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Aaron Wright Bacon
Loving Them to Death
On March 31, 1994, 16-year old Aaron Bacon
died. Aaron’s mom received a phone call that no parent ever wants to
receive. It was a call from Utah’s North Star Expeditions’ employee
who told her “Aaron is down, we can’t get a pulse.” Aaron was being
airlifted to a hospital in Page, Arizona. She was told that he had
collapsed in the desert, that it was a freak accident.
On March 1, 1994, the Bacon’s had enrolled Aaron in a 63-day North
Star course near Escalante because in his sophomore year he started
smoking pot and ditching classes. His grades plummeted. He was
jumped by members of a gang which caused his parents to believe he
might have had some involvement with them, though Aaron adamantly
denied any involvement.
So after hearing about North Star from a friend
of a friend, Aaron’s parents, Bob and Sally Bacon, enrolled him.
North Star strongly recommended he be escorted to the facility. Bob
and Sally voiced their concerns about Aaron’s very thin build to
North Star owners Lance and Barbara Jaggar, concerned he may have
difficulties. They explained he did not respond well to
intimidation. They were reassured Lance had a special gift for
working with kids and that Aaron would not lose weight.
So the Bacons’ took out a second mortgage to
pay the $13,900 tuition for the 63-day course, plus another $775 to
pay for the forced “escort” to Escalante.
At 6:00 a.m. on March 1, Aaron was taken from
his bed forcibly and against his will by Lance Jaggar and his
brother-in-law, Don Burkhart, at the request of his parents. But
Sally had a tough time saying goodbye, grabbing his face in her
hands and assuring him this was for his own good, asking that he not
be afraid. Aaron was then taken to the airport and flown to
Escalante.
Over the next month, Aaron’s mother called
frequently to see how he was doing. On March 30th she
called and had a long conversation with North Star spokeswoman Daryl
Bartholomew who told her that he was belligerent and a whiner and
that the other kids resented him. She was told he may even have to
repeat the program. 24-hours later, Aaron was dead.
According to the autopsy report, the cause of
Aaron’s death was acute peritonitis resulting from a perforated
ulcer. “The contents of Aaron’s gastrointestinal tract had leaked
through two holes in his small intestine, spreading a massive
infection throughout his abdominal cavity. North Star explained that
the ailment had surfaced so suddenly that heroic efforts by its
field staff and an emergency medical helicopter were futile.
Preliminary reports from the Garfield County sheriff's office seemed
to confirm North Star's contention that the death was an unavoidable
accident.”
Things changed when Aaron’s body arrived and
his mother saw his remains. Aaron’s mother was confronted with a
“battered, emaciated corpse.” She screamed and had to cover her
eyes. She said, "His hipbones stuck way out, his ribs--he looked
like a concentration-camp victim. There were bruises from the tip of
his toes to the top of his head, open sores up and down the inside
of his thighs. The only way we were even able to recognize him was a
childhood scar above his right eye."
She knew his death was not an accident and that
something horrible had been done to her own son. (See Exhibit
1.)
Death Trip:
Aaron’s mother is quoted as saying “I was
seeking a place where Aaron could go and get in touch with God and
himself,” Sally Bacon said. “Where he could get clearheaded and
think about choices, about where his life was going. I was trying to
help my child, and what they did to him is so horrible that I can’t
even talk about it.”
In one of Aaron’s last entries, in handwriting
that had begun to deteriorate, Aaron speculated that his parents
would never have sent him to the camp if they’d known what it would
really be like.
“It’s my 21st day here, and I’m in
terrible condition,” he wrote. “I feel like I’m losing control of my
body … I’m so scared of everything here – staff, slick rocks,
nights, the cold, everything. I couldn’t tell at all that I would be
doing this sort of thing from the catalog. I describe it as legal
child abuse.” (See Exhibit 2.)
Deadly Discipline:
“Lee (Wallace A. Lee, county attorney for
Garfield County, Utah) said William Henry not only set the tone for
the treatment of Aaron, he was personally informed of and approved
of the care Aaron was receiving. And that care, Lee said, was
horrific.” Eight people were charged with felony child neglect and
abuse in Aaron’s death. (See Exhibit 3.)
Tough Love Proves Too Tough:
Sally Bacon recounts her memory of her first
moments with Aaron upon his return from North Star. She said “I went
into the room and his face was unrecognizable…He had these sunken
cheeks, and his eyes, he looked like a skeleton, his hands were all
bone. I ripped the sheet off.” “He was literally bruised, black and
blue, from the tip of his toes to the top of his head. He had sores
between his legs, open sores. The bottoms of his feet, I don’t know
how anyone could have walked or hiked on them. I began screaming,
because something was terribly wrong.”
It goes on to say that critics say there is
little evidence to show that wilderness therapy works. They cite one
study in the mid-1980’s where the City of San Diego tracked the
first 100 delinquent boys it sent through the VisionQuest program.
After one year, 55 percent had been arrested again. After three
years, 92 percent had been arrested again. Still, industry leaders
like Buie insist that the concepts work.
The real crime, says Aaron’s father, Bob Bacon,
is that so many young people are dead. And no one will take
responsibility. “The ignorance, arrogance, incompetence,
callousness, and greed of the people running these programs is
proving repeatedly to be dangerous, abusive, and even fatal,” says
Bacon. “The lessons are not being learned.” (Exhibit 4).
The details of this report will prove that
Aaron’s death was anything but an accident.
Facts
This is a summary of background information
taken from the State of Utah Court of Appeals’ Opinion, (Exhibit 5).
Lance Jaggar and seven other North Star employees were charged with
felony child abuse and neglect in Aaron’s death.
The North Star Program
A-Team
Orientation/holding area for youth entering the program
Primitive
Children were taken out into the Escalante River basin with
backpacks, sleeping bags, and modest
amounts of food;
Handcarts Students learned to work together as a team; and
Llamas Students learned to care for animals and also
prepared to return to their homes.
Provisions
At the beginning of the program, each student
was assigned a backpack, sleeping bag (rated to twenty degrees below
zero), and clothing. Following a forty-eight hour fast broken by a
can of peaches, students received a one-week supply of food. They
were allowed to eat as much of their ration of supplies as they
wished each day. Each food package generally consisted of rice,
lentils, oatmeal, cornmeal, trail mix, and smaller amounts of fresh
vegetables, cheese, and sausage.
The students were required to cook their food
themselves in a metal cup (holding about five fluid ounces) provided
by North Star.
North Star Policies and Procedures
All new North Star employees reviewed and
signed a copy of the North Star policies and procedures, which were
consistent with state licensing standards. The policies provided
that "line staff" (the instructors) were responsible "for the safety
and welfare of fellow staff members and students."
The policies instructed staff to never call
students names or make jokes directed to an individual and never to
make condemning comments to students. They were also required to
review and sign a copy of the Provider Code of Conduct. The
"Discipline and Treatment of the Student," provided that:
The following is
not appropriate treatment of a student and is grounds for
dismissal:
1. Verbal abuse using language which attacks the well being
of the student. This may include but is not limited to name calling,
teasing, humiliation, ridicule, use of foul and abusive language,
etc.;
2. The withholding of any meal;
3. Excessive denial of ongoing program services or denial of
any essential program services solely for disciplinary purposes;
4. Denial of shelter, clothing or bedding; and
5. Failure to provide adequate medical care and/or treatment
as is necessary or as is instructed by a physician.
Instructors’ Responsibilities
The instructors were expected to report any
illness, complaint, or disciplinary incident (such as a student
refusing to carry his or her pack or trying to run away) to their
backup supervisor. Most days, an instructor was in radio contact
with North Star's Escalante office.
Daily Journal
The students kept a daily journal in which they
recorded their progress through the program. Each student's journal
was read by an instructor, who also wrote comments to the student in
the student's journal. The instructors also had to keep journals.
Aaron’s Journal Entries:
March 12 . . . . “I fell because I lost
balance and my legs were so weak . . . . My whole body became numb
that time and I was so weak that I couldn't even lift my arms. I was
down for so long that I began to lose sight. Not go blind but I
couldn't keep my eyes open.”
March 21 . . . . "I haven't been able to
eat for awhile [sic] and I'm pretty cold and hungry. I haven't eaten
for a long time. Actually for more than a day." “I am in terrible
condition here. My hands are all chapped and my lips are cracking. I
feel like I'm losing control of my body. I start[ed] to pee my pants
every night for the past three nights and today when we started our
little hike I took a dump in my pants. I didn't even feel it coming.
It just happened. I told Jeff [Hohenstein] because I thought he
might be more sympathetic and easy on . . . me, but he yelled to
Craig [Fisher], "He took a dump in his pants." . . . All of the
other students started to laugh and I couldn't help it.
March 22 . . . . "[a]ll I can think
about is cold and pain . . . . I need to eat now. I haven't been
able to eat trail food all day, no breakfast, no trail food,
nothing. I am so cold."
Loving Them to Death
Excerpts from Aaron Bacon's personal journal
Aaron Bacon "working towards success"
1-March-94
I have been shaking from the cold since I got
here, my body being used to the weather in Phoenix is going to go
into auto shock. I feel like I'm going to die. My whole body is
goose flesh and I feel like it's being stretched over my body like
the skin of an animal over a drum. I am scared. I don't know when I
can talk or if I can. I was given "food" today and I have no clue
how to eat any of it. I am being grouped with 9 advanced students
(who I can have no verbal contact with, and of course no physical) 5
of the nine are girls, I can't believe that these people are happy
and I don't. I have noticed that all of the advanced students have
cheese and sausage. I am with one other "A teamer" (I guess that's
what I am) he and I can talk as much as I want with him, thank (word
scratched out). I've been sitting by the fire since I've been
writing and I've been the closest that I've been to another person
(or the longest length of time) and I am still cold as all (word
scratched out). I have to write as I would speak now because "There
is to be no use of profanity. This rule includes never using of the
name of deity (God) in vain." What bull (word scratched out). They
are . . .
One of the final entries
(This entry is blood-smeared and every sentence
grows increasing illegible)
. . . blood every where, my nose has been
bleeding for the past couple daze and even that scares me. I never
get nose bleeds at home and that sort of reminds me of that airplane
movie where (illegible) is always saying he never does that at home.
Primitive Phase
Fisher was a counselor who had about three
months of experience at the time Aaron was enrolled at North Star.
He was assigned to the “Primitive” section that began with a
forty-eight hour fast called “Impact.” After Impact, the students
were given a can of peaches to break the fast.
Following the fast students and staff ate only
two meals a day--breakfast and dinner. However, students were
allowed to eat their weekly food allotment at whatever pace they
chose, and they were not prohibited from eating a mid-day meal if
they wished. No one was allowed to share food with anyone else.
Aaron Bacon’s Decline
When Aaron entered the program, he was five
feet, ten inches tall and weighed 131 pounds. He was assigned to
Fisher's Primitive section on March 11, and in accord with North
Star practice, ate no food on March 12-13 (the "Impact" portion)
except some prickly pear cactus he foraged. On March 12, Aaron noted
in his journal that he fell twice while hiking and could not get up
because the pack was too heavy
The instructors testified that they believed
Aaron was feigning his problems and fell because he was lazy and did
not want to carry a pack.
March 13-15
On March 13, to break the Impact fast, Aaron
and the others each ate a can of peaches. That night Aaron ate rice
and lentils for dinner. The next day, March 14, he ate both
breakfast and dinner. Aaron also fell while hiking on this day. He
did not eat breakfast on the morning of March 15. He stopped hiking
and lay down, complaining that he was too tired to hike and could
not go any further.
Again, Fisher and the other instructors
interpreted Aaron’s complaints as "a lack of motivation and
laziness." Aaron and another student decided to drop their
packs--that is, continue hiking with the group but without their
packs--and they were told by Fisher and the other instructors that
if they dropped their packs, it would be several days before they
could retrieve them.
Aaron and the other student decided nonetheless
to drop their packs, leaving behind their food, sleeping bags, and
cooking cups. As a result, Aaron was not able to cook food that
evening (although he ate some cold food).
Aaron was also without his sleeping bag and
coat that night, and slept under the shelter with the group.
The low temperature that night was thirty-one
degrees Fahrenheit.
March 16
Aaron had less difficulty hiking the next day,
March 16, although he and another student slid down a slickrock
wall, breaking a couple of water containers and suffering a few
minor abrasions. Fisher interpreted Aaron’s ability to hike well
that day as proof of Aaron’s laziness on the previous days. None of
the students ate dinner that night, because they did not have enough
water.
The low temperature was thirty-six degrees
Fahrenheit, and Aaron again slept without a sleeping bag.
March 17-18
On March 17, the only breakfast Aaron ate was a
six-inch-long raw lizard and one cooked scorpion (several other
students and staff members also ate scorpions). The group returned
to the dropped packs that day, and Aaron was able to eat a hot
dinner.
Aaron ate two meals on March 18. That day, the
entire group waded through chest-deep water, and Aaron’s pack and
its contents, including his clothes and sleeping bag, were soaked
through.
The low temperature that night was thirty-six
degrees Fahrenheit.
March 19-20
None of the students ate breakfast on March 19,
but they did eat rice and lentils for dinner. The group did not hike
on March 20.
When Aaron and another student were still not
able to make a fire using the bow drill, Fisher established a "no
fire, no food" rule, and the other instructors acquiesced in his
decision.
March 21
The next day, March 21, Aaron wrote in his
journal that he had not been able to eat for a while and was cold
and hungry. He wrote that he was in terrible condition, that his
hands were chapped and his lips were cracked. He also wrote that he
felt he was losing control of his body and that he was losing
control of bodily functions, resulting in students laughing and
making fun of him.
Again, Fisher and the other instructors
interpreted Aaron’s incontinence as a sign that Aaron lacked
"self-respect" and was feigning ailments. Although the group often
slept in a "burrito"--with everyone sleeping close together under
the same tarp--after this date no one would sleep next to Aaron.
It is not clear whether Aaron ate dinner that
night, but he never succeeded in starting a fire using the bow drill
and would thus have been prohibited from eating anything but cold or
foraged food under Fisher's "no fire, no food" rule. Fisher left for
his twenty-four-hour leave on the evening of March 21.
March 22
Aaron was not allowed to eat breakfast on the
morning of March 22 because "his cup wasn't clean" and he "didn't
get a fire," but he did forage some prickly pear cactus. Because
Fisher was in town on leave, he did not participate in this
decision.
Fisher returned from leave on the evening of
March 22 and was angry at the students because they were late
setting up camp. As a result, the students were not allowed to eat
dinner, although the staff ate a dinner of bacon and pork chops.
That evening, Aaron wrote in his journal that
all he could think about was the cold and pain, and that he needed
to eat. He said he had not been able to eat anything and that he was
so cold.
March 23
On March 23, Aaron’s cup was still not clean,
so he was not allowed to cook food. The other students ate rice and
lentils.
Aaron again told the instructors that he could
not carry his pack any longer and that his stomach hurt. Fisher
reminded Aaron that if he dropped his pack he would not have food or
a sleeping bag for the next few days, but Aaron dropped his pack
anyway.
Aaron’s only dinner that night was a mixture of
powdered milk and brown sugar given to him secretly by another
student.
That night, he slept under the shelter, without
a sleeping bag, blanket, or coat.
The low temperature that night was twenty-five
degrees Fahrenheit.
March 24-25
Aaron was not allowed to eat breakfast or
dinner on March 24, and he again slept without a sleeping bag or
blanket. The low temperature that night was twenty-nine degrees
Fahrenheit, and Aaron told the instructors that he was cold.
The next morning, March 25, Aaron had only
prickly pear cactus or pine needle tea for breakfast.
The group hiked eight miles that day.
The instructors "were a little bit concerned
about [Aaron’s] energy level" and "his appearance. He was getting a
bit thin at that point [and] was weak, his face was pale and his
cheeks were hollow" and he was "looking gaunt."
Aaron was not allowed to eat that night, again
complained of a stomach ache, and was listless and dispirited.
The owners of North Star, Bill Henry and Lance
Jaggar,(4) visited the group's camp that night. They gave Aaron a
wool blanket to sleep with, but they directed the instructors not to
let Aaron sleep under the shelter because he had not helped build
it. Aaron slept near the fire.
The low temperature that night was twenty-seven
degrees Fahrenheit.
March 26
Aaron ate prickly pear cactus and pine needle
tea for breakfast the next morning, March 26.
On Henry and Jaggar's direction, the
instructors made the students do "physical training"--100 four-count
jumping jacks, 100 leg raises, 100 sit-ups, and 50 pushups. Aaron
was able to do only ten sit-ups on his own power, and the
instructors helped him do another twenty more.
The group hiked only two miles that day,
because Aaron said he could not hike any longer.
That night, Fisher and another instructor took
rice and lentils from another student and gave them to Aaron to eat.
Later that night, he again complained of stomach pain and vomited.
The low temperature was twenty-eight degrees
Fahrenheit.
Fisher left for his second twenty-four-hour
leave late on the night of March 26. He called Henry and asked for
Aaron to be transferred to the "A-team" section of North Star
because Aaron was poorly motivated and had a bad attitude.
Also on March 26, Jeff Hohenstein filled out a
weekly evaluation for Aaron He wrote that Aaron’s health was "[n]ot
good. Since he dropped his pack he has lost more weight. He is
listless . . . ." Hohenstein described Aaron’s motivation as "[n]on-existent:
even in the face of the strictest consequences he practically,
almost literally, has to be picked up and made to move."
March 27
On March 27, Aaron was allowed to eat rice and
lentils for breakfast and dinner, in spite of the "no fire, no food"
rule.
The group hiked more than ten miles that day.
When Fisher returned from his twenty-four-hour
leave, he brought an electrolyte replacement drink for Aaron and
another student. Although he still had not made a fire, Aaron was
allowed to eat that night, because Fisher and Hohenstein were
concerned about him.
The low temperature was thirty-two degrees
Fahrenheit.
March 28
The "no fire, no food" rule was invoked again
by the three instructors on March 28, and Aaron was not allowed to
eat breakfast.
They hiked between eight and fifteen miles that
day. By this time, Aaron looked skinny and unhealthy, his face was
drawn, and he could not hike well. Aaron had to be carried the last
half-mile into camp that night, and was "always complaining" that
his stomach hurt. Again, the instructors discounted Aaron’s
complaints and called him a "faker."
At this point, the instructors were concerned
about Aaron’s weight loss and told him he had to eat. The
instructors made him eat a cup of rice and lentils, and Aaron
complained that it hurt him to eat. Aaron told the instructors that
his stomach hurt and he needed to see a doctor, but they told him it
was a long way to a doctor.
The low temperature that night was thirty-two
degrees Fahrenheit.
March 29
The group did "full-body hygiene" on March
29--that is, they all stripped down, washed their bodies, and
laundered their clothes. Aaron’s fellow students testified that he
was pale and "really skinny" and looked like a "Jewish person" in a
"concentration camp."
Aaron again asked that day, in Fisher's
presence, to see a doctor. He again complained that his stomach hurt
and that he was dizzy, and he also reported seeing spots.
Aaron hiked poorly that day, and repeatedly
fell down. When Fisher asked Aaron why he was "falling all the
time," Aaron responded that he did not know.
Aaron’s "very general and vague" answers led
Fisher to conclude that "it was something minor being exaggerated or
an outright fake."
That evening, Aaron had difficulty gathering
wood. The instructors, including Fisher, mocked Aaron by saying "I'm
to [sic] week [sic] to pick up wood. I'm weak. My stomach hurts. I
can't eat." Aaron ate rice and lentils that night.
The low temperature was thirty-two degrees
Fahrenheit.
March 30
Aaron ate oatmeal for breakfast on March 30. He
retrieved his pack after the group had hiked a mile or two. However,
he decided to abandon it again after he fell over while carrying it.
Aaron was carried back to camp by other
students, and on the way there Aaron looked up at the sky and said
that it "looked purple and that there was lights flashing." Aaron
again complained of stomach pain.
Fisher wrote in his journal that the group
"tried to hike, but [Aaron] wouldn't allow us to," and that Aaron
was "throwing fits and moaning." Fisher radioed the North Star
office, and Georgette Costigan,(5) an emergency medical technician,
met the group to check on Aaron.
Costigan asked Aaron how he was doing and gave
him a piece of cheese. She did not do a medical assessment beyond
noticing that his skin was flushed and dry and feeling for (but not
counting) his pulse.
Aaron told Costigan that his stomach hurt.
Neither Fisher nor the other instructors told
Costigan that Aaron had been complaining that:
- He had stomach pain
- He had gone without food or a sleeping bag
- He complained of dizziness and seeing
spots and other visual hallucinations
- He had repeatedly fallen while hiking
- He was incontinent
- He had vomited
- He had repeatedly asked to see a doctor
- He had been losing weight.
When Fisher asked Costigan to take Aaron back
into town with her, Costigan said that because it was not anything
serious, she would leave him there for the night and come back to
check on him again the next day.
Aaron vomited again that night. He was moaning,
and when Fisher told him to stop moaning, Aaron said that he could
not.
While the other students ate dinner and wrote
in their journals, Aaron sat away from the group, his head tilted to
the side and his jaw agape, drooling.
Fisher told him to stop drooling and mimicked
him.
Aaron ate rice and lentils that night, and
complained that his stomach was hurting "really bad."
He told Fisher that he did not want to die, and
Fisher assured him that he would not. Aaron slept in a sleeping bag
that night for the first time in eight days.
March 31
On the morning of March 31, Aaron took about
one hour to leave the shelter and crawl to the campfire, which was
twenty feet away. Fisher testified that Aaron looked "really bad . .
. . He looked really sick and he was--he was weak. We had to . . .
pick him up off the ground."
Aaron repeatedly fell asleep while he was
crawling, and Fisher and the other instructors would wake him up and
tell him to keep going. He had again become incontinent.
When Aaron was finally able to stand up, he
immediately fell over again. Aaron told Fisher and Hohenstein that
he had to use the latrine, and when they went to check on him they
found that Aaron could not make it to the latrine.
They carried him to the latrine and left him
there; when they returned for him, they found that he had fallen
into the latrine and his feet were covered in excrement.
Another instructor radioed the North Star
office to tell them that Aaron refused to hike and was complaining
of a stomach ache. Costigan told the instructor to leave Aaron with
the Llama group, which she would be visiting that day.
Students carried Aaron to the Llama camp. Some
time later, other North Star employees arrived to take Aaron from
the Llama group to the A-team (holding group).
Aaron was unable to walk and looked pale and
sickly, and he told one of these staff members that he was "really
sick." A North Star employee, who had been told that Aaron was
feigning illness, told Aaron that he just needed to get in the
truck. Aaron got into the truck and the North Star employee fastened
Aaron’s seat belt.
For the next few minutes, the staff made fun of
Aaron and imitated his collapse.
When Aaron slouched over in the truck, they
unbelted him, checked for a pulse, began CPR, and radioed North Star
for help.
A physician's assistant, who had examined Aaron
before he began the North Star program, arrived and began advanced
life support procedures on Aaron.
The physician's assistant later testified that
Aaron was so gaunt he did not recognize Aaron as the boy he had
examined several weeks earlier.
A helicopter arrived, and Aaron was flown to
Page, Arizona, where he was pronounced dead.
The autopsy revealed that Aaron died of acute
peritonitis resulting from a perforated ulcer. Expert testimony
established that the ulcer had most likely developed around March
15, and that malnutrition and hypothermia would have aggravated his
condition. During his time at North Star, Aaron’s weight dropped
from 131 pounds to 108 pounds, a 17% loss of body mass.
*
NORTHSTAR EXPEDITIONS STAFF SENTENCED NOVEMBER
1
According to Cathy Sutton, of the Michelle
Sutton Memorial Fund, the Northstar Expeditions staff in Utah were
charged with responsibility for the death of Aaron Bacon, about a
year ago, were sentenced November 1, 1996. Aaron Bacon’s death
generated considerable national publicity at the time. Owners Lance
Jagger and William Henry, along with three other staff members had
pleaded Guilty to Negligent Homicide, a Class A Misdemeanor. All
five defendants were given a one year suspended sentence, fines, 36
months probation, and significant community service hours. On
November 6, 1996, a jury found another staff member, Craig Fisher,
Guilty for Neglect and Abuse of a Disabled Child, a Third Degree
Felony. Sentencing was set for December 19.
http://www.strugglingteens.com/archives/1997/2/seen02.html |
