Children at controversial therapy camp removed as probe into death of 12-year-old boy continues
The North Carolina therapy wilderness camp where a camper died less than 24 hours after being admitted was ordered to shut down this week — and all current campers were taken into state custody.
Parents were notified that their children were removed from Trails Carolina Camp in Lake Toxaway and into the temporary care of the Transylvania County Department of Social Services.
“While the investigation is ongoing and we cannot comment on specific details, it was determined that action needed to be taken to ensure the health and safety of the children,” the state Department of Health and Human Services announced Friday.
Eighteen children were affected, according to Trails Carolina, which blasted the move as “reckless” and accused local law enforcement of bias.
“The children were receiving high-level clinical care for complex mental health diagnoses requiring experienced professionals with full knowledge of critical medications and specialized treatment regimens,” the camp said in a statement.
Trails Carolina also alleged that the DHHS “threatened and intimidated parents” by demanding they travel to pick up their children or risk the kids being taken into state custody.
“The impact of the State’s reckless actions is far-reaching. The 18 vulnerable children forced to leave a safe healing space against their parents’ wishes have suffered permanent, serious and unnecessary harm. There are limited places where parents can turn to find the necessary care,” Trails Carolina said.
The removal marks a near-total shutdown of the controversial camp, which was ordered by the state Monday to stop admissions amid the ongoing investigation into the “suspicious” Feb. 3 death of a 12-year-old camper.
Department of Health and Human Services officials also mandated that at least one staffer must be awake when children are asleep and it must stop using bivy bags, which are single-person shelters equipped with alarms in case the individual inside attempts to leave — which the young boy was sleeping in before he was discovered dead the next morning.
The pre-teen — identified as “CJH” in documents — was discovered in a state of rigor mortis, foaming at the mouth and naked from the waist down, with his pants and underwear lying on the ground next to his right shoulder.
CJH had suffered a panic attack in the middle of the night, while two counselors “stood along the wall” of the cabin, though it’s not clear whether they offered any help other than opening the bivy to check on him.
The youngster had been transported to the camp from New York just 24 hours before.
The sheriff’s office said Trails Carolina hasn’t completely cooperated with the investigation and purposely removed its campers to a different location to avoid interaction with investigators.
The camp has repeatedly denied the accusations, instead claiming that law enforcement has been acting inappropriately throughout the investigation.
In its statement Friday, Trails Carolina alleged that the sheriff illegally removed four young boys between the ages of 10 and 12 from the camp in the days after CJH’s death and kept them detained until 1 a.m.
“Parents called the Sheriff to prevent the infliction of further trauma on the boys, who had not yet been informed of the tragedy. Parents were lied to as the Sheriff stated he did have not custody of the children, and the children were not on the premises,” Trails Carolina said.
The cause of CJH’s death is still under investigation, as well as whether there is any evidence of wrongdoing.
