Angela Miller (2001) and Ashley Shaddox (1998)

March 1 is not the best day to be resident at Echo Glen Children's Center. On the exact same date in 1998 and 2001 two different girls hanged themselves.

1998

14 year Ashley Shaddox had a troubled life. Being raped at age 11 and even being pregnant at that age is an ordeal no child should endure. In some communities it is shameful to be the victim and slowly she was marginalized into a subculture where she hung out with the wrong kind of people.

When some of the youth in this group committed an armed robbery she was left with poor legal support and in a justice system where you have to buy legal protection she had no chance and was sentenced to serve her time at Echo Glen Children's Center. While she was serving her sentence it became clear that she was depressed.

Unfortunately none seem to bother and on March 1 1998 she committed suicide by hanging.

2001

17 year old Angela Miller took her own life rather suddenly to the surprise of her relatives. The family believed that she was safe at the facility.

She was suffering from depression and as a cry for help she had acted out. Instead of recognizing an illness the court system sentenced her for residential-burglary. It did carry a 9 month punishment. She was first send to Naselle Youth Camp where they were not trained to handled sucidial and depressed youth. She tried to kill herself and was transferred to Echo Glen Children's Center. As it turned out they were not trained to deal with this type of clients also.

As result of the state's neglect this young girl died.

Is there a lesson somewhere

Yes. Someone should have learned that depression carries a risk of suicide. Unfortunately these two deaths are not the only one who have taken place at Echo Glen Children's Center. You may search this blog later and a text of the third death we have learned off.

May both girls rest in peace.


Sources:

• An eerie echo (Seattke Weekly)
• Family Files Tort Claim Over Girl's SuicideEugene Register-Guard - March 8, 1998
• Victims in 1990s (Fornits Wiki)
• Victims 2000-2004 (Fornits Wiki)

Autumn Sun Bear - 2003

March 1, 2003 the authorities was called to a treatment center in St. George, Utah because the school told them that they had a girl who was ill and should be tranported to the hospital. When they arrived at the Red Rock Canyon School they discovered that the employees were conducting CPR on the girl who had been ill for some time.

The girl had only seen the nurse employed at the treatment center. Mostly it is a secure facility for privately paid children sent there by parents who don't want to take responsibility for their own children. They don't want to take the children outside the treatment center unless they believe that the reason is seriously. However, this girl was sent there by the reservation where she used to live.

This time the illness was serious for the poor girl and the decision to handle the illness inhouse ended in the death of the girl.

May she rest in peace.

Sources

• Victims 2000-4 (Fornits Wiki)
• Red Rock Canyon School (Fornits Wiki)
• Police investigate schoolgirl's death (Deseret News, March 7 - 2003)

Eric Roberts - 1996

When the staff used a rather unusual method to restraint 16 year old Eric Roberts they may not have foreseen that they soon would be out of job. They wrapped him in plastic and a foam blanket with Velcro and left him for an hour only to find him dead when they returned.

It was neglect and the state intervened. Odyssey Harbor - the treatment home where he died filed for chapter 11 and had to close.

But just because the authorities cleaned up after this tragedy, it doesn't change the fact that a family lost their son. A life of a boy ended too soon.

May he rest in peace.

Sources:

• Facility to sell off its assets Closed children's home files for Chapter 11 (Fort Worth Star-Telegram - June 20, 1996)
• Victims in the 1990s (Forntis Wiki)

David Sellers, Shawn Diaz and Ryan McCandless - 1990

Back in 1990 3 boys lost their lives in a downing accident on Convict Lake.

Brave rescue workers also lost their lives while trying to save the boys. It was an awful tragedy.

But not only did 3 families lose their children. They faced problems providing the money to have the children buried.

The investigation after this tragedy did show so many shortcomings in the operation of the facility that the owner was banned from running a facility in California but some years later there were some incidents in another state and soon everyone discovered that the very owner was in business again.

3 young lives were cut short that day. In was just plain unfair.

May they rest in piece.

Sources:

• FAMILIES OF LAKE VICTIMS NEED HELP ... (Newsbank)
• Victims 1990s

Kristal Mayon-Ceniceros - 1999

"It does not appear to have been an unsafe method of restraining her"

It was the understatement of the year in 1999.

The 16 year old Kristal Mayon-Ceniceros returned from lunch at the New Alternatives residential care facility. She found someone at her work desk and became upset. The staff tried to calm her down and decided to restrain her. It led to her death.

We don't know why she was sent there for treatment but for some persons suffering from mental illnesses like autism everything must be in place. Small changes can upset them. They have to be given tool to deal with changes and while they are learning these tools only minor chances must take place.

Something went wrong with her treatment plan. And as descriped above the restraint method turned out to be a killer.

She was basically failed two times. May she rest in peace.


Sources:

• Girl, 16, Dies at Psychiatric Hospital (Los Angeles Times, February 7, 1999)
• Kristal Mayon- Ceniceros (Find a grave)
• Victims in the 1990's (Fornits Wiki)