In January, boot-camp guards from the Bay County Sheriff's Office beat and suffocated 14-year-old Martin Lee Anderson before he collapsed and died. The official response has been too much stonewalling and coverup.

Now the family, represented by Willie Gary's Stuart firm, has sued the Bay County Sheriff's Office and the Florida Department of Juvenile Justice for $40 million. If the agencies had seemed more interested in seeing justice done, the lawsuit might have been avoided. Bay County Sheriff Frank McKeithen told The Associated Press that he rejected a $3 million settlement because, "The investigation is incomplete and still pending at this time." Did he not see the videotape of his guards beating Martin Anderson? Rest assured that jurors in a civil trial will.

That the investigation, which is being led by Hillsborough County State Attorney Mark Ober, "is incomplete and still pending" six months later is of more concern to the public than the lawsuit. No charges have been filed against the seven guards. There still has been no satisfactory explanation for how the original coroner in the case, Charles Siebert, ruled nonsensically that the youth died of sickle cell trait.

Another issue is the state's failure - despite promises from Gov. Bush and the Legislature - to reform boot camps. The politicians talked a good game shortly after Martin Anderson was killed, but then didn't provide enough money to replicate the model program run by Sheriff Bob Crowder in Martin County. That program, with an 80 percent success rate, has shut down for lack of money.

Martin Lee Anderson's family has gone to civil court. When will the case get to criminal court?