Police: Teen dies after reportedly being restrained

The Associated Press
February 8, 2006

EPHRATA, Pa. - A teen living at a behavioral treatment center died after reportedly being restrained for disruptive behavior, police said.

Giovanni Aletriz, 16, of Allentown, may have gone into cardiac arrest Saturday after employees at SummitQuest Academy restrained him, said Ephrata police, who were investigating. He later died at a hospital.

His death was the second one at SummitQuest in less than two months. Another resident, James White, 17, died in December of what the county coroner determined was natural causes.

Giovanni's mother, Cynthia Allen, told the New Era of Lancaster that she suspects he was restrained improperly.

"My son had a strong heart and shouldn't be dead. There's no reason a 16-year-old should die of a heart attack," she said. The family has hired an independent pathologist, she said.

Stacey Ward, a spokeswoman for the Pennsylvania Department of Public Welfare, said the agency visited the facility Monday but had not completed its investigation.

A police news release said "reports are" that Giovanni had been restrained before he died. The police referred questions to Lancaster County District Attorney Don Totaro, who declined to comment about whether the boy had been restrained.

SummitQuest's parent company issued a statement saying information about the treatment of people in their care is protected by privacy laws.

"On the subject of the use of restraint in general, at SummitQuest Academy, we utilize a comprehensive crisis management procedure ... (that) includes techniques designed to safely use manual restraint in the presence of a nurse," according to ViaQuest Behavioral Health Pennsylvania regional director Christopher Grala.

The 129-bed facility treats boys with psychiatric and behavioral problems, including "sexually abusive or sexually problematic behaviors", the company said.