who got a job to kidnap jewish students. Once RMA found out about it, they fired him. Doesnt speak much to their screening practices, however.
In addition, the locals in coer d'alene had huge problems with the fascists taking up residence nearby. They are a tourist town, and dont want any of that shit.
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Bonners Ferry and Boundary County generally are also home to the Aryan Nations, various militia groups (Ruby Ridge happened there), as well as FLDS.
http://www.rickross.com/reference/polyg ... y1103.html (http://www.rickross.com/reference/polygamy/polygamy1103.html)
Programmies fit right in!
Actually, I believe that the neo-nazi headquarters in hayden lake were shut down. They had to relocate.
All of which has nothing to do with Richard. RMA had no association with them, except for that one employee who got a job to kidnap jewish students. Once RMA found out about it, they fired him. Doesnt speak much to their screening practices, however.
In addition, the locals in coer d'alene had huge problems with the fascists taking up residence nearby. They are a tourist town, and dont want any of that shit.
Well, I think that article speaks a lot to the endemic mindset that apparently is part and parcel to the area, FLDS influence being slight or strident, what have you... Clearly, unless the offending issue is in your face, and many times even when it is, people there tend to look the other way.
So I'm going to copy it out, as a "regional interest" bit, to complement the picture of what goes on at Richard Armstrong's place... Here it is, from another source:
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KOMONEWS.com
North Idaho polygamist sect drawing new scrutiny (http://http://www.komonews.com/news/local/39696072.html)
Story Published: Feb 16, 2009 at 9:33 PM PDT
Story Updated: Feb 16, 2009 at 9:33 PM PDT
By BILL MORLIN The Spokesman-Review
BONNERS FERRY, Idaho (AP) - In the scenic international region where Idaho's Panhandle meets British Columbia, polygamy is a way of life for hundreds - the open secret that's gone untouched by authorities until now.
The arrests in Canada last month of two fundamentalist Mormon leaders are bringing renewed interest to their polygamous communities near Creston, British Columbia, and loyal followers living just across the border in Idaho's Boundary County.
Winston Blackmore, 52, and James Oler, 44, who now head factions of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints in Canada, face prison terms if convicted of violating that country's polygamy laws. They are scheduled to enter not-guilty pleas this week in Creston. Their trials likely are months away.
Their polygamist sect has been living in the southeast corner of British Columbia for almost 60 years without legal challenge by Canadian authorities. Two FLDS schools, with some students from Boundary County, get almost $1 million a year from the Canadian government.
The move into north Idaho by FLDS members began in 2003 after a leadership split in the Canadian community.
By conservative estimates, there are at least a half-dozen polygamous families - about 100 men, women and children - living in Boundary County, even though polygamy is banned by the Idaho Constitution. One ex-member says the number in Boundary County could approach 300.
The FLDS community of Bountiful, B.C., is the "polygamy capital of Canada," that country's "dirty secret," where underage marriages and child abuse have gone untouched, according to author and Vancouver Sun columnist Daphne Bramham, who has written extensively about the sect.
She and other experts are uncertain why the criminal case was brought with the dawning of 2009, but increased media coverage and public interest appear to have put pressure on politicians.
"There's a greater realization now within the local community around Bountiful that what's going on out there isn't right," Bramham said last week. "For a very long time, people were content to believe that because the young women they saw in town with all the children were happy and healthy, everything was OK. The business people were also content to take Winston Blackmore's word that everything was OK especially since Blackmore and his companies were spending considerable amounts of money in the community."
That changed, Bramham said, with the recent departure of Jane Blackmore, Winston's first and only legal wife. She is a well-respected midwife who has received civic recognition.
"When she left and spoke out about 15- and 16-year-old girls having babies, people listened and paid attention," said Bramham, who wrote about the group in "The Secret Lives of Saints."
Already the landmark criminal case is drawing national attention in Canada, with legal scholars saying it will test that country's polygamy laws.
Blackmore - the father of more than 100 children with at least 19 wives, including three living in Boundary County with their children - says he's being persecuted for practicing his religious freedom.
His attorney says because same-sex marriages are legal in Canada, having multiple wives should be, too.
Others support the view of former Canadian Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau, who is remembered for saying the government has no business in people's bedrooms.
Former members of the sect, however, say the government has an obligation to investigate and prosecute child neglect and abuse, including reports that teenage girls some as young as 14 are forced into arranged marriages with men 40 and 50 years old.
If Blackmore and Oler are convicted of practicing polygamy in Canada, no one is ready to predict what impact that may have on their followers in Boundary County, where polygamous households are common knowledge.
Elsewhere, there are an estimated 10,000 FLDS members living in the adjoining communities of Hildale, Utah, and Colorado City, Ariz.; in Eldorado, Texas; in Edgemont, S.D.; and in the tiny Colorado communities of Cotopaxi, Florence and Mancos.
Followers adhere to the early-day teachings of the Mormon Church. The only way to heaven, they believe, is if men have multiple "celestial wives," bearing as many children as possible. They don't celebrate Christmas, nor do they condone rock music, comic books, cartoons or makeup.
The teenage daughter of one couple will become the "plural wife" of another man and live in a household where, in some situations, his older daughters call her "mother."
The genetic inbreeding of families has caused numerous babies to be born with an extremely rare and disabling genetic disease and a high infant mortality rate, the Phoenix New Times reported in 2005, citing a study by a pediatric neurologist.
The FLDS is a "racist polygamous cult" and a "hate group," according to the Southern Poverty Law Center, which is credited with dismantling the Aryan Nations headquarters in North Idaho.
The modern-day LDS church renounced polygamy in 1890, allowing Utah to gain statehood. The church denounces the FLDS movement, even though plural marriage theology remains in its "doctrine and covenants." Elder Quentin L. Cook, an apostle and spokesman for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, said modern-day Mormons "have nothing whatsoever to do with this polygamous sect."
Warren Jeffs, the FLDS' now-imprisoned "prophet," has preached to his followers that black people are the descendants of Cain, "cursed with black skin" and selected by God to be the "servants of servants."
FLDS members in Utah are suspected to have ties to the Little Shell Pembina Band of North America, an anti-government, anti-tax extremist group, according to the Anti-Defamation League.
Winston Blackmore, a Canadian citizen, was in line to lead all the FLDS communities in the United States and Canada following the 2003 death of Rulon Jeffs, who held the position of the church's prophet. But Jeffs' son, Warren Jeffs, pulled a coup, then attempted to excommunicate Blackmore, who had risen to power in the Canadian community.
Meanwhile, the other Canadian FLDS leader, Oler, remained aligned with Warren Jeffs, who made frequent visits to Boundary County and Bountiful.
Jeffs made the FBI's Top 10 fugitive list after being charged in Utah and later convicted of being an accomplice to rape for arranging marriages between underage girls and older men. He faces similar trials in Texas and Arizona.
After Jeffs' arrest, Texas child-welfare authorities last year raided the FLDS Yearning for Zion compound in Eldorado. More than 400 children were taken into protective custody. Of 53 girls ages 14 to 17 taken in the raid, 31 either were pregnant or had children, authorities said.
Most of the children were returned after the Texas Supreme Court ruled the state lacked evidence they were in imminent danger of abuse.
Jeffs and five other men still face criminal charges related to sexually abusing underage girls in Texas. Those Texas families have relatives living in Idaho's Panhandle and in nearby Bountiful.
The FLDS leader in North Idaho is Shem Erick Johnson, who is said to have remained loyal to Blackmore after he and Oler split the 1,000 members of the Bountiful community into competing factions, each with its own government-supported school.
Johnson, a 40-year-old Bonners Ferry businessman, is described in a church publication as the FLDS bishop "south of the 49th parallel." He reportedly has four wives. He is said to have taken his fourth wife last March when she turned 18.
Johnson, who lives on a rural estate north of Bonners Ferry, didn't respond to repeated requests for an interview.
But his name turns up in a lot of public records. He owns nine parcels of land in Boundary County, totaling 134 acres. Johnson owns homes on four of the properties, and he appears to have set up a large schoolhouse complex on one of them.
He is also a licensed pilot, Federal Aviation Administration records show, and stores his six-passenger Cessna in a $60,000 hangar he owns on leased land at the Bonners Ferry airport.
Records on file in Washington County, Utah, show a marriage license was issued in 1989 in that FLDS community to Shem Erick Johnson and Margo Wyler. But in a notarized deed filed in December in Kootenai County and signed by Johnson, he claims he is an "unmarried man."
Margo Johnson is manager of Boundary HomeSchool, an Idaho nonprofit that Johnson incorporated in March 2003 in Boundary County, listing himself as the "principle."
Shem Johnson also is listed as the president of S & L Underground, a general contractor licensed to do business in Washington, Idaho, Montana and Arizona.
In public records filed in Arizona last year, Margo Johnson lists herself as the construction company's secretary. She listed the same home address near Bonners Ferry used by Shem Johnson.
In 2005, S & L Underground bought three portable classrooms for $15,000 from the Boundary County School District, other public records show. The classrooms were moved to property Johnson owns, but it's unclear if they are being used as classrooms for FLDS children or for other purposes.
Still other public records show that in the past few years, S & L Underground has gotten millions of dollars in public works contracts, including $1.32 million in water line jobs from the city of Bonners Ferry.
The general contractor also has been awarded bids by the city of Troy, Mont., the Worley, Idaho, highway district and the Idaho Department of Transportation.
In 2005, S & L Underground was awarded a $1.9 million contract by the city of Coeur d'Alene to build a replacement 2 million gallon water reservoir on Tubbs Hill.
About that same time, Johnson rented various houses in Coeur d'Alene and bought a house on Peach Tree Drive in Hayden. Last December, he transferred the deed for that residence to Sarah E. Johnson, identified only as an "unmarried woman."
Some contractors who have lost public works contracts to S & L Underground ask if the company has been successful at underbidding them because Johnson employs members of his church and pays them less.
"It does make me wonder if they are using kids, young men from their church, so they can pay them anything they want," said Charlie Kramer, owner of Kramer Crane and Construction, in Naples, Idaho. His company lost a November 2004 city of Bonners Ferry contract to S & L.
Stephen Boorman, city administrator in Bonners Ferry, said the city, like other governmental entities, is obligated to award its public contracts to the lowest bidder. He and city water officials in Coeur d'Alene praised the quality of work done by Johnson and his S & L crew.
Any contracts involving federal funds would be subject to a federal law that requires workers to be paid certain prevailing wages and subject to "certified payroll" audits.
While the number of FLDS followers in North Idaho appears to be growing, their presence hasn't caught the attention of many residents.
Darrell Kerby, the 57-year-old former mayor of Bonners Ferry, has lived his entire life in that community. He didn't realize polygamists were his neighbors until he recently read Jon Krakauer's book "Under the Banner of Heaven," which details the history of Mormon fundamentalists.
"I had no idea that there was this polygamist group here, and I'm guessing a lot of people still don't know about them," Kerby said.
While mayor, Kerby contacted his counterpart in Creston. The two men, along with Idaho legislative leaders and local officials, met with a Creston-based citizens group, Altering Destiny Through Education.
"Everybody got their eyes opened," he said.
State legislators and the Idaho attorney general's office promised action, but nothing happened.
Kerby said law enforcement is in a confounding situation. Although polygamy is illegal, the Idaho Legislature changed state law a few years ago, no longer recognizing "common law marriages." The only legal marriages in Idaho are those between a man and a woman, backed with a state-issued license. Marriage partners must be 18, or 16 with parental approval.
Investigating potential crimes within the FLDS community is further compounded, Kerby said, because members of the group are secretive, midwives tend to home births, and many infants don't immediately have birth certificates.
Idaho state welfare officials reportedly have investigated potential benefits fraud by FLDS members, but no criminal cases have materialized.
Meanwhile, federal law enforcement agents are watchful for "human trafficking" cases involving teenage girls in the group,
transferred from FLDS communities in Canada to those in the United States. But so far, there have been no federal prosecutions in the United States.
In Boundary County, officials and people on the street respond with sheepish grins and shoulder shrugs when asked, "Why aren't authorities investigating the group?"
Rich Stephens, chief deputy of the Boundary County Sheriff's Office, said the law enforcement agency stands ready to investigate and make arrests if a member of the FLDS community comes forward to report a crime.
Boundary County Sheriff Greg Sprungl declined interview requests, as did Boundary County Prosecutor Jack Douglas.
The sheriff and prosecutor are "looking the other way" regarding the practice of polygamy in their community, asserts former sheriff candidate Allen Gemmrig.
"There's a tolerance policy with these polygamists by the sheriff's department," said Gemmrig, who ran an unsuccessful campaign last fall to become sheriff.
Sprungl, the incumbent who was re-elected, "knows or should know there's a huge problem up here with this polygamy cult," Gemmrig said, referring to underage girls involved in arranged marriages. "What he says is, Polygamists? What polygamists?"'
"The way law enforcement works up here is it depends on who you know up here," Gemmrig said. "It's the old boys club. You know - go along, get along."
His wife, Heather, a lifelong resident of Boundary County, agreed.
She said because of the "tolerance policy" in Boundary County, she believes there's a good chance that more FLDS members will move to the county if Blackmore and Oler are convicted and sent to prison.
"They'll come down here because they know they won't get prosecuted," she said. "This is a great place to hide."
Bramham, the author who has written about the Canadian polygamists, says it's "too soon to say what will happen" if Blackmore and Oler are convicted.
Blackmore, she said, is very confident that Canada's anti-polygamy law will not withstand a constitutional challenge. Like the United States, the Canadian Constitution guarantees religious freedom, but there are limits.
"What has never been tried in a Canadian court, however, is whether polygamy is one of those limits," Bramham said.
Copyright © 2008 Fisher Communications, Inc.
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Here's another page from Armstrong's website. I guess that "stable traditional family setting" must be Richard's?
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HOMELINES - The Program (http://http://www.homelines.org/program.html)
The Homelines program seeks to establish maturity through vocational training, wilderness experience, and incorporating students into a stable family setting. This program focuses on mentoring young men into self-sufficient responsible manhood.
The student lives in a stable traditional family setting in Northern Idaho on the edge of national forest and wilderness areas. Respect and regard for others is a natural part of life here. The student learns hands-on vocational skills by working on a variety of building and maintenance projects. Through mentoring rather than teaching, the young man gains confidence born of the satisfaction of projects started and finished. More importantly, he learns how to enjoy working and the satisfaction of succeeding at a task that was first perceived as impossible.
(http://http://www.homelines.org/images/carving.jpg)
Building and mechanical skills are emphasized.
By the time a student comes to us, he may have already worked through one or a number of other more restrictive programs, and is ready to expand his sphere of influence and open up to the benefits that HOMLINES has to offer. We help him take the next step toward manhood through the variety of life-skills we provide him. We place a strong emphasis on developing a work ethic and the resulting satisfaction of accomplishment and a job well done.
We also have the student who has completed high school, but who still lacks the maturity and skills for independent living or higher education. Redirection of behavior toward healthy challenging outdoor activity comes naturally to a young man in this backcountry mountain environment. Canoe trips, hiking, backpacking, mountain biking, and rock climbing can be an irresistible replacement for more destructive pastimes.
Typical enrollment begins with a minimum of 6 months in order to establish positive relationships and integrate the student into our unique family setting.
(http://http://www.homelines.org/images/climbing.jpg)
The classroom is Mother Nature.
INTEGRATED SERVICES
- Vocational training opportunities with an emphasis on a variety of construction skills.
- The opportunity to obtain a G.E.D. or assistance for the student to acquire a high school degree through correspondence courses.
- Development of the basic skills of living with others and fulfilling personal responsibilities.
- The opportunity to develop skills for healthy male / female interaction.
- Learning the worth of character.
- Stability gained or acquired by living within a healthly family setting.
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Also heard from HEAL. They should be updating their site, if they havent already.
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Good stuff!
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Just curious, were Richard and Karen married when Twila Stephenson filed her lawsuit thirteen years ago? The Homelines staff page mentions that the Armstrongs have "raised five children of their own, of which the oldest has graduated college."
Italic emphasis as per source re. "Mountain Man."
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HOMELINES - The Staff (http://http://www.homelines.org/staff.html)
Richard and Karen Armstrong offer young men the assistance to advance to the next level of their lives. They have raised five children of their own, of which the oldest has graduated college.
Boundrylines Intervention Services, Inc. was founded in 1990. Durring the 12 years of intervention work with adolescents, the need of a mentoring program for young adults developed, and was met with the HOMELINES program.
(http://http://www.homelines.org/images/richard.jpg)
Director Richard Armstrong has been working with adolescents and young adults in a variety of settings for over 22 years. He has led and instructed wilderness courses as well as mentored in a therapeutic boarding school setting. He has experience in facilitating group sessions in addition to leading individual personal growth workshops. Richard embodies the ideal of the American West and is an accomplished Mountain Man. His deep interest in the history of the West is brought out in teaching a variety of skills of the Old Tradition.
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I honestly do not remember Richard's marital status while I was there in the 80s. I *do* however, remember my friend telling me that he put his hand up the back of her shirt to rub her back. She got really pissed off, and recounted to me that the staff took her in to the office to try to convince her to keep quiet about it. And guess what? They were rather nice, since they knew she had them by the balls.
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I honestly do not remember Richard's marital status while I was there in the 80s. I *do* however, remember my friend telling me that he put his hand up the back of her shirt to rub her back. She got really pissed off, and recounted to me that the staff took her in to the office to try to convince her to keep quiet about it. And guess what? They were rather nice, since they knew she had them by the balls.
How the fuck do these people end up running programs...
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I honestly do not remember Richard's marital status while I was there in the 80s. I *do* however, remember my friend telling me that he put his hand up the back of her shirt to rub her back. She got really pissed off, and recounted to me that the staff took her in to the office to try to convince her to keep quiet about it. And guess what? They were rather nice, since they knew she had them by the balls.
How the fuck do these people end up running programs...
Now if your friend had been at Hyde, she would have never told. Why? 'Cuz at Hyde, they would have wanted to know what she did to encourage him. It would have been brought up in school meeting, in front of the whole school, and she would have been eventually convinced that it was... really... all her fault. Then it would have been discussed in seminar or discovery group ad nauseum, and she might even be subjected to disciplinary action to "rethink her attitude" (pulled out of classes and put on work crew aka 2-4).
Not a damn thing would have been done about the Richard character.
Pervs like this gravitate to programs. They are the perfect set up for easy pickin's.
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I also just heard back from Shelby Earnshaw at ISAAC. She said that she'll be working on something for the website right away.
It's already up: http://www.isaccorp.org/documentsam.asp#homelines (http://www.isaccorp.org/documentsam.asp#homelines)
Here is what is currently on ISAC's Watch List for the Homelines program:
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Homelines - Idaho (http://http://www.isaccorp.org/documentsam.asp#homelines)
Homelines is located in Idaho and advertises as a "mentoring program for young men over 18 years of age."
Director Richard Armstrong spent many years working at CEDU schools (http://http://www.isaccorp.org/archives.asp#cedu).
In 1990, Armstrong started Boundarylines Intervention Services, Inc., specializing in transporting teens to various "teen help" schools.
The following statements were taken directly from the Homelines website, http://www.homelines.org (http://www.homelines.org):
The HOMELINES program integrates young adults into mainstream society by providing structure, strong role models, encouraging self-discipline, teaching vocational skills, work ethic and accountability within a traditional family.
These days many boys don’t have the benefit of a strong male mentoring tradition, which enables them to hold the torch of manhood. Today’s pressures often prevent the adult male family members from fulfilling the mentor role in the lives of the children.
Richard Armstrong, the HOMELINES director, has had a remarkable record in successfully establishing a mentor / protégé relationship with his students who have somehow missed this important tradition.[/list]
In 1999, Armstrong was ordered by a federal jury to pay a former employee $164,595 for allegedly drugging and raping her.
Federal Jury Sides with Woman in Rape Lawsuit (http://http://www.isaccorp.org/cedu/ceduescortrape1999.html)
ISAC attempted to locate business records on the Idaho Secretary of State website, but did not find any for Homelines.
We did find corporate filings and annual reports for Boundarylines, Inc.
Interestingly, Boundarylines, Inc, Rocky Mountain Academy, and CEDU all have the the same registered agent.
Boundarylines 2008 Annual Report (http://http://www.isaccorp.org/homelines/boundarylines2008annualreport.pdf)
Rocky Mountain Academy 2004 Annual Report (http://http://www.isaccorp.org/homelines/RMA2004annualreport.pdf)
CEDU 1997 Annual Report (http://http://www.isaccorp.org/homelines/cedu1997annualreport.pdf)
This section is under construction. Please check back soon.
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Maybe, somebody in the know should give the locals some information on this topic.
From the Center for Public Integrity:
Television stations that reach ZIP code 83845, Moyie Springs, ID.
http://projects.publicintegrity.org/tel ... ?zip=83845 (http://projects.publicintegrity.org/telecom/search/default.aspx?zip=83845)
Total Licensed TV Stations 8
Boundary County Tv Translator Dist. 3
Khq, Incorporated 1
Spokane Television, Inc. 1
State Board Of Education (iepbs) 1
Three Angels Broadcasting Network, Inc. 1
TV Stations
Channel Call Sign License Type Network Home Community Licensee Parent Owner
2 KREM-TV Commercial (VHF) CBS Spokane, WA King Broadcasting Company Belo Corp.
4 KXLY-TV Commercial (VHF) ABC Spokane, WA Spokane Television, Inc.
6 KHQ-TV Commercial (VHF) NBC Spokane, WA Khq, Incorporated
9 K09HK Translator (VHF) Bonners Ferry, ID Boundary County Tv Translator Dist.
50 K50GL Translator (UHF) Bonners Ferry, Etc., ID Boundary County Tv Translator Dist.
51 K51IN Low Power (UHF) Bonners Ferry, ID Three Angels Broadcasting Network, Inc.
59 K59BW Translator (UHF) Bonners Ferry, ID State Board Of Education (iepbs)
67 K67DI Translator (UHF) Bonners Ferry, Etc., ID Boundary County Tv Translator Dist.
Radio stations that reach ZIP code 83845, Moyie Springs, ID http://projects.publicintegrity.org/tel ... ?zip=83845 (http://projects.publicintegrity.org/telecom/search/default.aspx?zip=83845)
AM Stations
Frequency Call Sign Format Home Community Licensee Parent Owner
1450 KBFI Bonners Ferry, ID Radio Bonners Ferry, Inc.
FM Stations
Frequency Call Sign Format Home Community Licensee Parent Owner
92.1 KIBX National Public Radio Bonners Ferry, ID Spokane Public Radio, Inc.
95.3 KPND Sandpoint, ID Blue Sky Broadcasting Inc.
3 newspapers within 100 miles of zip code 83845, Moyie Springs, ID http://projects.publicintegrity.org/tel ... ?zip=83845 (http://projects.publicintegrity.org/telecom/search/default.aspx?zip=83845)
Newspaper Location M-F Circulation Sunday Circulation Web Site Owner
Coeur d'Alene Press Coeur d'Alene, ID 21,340 28,500 http://www.cdapress.com (http://www.cdapress.com)
Hagadone Corp.
Bonner County Daily Bee Sandpoint, ID 4,537 28,500 http://www.bonnercountydailybee.com (http://www.bonnercountydailybee.com)
Hagadone Corp.
Shoshone News-Press Kellogg, ID 3,315 28,500 http://www.shoshonenewspress.com (http://www.shoshonenewspress.com)
Hagadone Corp.
Who's up for it?