Ian Mulhare - 2004

A 16 year old boy from Pennsylvania was sent to Syracuse in Utah to live at a restricted treatment facility where he was allowed no contact with friends and limited communication with parents and extended family.

Feeling isolated he decided to take his own life. He hanged himself in a bathroom. The facility was being required by state licensing officials to take "corrective action".

At little too late for the poor boy who until 2023 was unnamed.

It was a tragedy caused by using in-patient treatment instead of out-patient treatment. To ensure success the teenager in treatment needs support from both family and friends - especially when the treatment takes place many states away.

May he rest in peace.

Sources:

• Teen facility targets suicide prevention - State ordered steps be taken after hanging (Deseret News)
• Four recent Utah deaths in treatment programs (Salt Lake Tribune)
• Forty-nine States Slowly Realize Utah Is Not Safe Place for Children (MartyG Reports)