Second Utah facility for troubled teens to close in a month

A company that runs treatment centers for troubled youth is closing a second Utah facility as officials investigate claims of sexual abuse, violence and several other issues with staff at a different facility.

Mount Pleasant Academy in central Utah is one of several youth psychiatric treatment facilities run by Sequel Youth and Family Services. Sequel representatives said in a statement last week that the school will be shut down within the next month, the Salt Lake Tribune reports.

More >> Second Utah facility for troubled teens to close in a month

Utah Facility Housing Oregon Foster Youth To Close After Reports Of Abuse

An out-of-state treatment facility that houses Oregon foster children is shutting down as it faces numerous reports of serious safety concerns.

Red Rock Canyon School, in St. George, Utah, was the site of an intense brawl and faces accusations of staff assaults of students. The school, owned by Sequel Youth and Family Services, will close at the end of summer.

More >> Utah Facility Housing Oregon Foster Youth To Close After Reports Of Abuse

Violence, often instigated by staff, has become common at Red Rock Canyon School in St. George for troubled children

Months before dozens of police cars raced to a St. George school for troubled youths, one of its teachers had emailed managers with a warning: The staff was losing control, and something bad would happen if things weren’t fixed.

Red Rock Canyon School didn’t have enough staff to calm disputes and teachers were quitting. Brawls among students were becoming more frequent, more than Dane Camp had ever seen during his five years working there.

More >> Violence, often instigated by staff, has become common at Red Rock Canyon School in St. George for troubled children

11-year-old dies within hours of being placed with temporary foster family

The mother of an 11-year-old girl in Provo wants to know why her daughter died within hours of being relocated to a new foster home in American Fork.

Ahadi Mukeshimana was on her bike, unsupervised, when she veered into traffic on 560 W. 1120 N. in American Fork.

More >> 11-year-old dies within hours of being placed with temporary foster family

Officials: Oregon foster child was assaulted at Utah program

An Oregon foster child was among more than 20 teenagers injured during a riot last week at the Red Rock Canyon School in St. George, Utah.

But that wasn’t the first problem experienced by Oregon children at the facility.

Another Oregon foster child sent to Red Rock was physically assaulted by program staff, a state child welfare official and state senator said on Tuesday.

More >> Officials: Oregon foster child was assaulted at Utah program

Independent investigators to review case of foster dad police say filmed kids in bathroom

The case of a foster dad allegedly filming kids in his bathroom will be reviewed by a third party investigative team, Utah officials said Tuesday.

John Kimble, 57, was arrested over the weekend and police say he could face more than 100 felony charges, many related to child pornography. He and his wife had four boys in their care, two of them adopted and two of them foster children. Police believe Kimble's wife was unaware of her husband's alleged crimes.

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Parents left wondering after children sexually abused in Utah County foster home

The biological parents of children police say were abused in their Pleasant Grove foster home are venting their frustration this weekend, wondering whether the abuse could’ve been prevented.

Darrell Hussey, of American Fork, said his teenage son called him Friday, upset and confused.

More >> Parents left wondering after children sexually abused in Utah County foster home

Foster parent charged with 100 counts of child pornography possession: ‘I just like to look’

Police arrested a Utah man Thursday after searching his home and finding over 100 pictures and videos of child pornography on his cellphone.

Police also charged 57-year-old John Kimble with 20 counts of voyeurism after he admitted to filming three of his foster children without their knowledge or permission, according to charging documents. He is also charged with three counts of child sexual abuse and 20 counts of sexual exploitation of a minor for manufacturing child pornography.

More >> Foster parent charged with 100 counts of child pornography possession: ‘I just like to look’

• Foster parent arrested after hiding recording devices in the bathroom of his home

Utah nurse charged with murdering 2-year-old foster son

A Duchesne County nurse was charged Wednesday with murdering her 2-year-old foster son who investigators say she didn't want to adopt.

Lisa Jo Vanderlinden, 41, of Neola, is charged in 8th District Court with aggravated murder, a first-degree felony.

More >> Utah nurse charged with murdering 2-year-old foster son

• Foster parent charged with aggravated murder of 2-year-old boy in Duchesne County

Grandparents of boy in critical condition from alleged abuse claim negligence from Child Protective Services

A five-year-old boy is fighting for his life, and his grandparents say their cries for help went unanswered after he was taken to the hospital Thursday due to severe injuries from alleged abuse.

26-year-old Jordan Wills, the child's mother, and 31-year-old John Manning, Wills' fiance, were arrested Thursday for felony child abuse charges after their son, identified by his grandparents as Tanner, was taken to the hospital with life-threatening injuries. As of Sunday evening, Tanner remains in a coma.

More >> Grandparents of boy in critical condition from alleged abuse claim negligence from Child Protective Services

JACKSONVILLE WOMEN ACCUSED OF RUNNING ADOPTION FRAUD SCHEME, EXTRADITED TO UTAH

Two Jacksonville women who were federally indicted for an adoption fraud scheme were recently extradited to Utah.

Federal investigators said Stephanie Fassnacht and Helen Nickulas promised hopeful adoptive families children who never existed.

More >> JACKSONVILLE WOMEN ACCUSED OF RUNNING ADOPTION FRAUD SCHEME, EXTRADITED TO UTAH

Study: Utah, other Republican-majority states give dads less custody time

Divorced dads in Republican-majority states receive significantly less custody time than those in Democrat-majority states and swing states, according to a new study.

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Fundraiser for victims of child abuse offers AR-15 as prize

A fundraiser to help victims of child abuse in the Heber Valley is giving away an AR-15, the gun used in recent mass shootings—including the school shooting in Parkland, Florida.

More >> Fundraiser for victims of child abuse offers AR-15 as prize

Attorney, mother upset DCFS inspected home, called complaint bogus

 It was a knock on the door two weeks ago that has Catherine Cleveland both upset and puzzled.

Two weeks ago, a social worker from the state's Division of Children and Family Services (DCFS) came to her home requesting an inspection.

More >> Attorney, mother upset DCFS inspected home, called complaint bogus

Utah couple charged with sexually, physically abusing foster daughter

A Saratoga Springs couple was charged Wednesday with numerous felonies after police say their teenage foster daughter was sexually and physically abused for years.

Starting in 2013 when the girl was 14, prosecutors say she was placed with the foster parents and was subjected to being "repeatedly molested and physically harmed … over this five-year time period" by the husband and was physically harmed by the wife, according to charging documents.

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Daughter, birth mother reunited in Utah 60 years later

When Joan Harrison was 21 years old, she gave birth to her first daughter, knowing it was likely the last time she would see her.

As an unwed woman in 1957, Joan made the decision to give her baby, Kathy, up for adoption at a Catholic hospital in Montreal.

More >> Daughter, birth mother reunited in Utah 60 years later

Free-range kids: Finally, one state lets kids grow up without helicopter parents

We need to protect the rights of parents to raise their children with the traditional childhood experience of independence.

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Centerville adoption agency loses license after being put on notice for potentially fraudulent billing and record keeping practices

An embattled Centerville adoption agency will lose its license after a Department of Human Services investigation found the agency took on a new client and altered files in the days after the agency put them on notice for alleged violations of their billing and record keeping practices.

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Utah May Legalize Free-Range Parenting

The Utah State Legislature is reviewing a bill that would decriminalize the actions of responsible parents who let their kids walk or play outside.

If the lawmakers pass SB65, parents who want to give their kids a smidge of childhood freedom won't have to worry about a knock on the door from cops or child protective service workers second-guessing the decision to send their kids outside without a security detail.

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State finds violations at Davis County adoption agency

(KUTV) The Department of Human Services has placed Heart and Soul Adoption, Inc. of Centerville on a conditional license after finding violations that include over-charging adoptive parents.

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