- Police Brutality Watch

The parents of a Santa Rosa boy who died at a Missouri boot camp for troubled youths have filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the operators and some employees of the facility. The boy's parents, Victor and Gracia Reyes, filed the suit Friday against the Thayer Learning Center Boot Camp, its affiliated Parent Help referral agency, and three boot camp employees. The lawsuit, filed in Buchanan County, Mo., states Roberto M. Reyes, 15, was "subjected to sadistic, cruel, and harmful acts. ... He was thrown into solitary confinement, refused bathroom facilities, and forced to (lie) in his own excrement for extended periods of time." An autopsy of the 6-foot-2-inch teen "documented numerous bruises, cuts, and ulcerations consistent with physical abuse," the suit alleges. "As you can expect, the death of any 15-year-old from any cause would be a tragedy," said the Reyes family's lawyer, James T. Thompson of Kansas City, Mo. "But the circumstances, as they appear to come to light, are difficult for anyone ... to comprehend." Thayer Learning Center and the Parent Help referral agency are owned by Willa and John Bundy, of Kidder, Mo. The couple could not be reached for comment. Missouri officials are investigating whether the teenager was physically abused by camp counselors and provided insufficient medical care. He died on Nov. 3, less than a week after he arrived at the camp, in Kidder, 60 miles north of Kansas City. State and county officials said in December that earlier medical treatment of Roberto Reyes, who died of a spider or insect bite, might have prevented his death. [more]

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