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Abuse allegations, apathy show need
for ‘boot camp’ regulations
October 7, 2007
Perhaps a federal investigation
will lead to better protection for children in Missouri boarding
schools. Officials in the state have failed miserably in their role.
The U.S. Government Accountability
Office is interviewing students and employees of Thayer Learning
Center, a “boot camp” for troubled teenagers in Kidder, Mo., about
50 miles north of Kansas City.
A 15-year-old boy died there in
2004. A coroner said the most likely cause was a spider or insect
bite, but a state investigation found that the center denied proper
medical care to Roberto Reyes, who was weak and ill in the days
before his death.
A 2005 investigation by The Kansas
City Star found that at least seven people had reported abuse
allegations to the Caldwell County sheriff’s office in a period of a
little over two years.
Employees alleged that teenagers
were doused with cold water while tied up on a concrete floor and
denied access to bathrooms. One girl was forced to sit in a tub of
urine, and a boy was tethered to a four-wheeler and dragged on a
sand track, according to the allegations. Thayer’s owners have
denied all charges.
The sheriff’s office turned the
reports over to Jason Kanoy, who at the time was serving as Caldwell
County prosecutor.
Kanoy’s handling of the allegations
can most charitably be described as apathetic. He appeared to do
little work on the case and chose not to take advantage of
assistance offered by Missouri Attorney General Jay Nixon’s office.
Kanoy has since been elected associate judge in Caldwell County.
His successor as prosecutor, Brady
Kopek, told The Star he is investigating a recent report by a former
Thayer employee, who alleged that a student was choked and
brutalized by a “drill sergeant.”
Despite the serious concerns about
Thayer, the Missouri legislature continues to resist calls to
require such boarding schools to be licensed and inspected.
The federal probe of Thayer and
other “boot-camp” programs was requested by U.S. Rep. George Miller,
a California Democrat. Miller wants Congress to mandate close
oversight of the programs.
Based on the allegations of abuse
at Thayer — and the reluctance of state and local officials to take
them seriously — that remedy appears appropriate.
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