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Homicide ruled at youth center
A 17-year-old boy sent by DHS to a Tennessee facility died after a fight
and "restraint" by staffers.
By John Sullivan and Craig R. McCoy
http://www.philly.com/inquirer/local/20071010_Homicide_ruled_at_youth_center.html
Inquirer Staff Writers
Omega Leach, the Philadelphia teen killed in June after the city sent
him to a Tennessee treatment center, died of strangulation after a fight
with a staff member there, according to the Tennessee medical examiner.
The death has been ruled a homicide, the autopsy report says.
Bruce P. Levy found that Leach had "multiple hemorrhages" of his neck
muscles from a clash June 2 with two staffers at the Chad Youth
Enhancement Center outside Nashville.
Ted Denny, spokesman for the Montgomery County Sheriff's Office, said
investigators would present all their evidence to a county grand jury.
The jury, he said, "will decide if anything warrants a charge."
Philadelphia's Department of Human Services has been sending some of the
most troubled kids in its care to Chad since at least 2001. In 2005,
after a drumbeat of warnings about harsh treatment and the death of a
14-year-old girl, DHS and city courts continued to use Chad even as
Tennessee and New York state pulled their youngsters from the facility.
While Leach's death prompted Philadelphia officials to start removing
youngsters from Chad, eight city youths were still housed there, a city
official said last night.
Before the death, Philadelphia kids made up the largest group at the
facility, constituting about half the 90 youths there. Since Leach died,
the city has promised to reexamine its heavy reliance on distant,
out-of-state facilities.
Acting Commissioner Arthur Evans Jr. said yesterday that DHS was "deeply
troubled by the homicide ruling."
As the count of Philadelphians at Chad has dwindled, Evans said, his
staff has made regular visits there to make sure it was safe.
Chad is one of 110 behavioral-health facilities in 33 states owned by
King of Prussia-based Universal Health Services.
Spokesman Nick Ragone said the for-profit chain had no comment on the
autopsy, which was completed last month. Previously, UHS said children's
safety is its first priority.
In his autopsy, Levy said he had found "multiple superficial blunt force
injuries" to Leach's body in addition to the injuries to the neck
muscles. Those included scrapes and bruises to both shoulders and a hip
as well as a bruise beneath Leach's left eye.
Levy also noted that a contributing factor in Leach's death was his
enlarged heart.
Leach - a slender 5-foot8 and 148 pounds, the autopsy found - was
pronounced dead June 3, a day after his clash with Chad staff.
Tennessee child-welfare officials have already cited Chad over the
confrontation, saying the facility's workers needlessly provoked Leach.
The officials said a Chad staffer should have given Leach space to calm
down June 2 when Leach had retreated to a dorm after a fight with
another resident.
Instead, the staffer, Randall D. Rae, 22, ordered Leach to leave the
dorm, and Leach attacked him, according to investigators. The two
struggled for a period. At some point, Rae turned his grip on Leach over
to another aide, Milton G. Francis, 31.
Police said the aides had told them that they put Leach face-down on the
floor with his hands pulled behind his back in a restraint method taught
as part of routine Chad procedure. Neither Rae nor Francis could be
reached for comment.
The procedure is known as the "Handle With Care" system. According to
the instruction manual at use at Chad, the system is "an incredibly
effective and safe restraint method."
When staffers undergo training, the manual advises them: "No death
chokes. . . . Take it easy on your partner."
Leach arrived at Chad on May 2, after he was arrested in Philadelphia
for stealing a car.
Chad was the last stop in a series of about a dozen mental hospitals and
treatment centers that Leach had attended since turning 11.
After Linda Harris, the 14-year-old Long Island girl, died of heart
failure as she was being escorted by a counselor, Tennessee and New York
officials quit placing teenagers at Chad.
The state medical examiner ruled that she had died of natural causes
brought on by a heart problem and asthma, aggravated by "morbid
obesity." She weighed more than 300 pounds.
According to public records, Chad's workers resorted to physical force
at high rates - rates experts term excessive.
Tennessee repeatedly cited Chad for failing to tell regulators about
children who had been injured there. In one case, the state learned only
after the victim's mother called police that three residents had tried
to strangle another, records show.
The Inquirer also reported that in early 2005, a man called the
Philadelphia child-abuse hotline and warned that his coworkers were
using "improper and illegal" force against city youngsters.
In response, DHS dispatched an investigator to Chad - three months
later. The city concluded that while there had been no "illegal physical
restraints," nonetheless "some residents were being harshly and
improperly restrained."
In reply, Chad said it had a "nurturing and positive environment," but
would hire more staff.
Contact staff writer John Sullivan at 215-854-2473 or
johnsullivan@phillynews.com.
CURRENTLY CHILD PROTECTIVE SERVICES VIOLATES MORE CIVIL RIGHTS ON A
DAILY BASIS THEN ALL OTHER AGENCIES COMBINED INCLUDING THE NSA / CIA
WIRETAPPING PROGRAM....
CPS Does not protect children...
It is sickening how many children are subject to abuse, neglect and even
killed at the hands of Child Protective Services.
every parent should read this .pdf from
connecticut dcf watch...
http://www.connecticutdcfwatch.com/8x11.pdf
http://www.connecticutdcfwatch.com
Number of Cases per 100,000 children in the US
These numbers come from The National Center on
Child Abuse and Neglect in Washington. (NCCAN)
Recent numbers have increased significantly for CPS
Perpetrators of Maltreatment
Physical Abuse CPS 160, Parents 59
Sexual Abuse CPS 112, Parents 13
Neglect CPS 410, Parents 241
Medical Neglect CPS 14 Parents 12
Fatalities CPS 6.4, Parents 1.5
Imagine that, 6.4 children die at the hands of the very agencies that
are supposed to protect them and only 1.5 at the hands of parents per
100,000 children. CPS perpetrates more abuse, neglect, and sexual abuse
and kills more children then parents in the United States. If the
citizens of this country hold CPS to the same standards that they hold
parents too. No judge should ever put another child in the hands of ANY
government agency because CPS nationwide is guilty of more harm and
death than any human being combined. CPS nationwide is guilty of more
human rights violations and deaths of children then the homes from which
they were removed. When are the judges going to wake up and see that
they are sending children to their death and a life of abuse when
children are removed from safe homes based on the mere opinion of a
bunch of social workers.
CHILD PROTECTIVE SERVICES, HAPPILY DESTROYING THOUSANDS OF INNOCENT
FAMILIES YEARLY NATIONWIDE AND COMING TO YOU'RE HOME SOON...
BE SURE TO FIND OUT WHERE YOUR CANDIDATES STANDS ON THE ISSUE OF
REFORMING OR ABOLISHING CHILD PROTECTIVE SERVICES ("MAKE YOUR CANDIDATES
TAKE A STAND ON THIS ISSUE.") THEN REMEMBER TO VOTE ACCORDINGLY IF THEY
ARE "FAMILY UNFRIENDLY" IN THE NEXT ELECTION...
A 17-year-old boy sent by DHS to a Tennessee facility died after a fight
and "restraint" by staffers.
By John Sullivan and Craig R. McCoy
http://www.philly.com/inquirer/local/20071010_Homicide_ruled_at_youth_center.html
Inquirer Staff Writers
Omega Leach, the Philadelphia teen killed in June after the city sent
him to a Tennessee treatment center, died of strangulation after a fight
with a staff member there, according to the Tennessee medical examiner.
The death has been ruled a homicide, the autopsy report says.
Bruce P. Levy found that Leach had "multiple hemorrhages" of his neck
muscles from a clash June 2 with two staffers at the Chad Youth
Enhancement Center outside Nashville.
Ted Denny, spokesman for the Montgomery County Sheriff's Office, said
investigators would present all their evidence to a county grand jury.
The jury, he said, "will decide if anything warrants a charge."
Philadelphia's Department of Human Services has been sending some of the
most troubled kids in its care to Chad since at least 2001. In 2005,
after a drumbeat of warnings about harsh treatment and the death of a
14-year-old girl, DHS and city courts continued to use Chad even as
Tennessee and New York state pulled their youngsters from the facility.
While Leach's death prompted Philadelphia officials to start removing
youngsters from Chad, eight city youths were still housed there, a city
official said last night.
Before the death, Philadelphia kids made up the largest group at the
facility, constituting about half the 90 youths there. Since Leach died,
the city has promised to reexamine its heavy reliance on distant,
out-of-state facilities.
Acting Commissioner Arthur Evans Jr. said yesterday that DHS was "deeply
troubled by the homicide ruling."
As the count of Philadelphians at Chad has dwindled, Evans said, his
staff has made regular visits there to make sure it was safe.
Chad is one of 110 behavioral-health facilities in 33 states owned by
King of Prussia-based Universal Health Services.
Spokesman Nick Ragone said the for-profit chain had no comment on the
autopsy, which was completed last month. Previously, UHS said children's
safety is its first priority.
In his autopsy, Levy said he had found "multiple superficial blunt force
injuries" to Leach's body in addition to the injuries to the neck
muscles. Those included scrapes and bruises to both shoulders and a hip
as well as a bruise beneath Leach's left eye.
Levy also noted that a contributing factor in Leach's death was his
enlarged heart.
Leach - a slender 5-foot8 and 148 pounds, the autopsy found - was
pronounced dead June 3, a day after his clash with Chad staff.
Tennessee child-welfare officials have already cited Chad over the
confrontation, saying the facility's workers needlessly provoked Leach.
The officials said a Chad staffer should have given Leach space to calm
down June 2 when Leach had retreated to a dorm after a fight with
another resident.
Instead, the staffer, Randall D. Rae, 22, ordered Leach to leave the
dorm, and Leach attacked him, according to investigators. The two
struggled for a period. At some point, Rae turned his grip on Leach over
to another aide, Milton G. Francis, 31.
Police said the aides had told them that they put Leach face-down on the
floor with his hands pulled behind his back in a restraint method taught
as part of routine Chad procedure. Neither Rae nor Francis could be
reached for comment.
The procedure is known as the "Handle With Care" system. According to
the instruction manual at use at Chad, the system is "an incredibly
effective and safe restraint method."
When staffers undergo training, the manual advises them: "No death
chokes. . . . Take it easy on your partner."
Leach arrived at Chad on May 2, after he was arrested in Philadelphia
for stealing a car.
Chad was the last stop in a series of about a dozen mental hospitals and
treatment centers that Leach had attended since turning 11.
After Linda Harris, the 14-year-old Long Island girl, died of heart
failure as she was being escorted by a counselor, Tennessee and New York
officials quit placing teenagers at Chad.
The state medical examiner ruled that she had died of natural causes
brought on by a heart problem and asthma, aggravated by "morbid
obesity." She weighed more than 300 pounds.
According to public records, Chad's workers resorted to physical force
at high rates - rates experts term excessive.
Tennessee repeatedly cited Chad for failing to tell regulators about
children who had been injured there. In one case, the state learned only
after the victim's mother called police that three residents had tried
to strangle another, records show.
The Inquirer also reported that in early 2005, a man called the
Philadelphia child-abuse hotline and warned that his coworkers were
using "improper and illegal" force against city youngsters.
In response, DHS dispatched an investigator to Chad - three months
later. The city concluded that while there had been no "illegal physical
restraints," nonetheless "some residents were being harshly and
improperly restrained."
In reply, Chad said it had a "nurturing and positive environment," but
would hire more staff.
Contact staff writer John Sullivan at 215-854-2473 or
johnsullivan@phillynews.com.
CURRENTLY CHILD PROTECTIVE SERVICES VIOLATES MORE CIVIL RIGHTS ON A
DAILY BASIS THEN ALL OTHER AGENCIES COMBINED INCLUDING THE NSA / CIA
WIRETAPPING PROGRAM....
CPS Does not protect children...
It is sickening how many children are subject to abuse, neglect and even
killed at the hands of Child Protective Services.
every parent should read this .pdf from
connecticut dcf watch...
http://www.connecticutdcfwatch.com/8x11.pdf
http://www.connecticutdcfwatch.com
Number of Cases per 100,000 children in the US
These numbers come from The National Center on
Child Abuse and Neglect in Washington. (NCCAN)
Recent numbers have increased significantly for CPS
Perpetrators of Maltreatment
Physical Abuse CPS 160, Parents 59
Sexual Abuse CPS 112, Parents 13
Neglect CPS 410, Parents 241
Medical Neglect CPS 14 Parents 12
Fatalities CPS 6.4, Parents 1.5
Imagine that, 6.4 children die at the hands of the very agencies that
are supposed to protect them and only 1.5 at the hands of parents per
100,000 children. CPS perpetrates more abuse, neglect, and sexual abuse
and kills more children then parents in the United States. If the
citizens of this country hold CPS to the same standards that they hold
parents too. No judge should ever put another child in the hands of ANY
government agency because CPS nationwide is guilty of more harm and
death than any human being combined. CPS nationwide is guilty of more
human rights violations and deaths of children then the homes from which
they were removed. When are the judges going to wake up and see that
they are sending children to their death and a life of abuse when
children are removed from safe homes based on the mere opinion of a
bunch of social workers.
CHILD PROTECTIVE SERVICES, HAPPILY DESTROYING THOUSANDS OF INNOCENT
FAMILIES YEARLY NATIONWIDE AND COMING TO YOU'RE HOME SOON...
BE SURE TO FIND OUT WHERE YOUR CANDIDATES STANDS ON THE ISSUE OF
REFORMING OR ABOLISHING CHILD PROTECTIVE SERVICES ("MAKE YOUR CANDIDATES
TAKE A STAND ON THIS ISSUE.") THEN REMEMBER TO VOTE ACCORDINGLY IF THEY
ARE "FAMILY UNFRIENDLY" IN THE NEXT ELECTION...
