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June 16, 2012

Gibault walkaway issue grows

Neighbors, police, schools seek ways to lessen security risks

Lisa Trigg The Tribune-Star

TERRE HAUTE —  A recent attack on a woman by at-risk juveniles alleged to have walked away from Gibault Children’s Services has renewed citizen complaints and police concerns about the lack of security at the residential facility.

Vigo County Sheriff Greg Ewing wants to meet with Gibault representatives to discuss what can be done to prevent the youth from simply leaving the 360-acre campus.

“I personally think that Gibault has some ownership in preventing these things from happening,” Ewing told the Tribune-Star, adding that he is aware of numerous police responses for walkaways at Gibault on U.S. 41 South.

Residents of the Richland Manor Homeowners Association are so concerned about the walkaway issues that they bring it up at every board meeting, said resident Kal Ellis, a Terre Haute attorney.

Ellis said he has copies of about 300 state police reports related to Gibault. Those reports date back to 2010, he said, and do not include reports filed by the county sheriff’s department.

“I think the pressure has to be placed on them [Gibault] to do something,” Ellis said. “We may have to file a lawsuit to get some action.”

The Vigo County School Corp. also has taken note of the issues, especially because Honey Creek Middle School and Dixie Bee Elementary School are within easy walking distance of Gibault.

Those concerns and others are not falling on deaf ears at Gibault, said Jim Sinclair, its chief executive officer. But because of state and federal regulations, the youths cannot be locked down or even prevented from leaving when they chose to walk away, he said.

Gibault, founded in 1921 by the Indiana Knights of Columbus as a home for wayward boys, is situated close to residential developments and some commercial districts. Gibault now serves both boys and girls with emotional, behavior and substance-abuse issues; victims and perpetrators of physical and sexual abuse; and youth with clinical issues.

The violence involved in the recent attack at the southside Walmart — combined with a violent carjacking and a fatal car wreck last October by Gibault “walkaways” — has raised concern among people who live nearby.

“I’m very concerned for the safety of myself and other people in the neighborhood,” said Jeff Blake, a resident of nearby Allendale.

In the spring, Blake said, he was getting ready to work one morning when he found a young man from Gibault outside his house trying to break in. And Blake said he knows of other neighbors who have had similar encounters with juveniles who walk away from Gibault.

He said one neighbor’s home was burglarized twice by Gibault residents; another older woman is afraid that she will come home to juvenile burglars in her house.

The Richland Manor neighborhood added an extra security patrol in December because of the fear of Gibault walkaways, he said.

“It’s an enormous concern for [Vigo County Schools] because of the type of juveniles that they house over there,” said Detective First Sgt. Frank Shahadey of the sheriff’s department, who oversees security issues for the school corporation, and is also a resident in Richland Manor.

The school system has taken extra security measures at both nearby schools, he said, because there is a concern that a walkaway could end up at the school.

Whenever a walkaway occurs, the Indiana State Police is notified and sends troopers to the area.

In one case about two years ago, a teenage girl who walked away was found on U.S. 41 at a bridge over Honey Creek. A trooper saw the girl jump into the swift-flowing water in an apparent suicide attempt, and the trooper was able to rescue the floundering girl.

“We’re down there at Gibault frequently for cases involving walkaways,” said Sgt. Joe Watts of the Indiana State Police. “Sometimes it’s simply a walkaway. Sometimes it’s because of a verbal altercation with staff. Sometimes it’s physical. And sometimes it involves an altercation with people at Terre Haute businesses, like this recent case.”

Watts said: “On nearly a weekly basis, we’re there for something.”

Sinclair, Gibault’s CEO, told the Tribune-Star that youths accepted by Gibault are screened before being placed there. Children with violent criminal histories are not allowed, he said.

Children who are placed at Gibault have usually been determined by a judge to be a Child in Need of Services, or CHINS, case. They do not necessarily have a criminal record, Sinclair said, but may have emotional, physical, abuse or other issues that have resulted in an intervention into their care by authorities.

“It’s hard for most of these children to come here and fit into structure,” Sinclair said. “Many of them have not had three meals a day, or a bedtime, and many have been abused.”

That makes it hard for Gibault staff to deal with the juveniles when they arrive, he said. The average stay for a young person is about six months.

The facility is not allowed to lock down or confine the youths. The doors lock to prohibit anyone from entering the facility, but the youths can walk outside whenever they want. In the psychiatric treatment unit, which houses about 20 to 25 youths at a time, there is a 30-second delay on a door before anyone can leave. But after 30 seconds, that youth can still walk outside -- and keep on going if he or she chooses, Sinclair said.

The consequences of leaving Gibault grounds can be that the youth can be sent to a criminal juvenile center if a crime is committed. Or the youth can be allowed to return to Gibault if the walkaway resulted in no criminal behavior.

A perimeter fence around the grounds is not a financially feasible option, Sinclair said, and even with a fence, young people determined to leave will find a way to exit the grounds, he said.

Sinclair said that when a staff member sees that a resident is trying to leave the grounds, the employee will counsel the youth about the issue that prompted the walkaway attempt. Many times that is successful, he said.

Bed checks are regularly conducted at night, and staff do regular patrols of the grounds, Sinclair said.

Whenever an incident occurs, Sinclair said, a review is done of the event and staff analyzes actions taken, what could have been done differently, and what should have been done that was not done.

“The bottom line is the community wants these incidents to not occur,” Sinclair said, “but I don’t think that’s realistic.”



Reporter Lisa Trigg can be reached at (812) 231-4254 or lisa.trigg@tribstar.com. Follow her on Twitter @TribStarLisa.

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