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GAO finds abuses at 'tough love'
camps for troubled kids
October 10, 2007
By Ken Dilanian
WASHINGTON — Members of Congress
from both parties reacted with outrage Wednesday to wrenching
testimony from parents of children who died in residential programs
for troubled teens, saying a federal law may be needed to remedy a
lack of oversight. "I can't think of any testimony that we have
heard in this committee that has caused a greater sense of anger and
sorrow," said Democrat George Miller of California, chairman of the
Committee on Education and Labor, moments after hearing three
parents recount the deaths of their teenagers in wilderness therapy
programs designed to help them.
Rep. Buck McKeon, the ranking
Republican, said he does not like to expand the role of the federal
government, "but there are some times when it has to happen."
VIDEO: Parents detail torture at
boot camps
Several states don't regulate
private wilderness programs, boot camps and therapeutic boarding
schools, which enroll thousands of children each year and have been
the subject of what the Government Accountability Office (GAO)
called "widespread" allegations of abuse and neglect. No law
prevents operators who have been disciplined in one state from
setting up shop in another — something investigators say happens
often.
Jan Moss, executive director of the
National Association of Therapeutic Schools and Programs, said the
industry wants state regulation. Her group represents 180 facilities
that serve 16,000 children.
"Among our goals is the complete
elimination of the abuses and neglectful practices we have heard
about today," she said. "Clearly, we have a long way to go."
The GAO on Wednesday presented the
committee with the results of their investigation into the industry.
The congressional investigative agency selected 10 deaths to examine
in depth and found reckless practices, inadequate training and
misleading marketing. It also found what Rep. Todd Platts, R-Pa.,
called "horrific" examples of abuse.
"If you walked in partway through
my presentation, you might have assumed I was talking about human
rights violations in a Third World country," said Gregory Kutz, a
GAO investigator.
Kutz said there is no comprehensive
nationwide data on deaths and injuries in residential treatment
programs. The GAO identified 1,619 incidents of child abuse in such
settings that were reported to the Department of Health and Human
Services in 2005, but reporting is voluntary and not all states
comply. Auditors found thousands of allegations in lawsuits,
websites and state records, he said.
"Examples of abuse include youth
being forced to eat their own vomit, denied adequate food, being
forced to lie in urine or feces, being kicked, beaten and thrown to
the ground," Kutz said, adding that one teen was reportedly "forced
to use a toothbrush to clean a toilet, then forced to use that
toothbrush on their own teeth."
In several cases examined by the
GAO, staff was untrained to detect medical emergencies. "As a
result, many of these kids died slowly while program management and
staff continued to believe that they were faking it," Kutz said.
Kutz spoke forcefully, more in the
manner of a prosecutor than a government auditor. Among the slides
he presented to lawmakers was the grisly photo of a 15-year-old
California girl who was left for 18 hours on a dirt road after
collapsing from dehydration in 1990.
The three parents who testified —
Bob Bacon, Cynthia Harvey and Paul Lewis — each choked up as they
told of sending their troubled teenagers against their will into
"tough love" wilderness programs. Each warned parents to avoid such
programs until government rules can assure parents they are safe.
"His mother and I will never escape
our decision to send our gifted 16-year-old son to his death," Bacon
said, speaking of son Aaron, who died from an untreated perforated
ulcer after weeks of punishing physical activity with very little
food. "We were conned by their fraudulent claims and will go to our
graves regretting our gullibility
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