COALITION AGAINST INSTITUTIONALIZED CHILD ABUSE
 HEADLINE NEWS                                                                                                                                                                                                             CAICA EN FRANÇAIS
 

CAICA     HOME   │   NEWS  │  PROGRAM NEWS  │  STORIES │  DEATHS  │   WWASPS   │  PARENTS' CORNER  │  MISSION  │ SITE MAP │  LINKS & RESOURCES
  _______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

              AUTISM  │ LITIGATION  │  LEGISLATION  │ JUVENILE JUSTICE  │ MENTAL HEALTH │ LIGHTER SIDE │  EN FRANCAIS  │ COMMENTS  │ LIST SERVE  │  BLOGS  
 

 

Parents of dead teen don't want case tried in Panama City if anyone is charged

March 20, 2006
BY MARC CAPUTO
mcaputo@MiamiHerald.com

TALLAHASSEE - The parents of a boy who died at the Bay County juvenile boot camp want the case moved far away from Panama City, saying they can't get justice in their home county.

Gina Jones and Robert Anderson said today that their 14-year-old was ''murdered'' by guards Jan. 5 and, despite video evidence of a beating by as many as eight guards, no one has been arrested or even fired from the Bay County Sheriff's Office, which runs the soon-to-be-closed camp.

''When this trial takes place, it's almost the entire Bay County Sheriff's Office on trial here,'' said family lawyer Daryl Parks, adding it's ''very difficult'' to get an impartial jury in such a small town.

A spokeswoman for the Hillsborough County state attorney's office, which has been asked by Gov. Jeb Bush to investigate the case, declined comment. The Bay County's Sheriff's Office has refused comment on the case.

The parents' call to move the case is premature, in that no one has been charged. Their civil suit against the boot camp has yet to move forward, and a new prosecutor from Tampa was just assigned the case by the governor, who also called for a new autopsy. Results of that second autopsy will be released in the coming weeks.

Preliminary results of the second autopsy, however, suggest that Martin Lee Anderson did not die from natural causes from exercise-related sickle-cell trait -- a finding made in the first autopsy by Bay County's medical examiner, Charles Siebert.

Siebert defended his autopsy last week, prompting Martin's parents to hold a press conference today to reassert that they felt he participated in a ``cover-up.''

According to a state Department of Juvenile Justice report, Siebert told a DJJ doctor that it was ''highly unusual'' he had to perform the autopsy because Martin died in the hospital of another county where he had been flown. Siebert, though, denied he ever said those words.

Siebert confirmed that Bay County's sheriff, Frank McKeithen, had requested he perform the autopsy. McKeithen is one of the most popular officials in the county, having won office with 78 percent of the vote.

Almost from day one, Martin's parents have said they see evidence of conspiracy. They pointed fingers at McKeithen's involvement and the disputed autopsy, and opposed the Florida Department of Law Enforcement's role in the case because its chief, Guy Tunnell, was the former Bay County sheriff.

Tunnell, who has promised an impartial investigation, founded the boot camp and hired many of the staff members now under examination.

''I just want the sheriff and the medical examiner to stop coming out for the guards. It's time for them to get charged for murdering my baby,'' said Jones, Martin's mother.

``No peace until justice. That's the way I feel.''

 

 

 
DISCLAIMER, WARNINGS, AND NOTICE TO READERS: This website does not represent or endorse the accuracy or reliability of any of the information, content collectively, the "Materials") contained on, distributed through, or linked, downloaded or accessed from any of the services contained on this website (the "Service"). None of the contributors, sponsors, administrators or anyone else connected with this website in any way whatsoever can be responsible for the appearance of any inaccurate or libelous information or for your use of the information contained in these web pages. All information provided using this website is only intended to be general summary information to the public.

FAIR USE NOTICE: These pages may contain copyrighted (© ) material the use of which has not always been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. Such material is made available to advance understanding of ecological, political, human rights, economic, democracy, scientific, moral, ethical, and social justice issues, etc. It is believed that this constitutes a 'fair use' of any such copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright Law. In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior general interest in receiving similar information for research and educational purposes. For more information go to: http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml. If you wish to use copyrighted material for purposes of your own that go beyond 'fair use', you must obtain permission from the copyright owner.

REFERRALS: CAICA is not a referral agency. CAICA does not refer to or promote facilities or transport companies for children or teens. CAICA warns parents that the parent pay / parent choice programs ie. Residential Treatment Centers, Therapeutic Boarding Schools, Behavior Modification Programs, Christian Programs, Positive Peer Culture Programs, etc., are not regulated by the Federal Government and that it is a "Buyer Beware" industry. CAICA provides the following for parents: Message to Parents, Help for Distraught and Desperate Parents, and Questions to Ask and Warning Signs.

© 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008