NC - 12-year-old dies at Trails Carolina wilderness therapy camp, Lake Toxaway, February 2024

[MsMarple]

Looking at the warrant.

Why was the bivy alarm covered with green tape? I'm thinking it was disabled, and the zipper heads fixed in place.

And, the person inside it can't open it... See: "we would open and close the bivy". The interviewee said the child could exit the bivy at any time. But Note: nowhere does it say that the child could freely operate the zipper and get out. The wording could just mean the counselors could let him out if he asked.

IMO this is very manipulative word salad. I can only conclude they zipped him in that thing and wouldn't unzip it when he had a panic attack and needed out.

Circumventing the bivy alarm raised a red flag for me. It makes me think the boy was in fact trying to exit it, enough times that the counselors covered it with tape.

Is the alarm a safety feature? It seems like zipping up a kid into such a restrictive bag would bring on a panic attack. The boy wasn’t an infant needing the security of a swaddling.

Ugh, imagine his mobility being restricted and lying on a wood floor during his first night in a strange environment, surrounded by strangers. What a horrible way to spend his last hours alive.
Moo

 

[Dotta]

I sometimes fall asleep lying on my back, with arms on my stomach and knees bent
(with feet firmly on bed).

I don't know why, but this position ensures my swift falling asleep.

Re the bivy bag
I wouldn't sleep a wink in such a bag.
If my head was covered,
I would feel like lying in a coffin

RIP to the boy
Condolences to family.

 

[tlcya]

Sheriff's deputies have been frustrated by the lack of access to adults and children who were present during the Feb. 3 death, said spokesperson John Nicholson, who also said investigators anticipated a long wait for toxicology results.

"The FBI is doing some analysis for us on computers, on latops," Nicholson told the Citizen Times. The electronics were taken from the camp along with cell phones and personal belongings of the boy using a search warrant approved by a judge.
[snip]
Deputies have interviewed one staff member present in the room where the boy slept and another had reached out to schedule an interview, he said, but they have not been able to talk to the two remaining staffers. The camp has also not provided names of parents, something deputies could use to ask permission to interview the children, Nicholson said. Officials with the N.C. Department of Health and Human Services, meanwhile, have said social workers were blocked from accessing children.
[snip]
According to a death certificate obtained by the Citizen Times and the search warrants, the boy was a resident of the wealthy Upper East Side neighborhood in New York City and was brought to the camp Feb. 2.
[snip]
N.C. Department of Health and Human Services, which certifies the camp, has filed five statements of deficiencies regarding the camp from 2018 to 2023. The latest citation was June 12, 2023, when it found that the camp implemented training in "seclusion, physical restraint, and isolation time out" before getting approval by state regulators.
FBI assists in Trails Carolina wilderness camp child death investigation; toxicology test

but it's cool, the state issued them a plan to rectify this behavior on the part of Trails Carolina, so I am sure they have done so

 

[BeginnerSleuther]

I don't know but I think I can understand the justification for some of the 'tough love' techniques used in some of the camps.

The starting point is to look at the context of the situation. In my upper income suburban area, there were some troubled kids whose issues were built upon them being totally spoiled, pampered, treated like divas----and they were often obnoxious, selfish, entitled little criminals with no compassion.

They didn't care about anyone else including their families, stole from stores even though they had plenty of money, and were cruel hearted. Things got out of control and they really didn't give a damn.

Two of the kids I am speaking about agreed, after much pressure from their families, and an ultimatum that they would be cut off and kicked out of the home----they eventually agreed to go to a working ranch in the high desert in Bakersfield area. A long ways away from the Malibu Hills.

From what their parents told me later---the kids were expected to live in very meager, sparse surroundings to begin with. They were started out in a barn type structure, with a rolled out foam to sleep on, and a blanket. On the dirt floor. Surrounded by the horses, which they were taught to groom and clean up after.

IF they did the chores they were assigned, they were moved into the bunkhouse, with more comfortable sleeping arrangements and better meals.

And it continued in that way----do the assigned chores and your life improves gradually but positively. And the chores included things like one on one therapies and counselling and attending small group therapy. And teaching the new arrivals about how to move up and be successful.

The kids needed to understand that they had to work for their creature comforts----AND their parents attended some of the therapy sessions and took accountability for their transgressions----like rewarding their kids with possessions and new cars instead of giving them quality time that they really needed and wanted.

So if you just look at the raw facts of the first week at the work camp---and were told they slept on a barn floor surrounded by horses, and they had to groom the horses and clean up their excrement in order to get their own meals served to them---it could sound like child abuse. AND IT WOULD BE IF THERE WAAS NO WAY OUT.

But the entire purpose was to illustrate that by working hard for the first 3 days they were REWARDED with a comfortable bunk bed in a nice clean bunkhouse and allowed to play video games with the others---AS LONG AS THEY ALL COOPERATED WITH THE TREATMENT SCHEDULES AND ACTIVITIES.

It only works if the entire family is involved in the process from what I've seen.

They were deprived of food unless they looked after the horses and picked up excrement? If I understand what you're saying, then it sounds like child abuse because it IS child abuse, IMO. What if a parent said that? What if there was a headline here about a parent who refused to feed their child unless that child cleaned up after the dog? I bet most of us would say that's child abuse. IMO, it is.

Basic human needs of children, such as food and shelter, shouldn't be contingent on what chores they do. If the purpose is to turn a spoiled brat around, then the reward should be a step above the basic needs, not the basic needs themselves.

MOO

 

[RickshawFan]

I was thinking the same thing except his arms were on his chest. His wrists wouldn't reach his ankles unless his knees weren't together but spread apart. Even then it is questionable.

Also, maybe he was inside the bivy and was having a medical emergency that they assumed was a panic attack.

Yeah, maybe he was actually suffocating and they assumed it was a panic attack.

 

[Cedars]

I don't know but I think I can understand the justification for some of the 'tough love' techniques used in some of the camps.

The starting point is to look at the context of the situation. In my upper income suburban area, there were some troubled kids whose issues were built upon them being totally spoiled, pampered, treated like divas----and they were often obnoxious, selfish, entitled little criminals with no compassion.

They didn't care about anyone else including their families, stole from stores even though they had plenty of money, and were cruel hearted. Things got out of control and they really didn't give a damn.

Two of the kids I am speaking about agreed, after much pressure from their families, and an ultimatum that they would be cut off and kicked out of the home----they eventually agreed to go to a working ranch in the high desert in Bakersfield area. A long ways away from the Malibu Hills.

From what their parents told me later---the kids were expected to live in very meager, sparse surroundings to begin with. They were started out in a barn type structure, with a rolled out foam to sleep on, and a blanket. On the dirt floor. Surrounded by the horses, which they were taught to groom and clean up after.

IF they did the chores they were assigned, they were moved into the bunkhouse, with more comfortable sleeping arrangements and better meals.

And it continued in that way----do the assigned chores and your life improves gradually but positively. And the chores included things like one on one therapies and counselling and attending small group therapy. And teaching the new arrivals about how to move up and be successful.

The kids needed to understand that they had to work for their creature comforts----AND their parents attended some of the therapy sessions and took accountability for their transgressions----like rewarding their kids with possessions and new cars instead of giving them quality time that they really needed and wanted.

So if you just look at the raw facts of the first week at the work camp---and were told they slept on a barn floor surrounded by horses, and they had to groom the horses and clean up their excrement in order to get their own meals served to them---it could sound like child abuse. AND IT WOULD BE IF THERE WAAS NO WAY OUT.

But the entire purpose was to illustrate that by working hard for the first 3 days they were REWARDED with a comfortable bunk bed in a nice clean bunkhouse and allowed to play video games with the others---AS LONG AS THEY ALL COOPERATED WITH THE TREATMENT SCHEDULES AND ACTIVITIES.

It only works if the entire family is involved in the process from what I've seen.

IMO, that's worse than how people treat animals they care about. People who train dogs and horses don't even use those methods.

They supply the basic needs unconditionally, to a generous level. Warm, comfortable conditions, lots of food, grooming, etc, to earn trust. They slowly introduce simple asks for cooperation for a very short period until the animal is uncomfortable, and then reward with special treats and praise. They provide safe outlets for the animal's untamed instincts.

To me, that sound like how harsh masters try to break the will of a slave.

JMO

 

[Stunned]

I don't know how these boot-camp/tough-love camps are allowed to operate in this day and age.


Some of the kids that go there are very likely in need of strong retraining, but this...?

Can you imagine being the parents of this little boy? They were convinced this camp would give him discipline and meaning in his life and instead, he lost his life.

This is all MOO, but I've never been a fan of these types of camps.

These camps are operating with the parents blanket permissions. So there is lots of blame to pass around.

 

[tlcya]

regarding the body exhibiting rigor upon authorities arriving after receiving the 911 call:

Rigor mortis starts with the eyelids, neck, and jaw and lasts for two to six hours after death. The sequence could be due to lactic acid levels differing amongst muscles, which is linked to glycogen levels and muscle fiber types.

Within the next four to six hours, rigor mortis spreads to additional muscles, including internal organs. The age, sex, physical condition, and muscle build of a person can all influence the onset of rigor mortis. Rigor mortis usually peaks after 12 hours and fades after 48. Because of their lesser muscular mass, rigor mortis may be undetectable in many newborn and child bodies.
Rigor Mortis – Definition, Causes, Occurrence and Stages

regarding the lividity noted on CJH's back:

How long does it take for lividity to set in?​

Lividity usually begins 30 minutes to 4 hours after death and is most pronounced 12 hours after death. Blanching, or a whitish discoloration that results when pressure is applied to the skin, can occur up to 8–12 hours after death.
https://www.osmosis.org/answers/lividity#:~:text=How long does it take,8–12 hours after death.

 

[brow3665]

Just got caught up on the recent posts on this thread.

A few things:

I went back and read every single complaint and investigation finding on the Dept of Health & Human Services website for this specific facility. There was definitely a pattern of staff not following up with physician orders regarding medications, such as a doctor prescribing a patient to be weaned off a med, but they never were, or an order to discontinue a med that was never discontinued, etc. Multiple times the patients were given expired medications that no one had checked expiration dates. There were also deficiencies noting that medication administration wasn't happening by staff that were appropriately trained and that education was never verified for several staff beyond looking at their initial job application.

Also, there was a report of deficiencies in regards to the use of restraints and the lack of adequate training of staff members in the use of the restraints that they applied.

These complaints also listed diagnoses for a few of those at this Wilderness facility:
Age-16 years old.Diagnosis- Anxiety Disorder, Depression, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, and Panic Disorder.
Age-14 years old.Diagnosis- Generalized Anxiety Disorder, Depression, and Parent-Child RelationalProblem.
Age-15 years old. Diagnosis- Depression, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, and Parent-Child Relational Problem.

I read the search warrant as well. The way that they describe his body with his hands across his chest and his knees bent up to his chest and up to the sky- this sounds like a position someone would be curled up in if laying on their side and freezing in a sleeping bag.

The fact that the zipper had an alarm... they say he could get out whenever he wanted, but I call on that. Especially since the staff member repeatedly said, "We would open it" as mentioned in the search warrant.

Quote: "On top is a sleeping bivy, which is a small tent. One side is collapsed, and the other side is held up with a flex pole. A sleeping bag is inside the bivy. On the zipper of the bivy is a small alarm that goes off when you exit."

So he was in some small individual makeshift tent-type thing, that had an alarm and potential lock on the zipper, and a sleeping bag inside. The staff member said he and another counselor were standing against the wall as this poor kid had a panic attack. I doubt they even opened the bivy. He was described as "irate" when he first arrived... he could have totally been overmedicated and then died of a seizure/asphyxia or something similar alone in that pitiful tent.

It certainly doesn't explain why his pants and underwear were off, he could have soiled himself. Horrible.

 

[Izzylizzy]

I think it's wonderful the camp provides services to transgender individuals. Many suffer emotional from social media, abuse, and need a place free from judgement.

"free from judgement"?

No, that would be if they were in a camp designed exclusively for GLBTQ youths.
Not in a camp that house's kids with a multitude of serious and very serious different issues.
You make it sound like all the kids they'll be thrown in with are nonjudgmental of the GLBTQ community.

 

[tlcya]

Just got caught up on the recent posts on this thread.

A few things:

I went back and read every single complaint and investigation finding on the Dept of Health & Human Services website for this specific facility. There was definitely a pattern of staff not following up with physician orders regarding medications, such as a doctor prescribing a patient to be weaned off a med, but they never were, or an order to discontinue a med that was never discontinued, etc. Multiple times the patients were given expired medications that no one had checked expiration dates. There were also deficiencies noting that medication administration wasn't happening by staff that were appropriately trained and that education was never verified for several staff beyond looking at their initial job application.

These complaints also listed diagnoses for a few of those at this Wilderness facility:
Age-16 years old.Diagnosis- Anxiety Disorder, Depression, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, and Panic Disorder.
Age-14 years old.Diagnosis- Generalized Anxiety Disorder, Depression, and Parent-Child RelationalProblem.
Age-15 years old. Diagnosis- Depression, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, and Parent-Child Relational Problem.

I read the search warrant as well. The way that they describe his body with his hands across his chest and his knees bent up to his chest and up to the sky- this sounds like a position someone would be curled up in if laying on their side and freezing in a sleeping bag.

The fact that the zipper had an alarm... they say he could get out whenever he wanted, but I call on that. Especially since the staff member repeatedly said, "We would open it" as mentioned in the search warrant.

Quote: "On top is a sleeping bivy, which is a small tent. One side is collapsed, and the other side is held up with a flex pole. A sleeping bag is inside the bivy. On the zipper of the bivy is a small alarm that goes off when you exit."

So he was in some small individual makeshift tent-type thing, that had an alarm and potential lock on the zipper, and a sleeping bag inside. The staff member said he and another counselor were standing against the wall as this poor kid had a panic attack. I doubt they even opened the bivy. He was described as "irate" when he first arrived... he could have totally been overmedicated and then died of a seizure/asphyxia or something similar alone in that pitiful tent.

It certainly doesn't explain why his pants and underwear were off, he could have soiled himself. Horrible.

welcome to the thread @brow3665

What causes me to think that CJH was not curled up in a fetal position at the time of his death is the lividity that investigators noted on his back, which I took to be an indication that he died while on his back, in the position he was found in. Wouldn't lividity have been on his side if he died in his sleep while curled up on his side?

I appreciate having someone with forensic knowledge in this conversation.

One thing that struck me while going through the complaints on the state website is the age range of the minor clients and the variety of their diagnosis.

I find it troubling that the minor clients range from 10 years old to 16.

 

[Rolypolyoly]

I interpreted a little different.

I think think the staff was in the cabin the entire night, especially with a new client.

My daughter's in-laws have three boys all with life altering game addiction. All started at an early age. The parents own a large business and has little time for the kids, grandparents kept every weekend.

They stay up all night playing online. The two oldest barely graduated HS, parents supply income, houses-with utilities, food, vehicles and lavish vacations. Their only friends are in the gaming universe.

The 10 yo, "homeschooled" since age 7. Mom completes assignments. He can not read, lacks basic math skills and extremely antisocial, episodes of violent outburst. He's up all night gaming, has an elaborate setup several screens and entire room dedicated to gaming.

Several years ago, at a weekend retreat. The oldest threaten to kill my GS with a "shank", he'd made. My grandkids were in so upset, the grandparents returned to their home. All the way "home" the grandparents begged, my GKs NOT to tell their parents. My granddaughter called her parents at 2am to come get them from the grandparents home.

Sadly, my GKs can not longer be in their present without their parent, especially since the "boys" are in their 20s. This incident has caused many hard feelings from the "boys" parents and the grandparents that tried to "cover up".

Gaming can and is a life altering addiction.
Moo

That is completely on the 'parents'. The clearly, from your description, chose not to parent their children and this is the result.
MOO

 

[RickshawFan]

welcome to the thread @brow3665

What causes me to think that CJH was not curled up in a fetal position at the time of his death is the lividity that investigators noted on his back, which I took to be an indication that he died while on his back, in the position he was found in. Wouldn't lividity have been on his side if he died in his sleep while curled up on his side?

I appreciate having someone with forensic knowledge in this conversation.

One thing that struck me while going through the complaints on the state website is the age range of the minor clients and the variety of their diagnosis.

I find it troubling that the minor clients range from 10 years old to 16.

I find it troubling that parents are sending depressed kids to places like this.

 

[Izzylizzy]

he was alleged to be in the bunkhouse. At least two staffers were reported to have been monitoring him during his panic attack. Was he nude from the waist down at that point? Were there other kids in the bunkhouse with him or was it just him, alone with two adults periodically looking in on him?

The clothing thing has me stumped. He was 12, at that age where boys begin to get a bit more private about their privates IME. He was in a strange place, having been spirited away from his home unexpectedly and plunked down into the wilderness with strangers. I can't see him feeling comfortable enough to be airing out his nether regions in that circumstance. JMO there will be a more nefarious reason he was nude on his bottom half.

BBM Ditto

LE or whoever was first to arrive found him wearing a hoodie and a T-shirt. Any suggestions that he could have removed his bottom clothes due to being hot makes absolutely no sense.

 

[Laughing]

The fact that the zipper had an alarm... they say he could get out whenever he wanted, but I call on that. Especially since the staff member repeatedly said, "We would open it" as mentioned in the search warrant.

Quote: "On top is a sleeping bivy, which is a small tent. One side is collapsed, and the other side is held up with a flex pole. A sleeping bag is inside the bivy. On the zipper of the bivy is a small alarm that goes off when you exit."

So he was in some small individual makeshift tent-type thing, that had an alarm and potential lock on the zipper, and a sleeping bag inside. The staff member said he and another counselor were standing against the wall as this poor kid had a panic attack. I doubt they even opened the bivy.

rsbm, bbm

Late to the party, skipped some reading (work/real life) and wonder if we'll ever know the usual protocol for asking to be let out of the locked bag -- was the scared child expected to formally ask, something like "Please, Sir, let me out of this bag" or something humiliating?

A panicking child may cry & beg, but if these workers stuck to some script.....

(Maybe I've watched too many movies about bad military academies? Oliver! ?"
jmho ymmv lrr

 

[Teche]

Looking at the warrant.

Why was the bivy alarm covered with green tape? I'm thinking it was disabled, and the zipper heads fixed in place.

And, the person inside it can't open it... See: "we would open and close the bivy". The interviewee said the child could exit the bivy at any time. But Note: nowhere does it say that the child could freely operate the zipper and get out. The wording could just mean the counselors could let him out if he asked.

IMO this is very manipulative word salad. I can only conclude they zipped him in that thing and wouldn't unzip it when he had a panic attack and needed out.

Yep, word salad.

 

[Teche]

I was an LPC in my former life, never would I recommend placing children diagnosed with anxiety and/or depression in a wilderness program. How could the wilderness program fit into a treatment plan?

 

[IDK]

Obviously this child’s death is a horrible tragedy and should never have happened. Any deficiencies should be addressed including suspension of licensure, if warranted.

I would not be surprised to learn that he may have choked and aspirated. They did mention he ate same snacks in the late evening. He may have gagged during his panic attack, vomited and then not been able to clear his airway in the closed confines of the bivy sac. Especially if he was laying flat on his back. Poor kid, did not deserve any of this and my heart goes out to him and his parents.

 

[Dotta]

Besides, one can get poisoned by CO2 in this bag with no/little ventilation!!!

This case is really staggering

 

[Izzylizzy]

I don't think NY can charge or prosecute death in North Carolina. NY has no jurisdiction in the state of North Carolina.

I still stand with the statement issued by the Camp referenced above. They would be fools, to commit an act of perjury, to issue a written false statement, while under investigation by every agency with three initials in North Carolina.
There are false claims acts on the federal and state levels that control "advertising", false information to public and more for ALL facilities of ANY type. Schools are included in this as well, Virginia last year prosecuted a school official for making a false public statement to the media.

Moo...

I was thinking about the boy's parents who reside in a NYC affluent area obtaining a lawyer when I wrote "NY".

NC has "involuntary manslaughter" laws, so no problem there.

People lie every minute of every day to local,state and federal agencies to try and protect themselves or others from being criminally charged.