| I will share
important information about the maltreatment of children who are being held
captive in private residential facilities operated by for-profit businesses.
The purpose is to expose
wrongdoing by businesses to which frustrated parents entrust the lives of
their children. All too often, that trust is misplaced. But the
parents have no way of knowing what is really going on behind closed doors
in these places which call themselves "boot camps," or "behavior
modification programs," or "residential treatment programs," or "boarding
schools," or "wilderness programs."
When the programs are located hundreds or
even thousands of miles from the family home, how can parents know what is
really happening to their child? The risk of abuse or neglect at these
facilities is even greater because many programs require parents to sign
over parental authority to the program, prohibit relatives from visiting or
contacting the child for several months, and tell parents to distrust any
complaints they eventually hear from the child.
The problem is further aggravated by the fact
that most of these facilities are not licensed by the state and are not
regularly monitored by child welfare agencies.
I am on a quest to expose the truth about
this expanding industry. My interest began when children close to me
were abducted (at their parent's instigation) and forced to live in
unlicensed and abusive residential programs. My concern for these
children and thousands of others like them prompted me to investigate
further.
My "Zehnder Reports" will be published on
this website, from time to time, as the need arises. They will now be known
as "CAICA Reports". The first
"Zehnder Report" was published on February 26, 2005. It includes
hard evidence that children (ages 7 to 14) at a facility in Utah known as
"Majestic Ranch" have been exposed to numerous health and safety violations
in addition to many instances of abuse and neglect. It also
documents that government agencies have failed to protect these children and
to prosecute the abusers.
Read the report --
Majestic Ranch: A Living Nightmare for Kids
-- and if you are as outraged as I am about the situation,
contact CAICA at
info@caica.org and
officials
in Utah and demand they take action. Perhaps you might even take
the time to send an e-mail, write a letter, or place a phone call to some
media in Utah. Tell them how you
feel about this.
Together we can make a difference.
Please get involved -- for the sake of the children.
© 2005
Permission for this article to be reproduced for educational purposes
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