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2 at Brown Schools disciplined
By JIM ROSS © St. Petersburg Times, published May 25, 2001 LECANTO -- Brown Schools executives fired one staffer and suspended another for four days without pay because a teenage resident recently got hold of a bottle of medicine and drank it. The 13-year-old wound up in a hospital emergency room and received treatment for a possible overdose, according to records and interviews. Authorities later detained him under the state's Baker Act. The teen now is back at the Brown School. This series of events, which played out during the past 10 days, has enraged the teen's mother. "The facility isn't set up to help children with mental disabilities," said Donna Wilson of Okeechobee County. Her son, whose name is withheld because of his age, has a different last name. Mrs. Wilson has tried for months, unsuccessfully, to have her son removed from Brown's troubled facility in Lecanto. He has told her he dislikes the place and drank the medicine because he wanted a way out. The company provides residential treatment for adolescents who have severe emotional problems. This boy has attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), bipolar disorder and oppositional defiant disorder, according to his mother. The medication incident started about 7:45 p.m. May 15, according to records from the state Department of Children and Families. The teen found a bottle of liquid Duradryl, which is a decongestant/antihistamine. He "was observed running down the hall to his room saying he was going to drink it. He then went into his room and quickly emerged with the empty bottle and said he drank it," Brown officers wrote in their initial report. Employees called 911, contacted the poison control hotline, called a doctor and summoned nurses, the report said. It was unclear how big the bottle was, although the teen later told his mother it was almost full. An ambulance took him to Seven Rivers Community Hospital, where he was treated and later taken into custody under the Baker Act, which allows law officers to detain people who may be of danger to themselves or others. The teen has been in trouble at Brown before, his mother said. Among other things, he has crawled into the attic and eaten glass and screws. She estimated that he has caused $20,000 worth of damage to the facility. This behavior, she said, is a manifestation of his mental health problems. Brown investigated and determined that a nurse left the medicine bottle in the garbage when cleaning out a cabinet. Policy calls for such medicine to be poured into a sink or toilet, a Brown spokesman said. Brown suspended that nurse four days without pay, the spokesman said. The suspension ended earlier this week. Meanwhile, the company fired a mental health technician who was responsible that evening for monitoring the boy and others who live in his part of the facility, the spokesman said. The names of the disciplined employees were not available. Mrs. Wilson said her son entered Brown eight months ago. He is part of the controversial competency restoration program, which means he has been accused of a crime -- in his case, kicking a teacher who tried to subdue him -- but has been deemed incompetent to proceed further in juvenile court. For Brown, this stands as yet another bad chapter in a rocky Citrus County tenure. The company has received poor marks from Children and Families, which is its state regulator. It also faces legal action from Black Diamond residents who question the zoning decision that cleared the way for Brown to establish itself in the old Heritage Hospital building, which is adjacent to Black Diamond. Earlier this week, authorities arrested Brown's former director and charged him with failing to file a child abuse report and evidence tampering. PREVIOUS COVERAGE:Brown critics unsure of change's impact Brown critics unsure of change's impact Brown Schools might halve load Two investigations generate new Brown Schools concern News good this year for Brown Schools Brown releases plan to improve Report finds problems at Brown Schools Incidents at facility increase concerns Officers catch Brown Schools' boys Facility zoning faces challenge Police visit new youth home often Brown Schools await zoning review
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