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Youth camp charged in teen's death
July 15, 2008
By Joey Bunch
A Montrose County grand jury today
handed up a raft of charges against operators and staff of a youth
rehabilitation camp in connection with the death of a 15-year-old
who died in their care.
Caleb Jensen died in May 2007 from
an untreated staph infection at a court-ordered wilderness camp run
by Alternative Youth Adventures in Montrose.
The program was shuttered after his
death and surrendered its state license.
The grand jury filed various
negligent homicide, child abuse resulting in death and manslaughter
charges against staff and management, as well as Dr. Keith Hooker,
the camp's medical director.
"CEC stands by its position that at
all times the company acted appropriately and that the circumstances
that lead to Caleb Jensen's death, while tragic, were not reasonably
foreseeable," according to a statement from the New Jersey-based
company that owns the wilderness program, Community Education
Centers.
District Attorney Myrl Serra did
not return a telephone call to comment on the indictments.
Jensen was placed in the program by
the Utah Division of Juvenile Services two months before his death.
His mother, Dawn Boyd of Salt Lake
City, could not be reached for comment this afternoon.
A tribute website she created
includes a handwritten letter said to be the last one he wrote home
from the camp.
Caleb said in the letter, "I wish I
could go back and be a good little boy, a nice little naive church
boy who couldn't steal bubble gum without feeling bad about it. I
want to wear sponge bob pj's and big teddy bear slippers and cuddle
up next to my mommy. I usta think I was to hard of a gangsta that
nobody could break me, but they found my weakness and I want to come
home."
Alternative Youth Adventures, its
parent company, program director James Omer and Hooker were charged
with negligent homicide and child abuse resulting in death.
Staff member Ben Askins was charged
with manslaughter and child abuse resulting in death.
The defendants will be be formally
charged in an Aug. 25 court hearing in Montrose.
Joey Bunch: 303-954-1174 or jbunch@denverpost.com
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